June 2009

On March 13th 2009 Switzerland announced that, in the future, it will be willing to apply the OECD's Model Tax Convention standard for the exchange of information. This decision was taken practically simultaneously by all the other countries having not yet implemented this standard.  It will modify the coverage of banking secrecy with regard to fiscal matters, at least for the nationals of countries with which Switzerland will have amended the double taxation treaties to include the exchange of information. This article retraces the circumstances which led to the Federal Council's change of policy, explaining the consequences it will have as well as discussing the accompanying measures which will need to be adopted for the financial centre to remain attractive.

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