Tax evaders: Switzerland transfers money to UK and Austria

[Tender Branson]

Almost 30,000 UK, Austrian tax dodgers disclose Swiss accounts

ZURICH –  Almost 30,000 Britons and Austrians have come forward to pay tax on previously undisclosed Swiss bank accounts under bilateral agreements aimed at rooting out untaxed money in Switzerland.

Switzerland's Federal Tax Administration (FTA) said on Thursday it had transferred a first tranche of 258.3 million pounds ($396.7 million) to Britain based on 14,789 declarations, and 416.7 million euros ($551.6 million) to Austria based on 13,592 clients.

Swiss secrecy laws have helped to make the country the world's biggest offshore financial centre, but have also drawn the ire of countries seeking to fight tax evasion.

Under the deals with Britain and Austria, clients with undisclosed Swiss bank accounts have the option either to provide information to the relevant tax authorities and pay any monies due, or make a punitive one-off payment in exchange for retaining their anonymity.

Thereafter taxes will be levied on the capital gains and income generated by the accounts, to be passed on to the relevant governments.

However, after Germany rejected a similar arrangement in December, Swiss banks have become less enthusiastic about a model they see as cumbersome, and which puts the onus of tax collection onto them.

Read more: http://www.foxbusiness.com/news/2013/07/25/almost-30000-uk-austrian-tax-dodgers-disclose-swiss-accounts/#ixzz2a4HmlTpS

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Good for the budget ...

[freefair]

At least vile, arrogant hyper-Eurofederalists will find it harder to disdain and mock Switzerland's neoliberal (I like the term) independence+free trade stance by claiming it's superior wealth comes from "parasitic" behavior, which wouldn't be true even if it had a smaller banking secotr

[DC Al Fine]

I've heard the Swiss view their banking secrecy like most Americans view the 1st Amendment. Is that true?

[ZuWo]

I've heard the Swiss view their banking secrecy like most Americans view the 1st Amendment. Is that true?

This used to be very true in the past but this has changed since banking secrecy has lost a great deal of its significance due to international pressure. In fact, Swiss people have grown increasingly critical of the banking sector lately. What is irritating to many, however, is the hypocrisy of many governments which have criticized Swiss banks but still tolerate tax havens within their own dominions  Indeed, this double standard leads some Swiss to instinctively defend banking secrecy - a line of thinking which can be summarized as "why should we give up one of our major assets if other states aren't willing to abide by the same rules".