The instruments of ratification were exchanged by State Secretary Daniela Stoffel (right) for Switzerland and US Ambassador Edward McMullen
Swiss Federal Department of Finance
The long-awaited double taxation agreement (DTA) between Switzerland and the United States has entered into force.
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State Secretariat for International Finance/Keystone-SDA/swissinfo/US Embassy/ilj
The instruments of ratification were formally exchanged by State Secretary Daniela Stoffel for Switzerland and Ambassador Edward McMullen for the United States on Friday, which brought the protocol into force.
The DTA was ratified by the US Senate in mid-July, ending years of stalemate. This accord, designed to meet international standards on the exchange of bank data, had been blocked for 10 years by one US Senator. Rand Paul of the Republican Party fought against the DTA, which had already been signed in 2009, on the grounds that it violated privacy. The Swiss Parliament had already approved the protocol in June 2010.
The agreement makes it easier for the Americans to obtain information from the Swiss authorities if they suspect tax evasion.
“The core element of this revision is the exchange of information. There is no longer any distinction between tax evasion and tax fraud, neither for individual nor for group requests. This is in line with the international standard on the exchange of information upon request, which Switzerland applies to more than 100 states and territories, but not to date to the USA,” the Swiss statement said.
For his part, Ambassador McMullen addedExternal link that the protocol further strengthened “the excellent bilateral economic relationship between the United States and Switzerland. Tax administration will be clearer, faster and more efficient because we have this protocol in place”.
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