The alpine nation renowned for its culture of banking secrecy is busy re-branding itself as a tax enforcer by taking an active role in the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEI). AEI is a global initiative designed to regularly transmit taxpayer information from the country of citizenship to country of residence. The support of AEI by Swiss Regulators will undoubtedly result in increased scrutiny of anyone failing to disclose income or assets in accordance with OECD guidance and local laws and legislation. Similar regulations, like the US led Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), resulted in the threat, as FORBES indicates, that “non-compliant institutions could be frozen out of U.S. markets.” At a minimum, substantial fines and penalties were waged in the case of FATCA non-compliance. Unlike FATCA, which was very specific to US related citizens, AEI promises to be a global initiative impacting all participating OECD countries and every citizen within their jurisdiction.
This document asks whether you are ready for the changes AEI will bring.
