Hundreds of Swiss bankers are suing to stop their old employers from turning over to the United States details of their interactions with suspected American tax evaders, according to a tax attorney.
A U.S.-Swiss plan to resolve a tax evasion dispute may absolve Switzerland's government from further action but will prove costly and time-consuming for participating banks, say attorneys.
An expected plan to resolve a U.S.-Swiss tax dispute will likely prompt a wave of disclosures by American taxpayers and clear the way for banks to turn over data on their employees.
Ongoing negotiations between the United States and European Union on a broad data-sharing arrangement will likely be complicated following the leaked disclosure this month of a transnational American surveillance program.
The indictment of a now-defunct Swiss financial institution and threatened charges against the country's largest publicly-owned bank fueled Switzerland's decision last month to seek a broad data-sharing agreement with American officials.
Financial industry groups from several countries called on U.S. officials to extend by one year a deadline to comply with an anti-tax evasion law that takes effect in January.
Rules intended to collect data on offshore American assets will be most greatly softened for financial institutions in five European nations, the U.S. Treasury Department proposed Wednesday.
A former Bank Julius Baer official is weighing turning over data on suspected tax cheats to U.S. and Indian officials after the Swiss government declined to investigate his allegations.
A U.S. anti-tax haven law that goes into effect in 2013 may serve as a model for European legislators seeking to recoup lost tax revenue, said speakers at an anti-money laundering conference on Monday and Tuesday.
Publicity over the expected disclosure of private banking data on 2,000 prominent clients of Bank Julius Baer and at least two other financial institutions could spur tax authorities to act more quickly on information they already have.
Upcoming U.S. Treasury Department rules on a new law meant to curb tax evasion may mean only modest new compliance duties for American financial institutions, according to consultants.
Switzerland's largest bank will pay $780 million to the United States for helping 17,000 U.S. citizens evade paying taxes on offshore revenue, the U.S. Justice Department said Wednesday.