News
With Exchange Agreement in Doubt, Switzerland Offers Less UBS Data to IRS
By Colby Adams
printA Swiss proposal of how to circumvent a court ruling that blocked an August data exchange agreement may leave U.S. investigators with fewer names of suspected tax cheats than expected. The announcement follows a Jan. 22 Swiss court's ruling that blocked UBS AG's handover of financial data on 4,450 suspected U.S. tax evaders to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. Switzerland and the bank agreed to turn over the names as part of the August settlement, reached after months of negotiations with the United States. Switzerland initially agreed to disclose the data under the terms of an October 1996 tax cooperation...
TO READ THE FULL STORY
Related News
Thirty-four nations disclosed a finalized model plan Monday to regularly share financial data for tax enforcement purposes as part of a broader crackdown on tax dodgers and offshore jurisdictions.
An influential Senate subcommittee will hear testimony on tax evasion through offshore banks, Switzerland agrees to follow automatic data exchange standards and more, in this week's news roundup.
The U.S. Justice Department seizes digital funds tied to an Internet black market, Republicans line up behind effort to fight FATCA and more, in this week's news roundup.
China prohibits the trading of bitcoins by financial institutions over money laundering concerns, the U.K. closes 100 suspicious Bank of Cyprus accounts, and more, in this week's news roundup.
Financial trade groups are asking the U.S. Treasury Department for more time to comply with intergovernmental agreements intended to shine a light on bank accounts held by American tax dodgers.
A Geneva court's ruling clearing the way for bankers to know whether their employers have identified them to American investigators threatens to complicate a negotiated U.S.-Swiss tax deal, say sources.
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.
Swiss financial institutions will likely exploit gaps in a bilateral agreement between the United States and Switzerland to preserve bank secrecy for their clients, says the bestselling author of a book on money laundering.
An expected pitch Friday by Switzerland's executive branch to clear the way for banks to share data with the United States is likely to face stiff domestic challenges, say Swiss attorneys.
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.
A plan to require member-states of the European Union to automatically exchange tax-related data in an effort to boost government revenues is likely to face political and logistical challenges.
Switzerland will begin disclosing account data on nearly 4,000 UBS AG clients within a week after Swiss lawmakers Thursday approved the handover, marking an unprecedented exception to the country's bank secrecy laws.
A decision by Swiss lawmakers to block a deal allowing UBS AG to turn over client data to the United States has left supporters of the agreement scrambling to find an alternative.
It is an exciting time for IRS investigators who are now able to examine the UBS AG accounts of over 4,500 U.S. citizens suspected of hiding assets offshore, according to John Everett, a licensed criminal investigator and certified fraud examiner based in Agoura Hills, California.
As many as a dozen countries are expected to press UBS AG for information on tax evaders following the bank's settlement last week with the United States, say tax analysts.
The U.S. Justice Department settlement with one of Switzerland's largest banks that requires the bank to divulge the names of thousands of suspected tax evaders could provide just one more trail leading investigators to financial institutions in Asia.
Switzerland's largest bank agreed Wednesday to release details to the United States on 4,450 accounts held by U.S. taxpayers suspected of failing to report a total of $18 billion in revenue, the parties said.
The United States and UBS AG said Wednesday that they had reached an agreement over whether U.S. investigators could access data on the bank's tax evading American clients.
Switzerland's largest bank disputed claims Wednesday that it was balking at U.S. demands for information on 52,000 undeclared accounts suspected to belong to tax evaders.
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.