On 14 September 2017, the OECD published additional AEI exchange relationships based on the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA). This raises the total number of bilateral exchange relationships to more than 2,000. In addition, on 27 September 2017 the Swiss National Council (Nationalrat) approved regulations allowing the Federal Council (Bundesrat) to activate the MCAA with an additional 39 jurisdictions.

The third wave of exchange relationships published by the OECD consists of over 500 new ones. The OECD indicates an additional wave will be published in November 2017.

Based on Deloitte analysis of the new exchange relationships, which is monitored through the Deloitte bespoke monitoring tool Taxparency, certain jurisdictions activated over 60 new exchange relationships. Interestingly, for those jurisdictions that have already published local lists of Reportable Jurisdictions, a number of exchange relationships were published for the first time.

In addition to the newly-announced agreements, the OECD quietly updated its website with a smaller number of exchange relationships shortly after, without any announcement of this fact.

This latest wave of exchange relationships shows that participating jurisdictions are making good progress in expanding their exchange networks. Currently, 71 countries have at least one agreement in place to exchange information. The number of exchange relationships differ per jurisdiction however, with some opting to exchange with all participating jurisdictions and others being rather selective.

Switzerland is also making progress in expanding its exchange network. Each new exchange relationship needs approval from both Councils of the parliament. On 27 September 2017, 41 new exchange relationships were presented to the National Council. Of the 41 agreements, 39 agreements were accepted, albeit with differing majorities. The National Council did not approve exchange under AEI with Saudi-Arabia and, interestingly, New Zealand.

While general concerns regarding data security have driven the decision against an exchange with Saudi Arabia, members of the National Council insisted that the Federal Council first negotiate a social security agreement with New Zealand before any exchange of information under AEI can take place. The 41 agreements will now be discussed in the Council of States (Ständerat), hopefully allowing activation of the 39 exchange relationships accepted by the National Council before 1 January 2018. The future of the exchange agreements with New Zealand and Saudi Arabia depends on the vote in the Council of States, but activation along with the other 39 seems unlikely.

In addition to the 39 new exchange agreements, the National Council also approved its Economic Affairs and Taxation Committees’ suggestion of additional oversight and approval before the actual exchanges shall take place for the first time, in September 2018. Adding this step enables parliament to ensure that certain requirements in the field of privacy and data security are met. Furthermore, the exchange network of the exchange partner must be sufficiently broad, to ensure a level playing field with other financial centres. 

Markus Weber - Partner, Financial Services Tax Leader Switzerland

Markus heads the Financial Services Tax practice. He has more than ten years of experience in advising financial institutions in the banking, insurance and asset management sector, covering the full range of relevant taxes. Prior to joining Deloitte, he was the managing director of a fund management company, followed by a role as executive director in the group tax department of a leading Swiss bank, where he was in charge of compliance with cross-border U.S. tax regulations.

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Brandi Caruso - Director, Financial Services Tax 

Brandi heads the Tax Transparency offering within the Financial Services Tax practice across Switzerland, responsible for services related to QI, FATCA, CRS, and 871(m). She is a technical advisor and a subject matter expert to a number of Swiss-based trust companies and banks and leads the Deloitte Trust Forum. She has more than 15 years of experience with Deloitte in the US, UK, and in Switzerland.

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Michael Grebe - Senior Manager, Financial Services Tax

Michael is a Senior Manager in the Financial Services Tax practice. He advises banks, trust companies, and insurers in relation to the interpretation and implementation of the global transparency related regimes. He has over ten years of experience in the financial industry covering a broad spectrum ranging from Process- over Project- to Product- Management. Prior to joining Deloitte, he led the FATCA and CRS implementation project for a global financial institution.

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Marnix Kippersluis - Consultant, Financial Services Tax

Marnix is a consultant in the Financial Services Industry Tax team in Zürich, where he advises international financial institutions on the implementation and interpretation of FATCA and CRS regulations. Marnix holds a Master of Law degree from Utrecht University, the Netherlands.

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