-On 7 May officials from Berne and the European Commission are expected to open talks on the taxation of non-residents' savings.
“The stakes are high. The outcome of the negotiations is set to determine the future of EU-Swiss relationships and the lucrative tradition of Swiss banking secrecy as well as the chances of breaking a four-year logjam on new savings tax rules inside the EU.”
“This is because a piece of horse-trading between EU member-states has given Switzerland, which is not a member, effective veto power over a compromise on savings tax reached by the EU last December after months of discussions.”
“Under the deal - designed to avoid an EU-wide 'withholding tax' on the income from cross-border savings - governments agreed to exchange information on the interest paid to non-residents so that individuals could be taxed in their home country. However, the countries opposed to the proposals - Luxembourg, Belgium and Austria - won a seven-year transition period during which they will levy a withholding tax.”
'The subject is of great importance,' says a Swiss official. 'Switzerland wants to keep its banking secrecy: anything that puts it in danger would have serious economic consequences.' Switzerland would like the same exemptions granted to Luxembourg, Belgium and Austria for seven years, but on a permanent basis.
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