On 4 November 2020, the Swiss Federal Council adopted the dispatch on the Federal Act on the implementation of international tax agreements. With this proposal, the Federal Council is adapting the existing law to the changes made to international tax law in recent years.
The total revision of the Federal Act of 1951 on the Implementation of International Federal Conventions on the Avoidance of Double Taxation (new version: ITAIA) should ensure that tax agreements can continue to be applied easily and with legal certainty in the future. That is why the Federal Council is proposing to supplement the existing standards with additional regulatory areas. The revision of the law stipulates how mutual agreement procedures (MAP) are to be carried out at national level, provided the applicable agreement does not contain any deviating provisions. Moreover, the new law contains the key points for withholding tax relief based on international agreements, as well as criminal provisions in connection with relief from withholding taxes on capital income.
Based on the consultation, the Federal Council clarified the bill from a content and linguistic viewpoint, ensuring in particular that the cantons are more involved in the preparation of mutual agreement procedures (MAP). The Swiss Parliament is due to discuss the bill for the first time in the first half of 2021.
