Switzerland signed the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“Multilateral Instrument” or “MLI”) on 7th June 2017 in Paris.
The Convention is a key outcome of the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, which aims to offers concrete solutions for governments to close the gaps in existing international tax rules by transposing results from the OECD/G20 BEPS Project into bilateral tax treaties worldwide.
The Convention will serve to efficiently amend double taxation agreements in line with the minimum standards agreed upon in the BEPS project. According to the Switzerland’s media release, Switzerland will implement these minimum standards either within the framework of the Multilateral Convention or by means of the bilateral negotiation of double taxation agreements.
About 70 countries at all levels of development have signed this Multilateral Instrument (MLI) at the OECD Centre in the presence of Secretary-General OECD at the same time. A number of jurisdictions have also expressed their intention to sign the MLI as soon as possible and other jurisdictions are also actively working towards participation in the multilateral instrument.
The Federal Council will submit the BEPS Convention for public consultation towards the end of 2017. It will undergo the standard parliamentary approval process before entering into force.
