Swiss federal authorities announced on 19 March 2025 that Switzerland and Zimbabwe signed a new income tax treaty. This will ensure the requisite legal certainty for the ongoing development of bilateral economic relations and tax cooperation between the two countries.
A tax treaty, also called double tax agreement (DTA) or double tax avoidance agreement (DTAA), is an agreement between two countries to avoid or mitigate double taxation. The DTA allows the Swiss network of double taxation agreements to be expanded into Southern Africa. It guarantees legal certainty and a contractual framework, which will have a beneficial effect on the further development of bilateral economic relations.
The DTA takes account of the developments associated with the OECD’s base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project, which aims to combat the erosion of the tax base and profit shifting. In this respect, it contains an anti-abuse clause. The DTA also contains an administrative assistance clause in line with the international standard for the exchange of information upon request.
The agreement will need to be ratified by both countries before it can enter into force.
