posted
Featured Broker sponsored link WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Swiss government has agreed to "review and process" additional requests by the United States for information from Swiss banks besides UBS AG about account holders suspected of evading U.S. taxes, the U.S. government said on Wednesday.
The U.S. and Swiss governments signed a pact on Wednesday for giant Swiss bank UBS to turn over account information involving thousands of Americans believed to have evaded U.S. taxes for years.
The agreement would end a case that has strained U.S.-Swiss relations and would also pierce vaunted Swiss bank secrecy which has frustrated U.S. tax authorities for decades.
Under the pact, the Swiss government will tell UBS to turn over information about some 4,450 accounts that are active or have already been closed, according to documents provided by the U.S. Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service.
The bank has already turned over information about some 250 clients. If UBS did not follow through on its commitment, then the United States said it could revive its efforts to compel the bank to turn over the information.
The Swiss government has also agreed to review and process more requests for "information from other banks regarding their account holders to the extent that such a request is based on a pattern of facts and circumstances equivalent to those of the UBS case," the U.S. Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service said.
There is a voluntary disclosure program for Americans to come forward about offshore accounts that runs through September 23. However, IRS officials said that those who do not come forward before they are identified could face civil or criminal prosecution.
"Every time someone walks in the door we learn more about who's hiding assets and what banks are helping to facilitate it," IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman told reporters during a conference call.
Already four U.S. customers of UBS have been prosecuted successfully.
(Reporting by James Vicini, Jeremy Pelofsky and Kim Dixon, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
-------------------- Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise.
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posted
As I understand it, UBS actually broke Swiss law to turn over the information on the 250 accounts. The Swiss would have to completely change their banking laws to allow the 'additional requests' or simply ignore the law.
quote:Originally posted by SeekingFreedom: As I understand it, UBS actually broke Swiss law to turn over the information on the 250 accounts. The Swiss would have to completely change their banking laws to allow the 'additional requests' or simply ignore the law.
What a day for the homeland!!
Aren't we proud!?
LOL...
the Swiss govt didn't think they are breaking the law...
Swiss Government Says UBS, IRS Tax Pact Within Swiss Bank Law
By Katharina Bart, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
ZURICH -(Dow Jones)- Switzerland's government Wednesday said the handover of confidential client data to settle Swiss bank UBS AG's (UBS) messy legal dispute with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service falls within Swiss banking secrecy law.
The two countries Wednesday formally signed a pact to set aside the lawsuit - which the Swiss government said had increasingly threatened UBS's existence - by agreeing to hand over 4,450 sets of UBS client data, many of them identified as cases of tax fraud or serious offenses of evasion, Switzerland said.
"With this agreement, we have managed to avoid a conflict between the sovereignty of two states," Swiss justice minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said at a media briefing detailing the settlement. The pact will fully comply with Swiss law and not violate banking secrecy, which she emphasized is not meant to protect criminal behavior.
Specifically, the data handover will be carried out in accordance with Swiss law, meaning the U.S. will drop the John Doe summons it was pursuing to get access to 52,000 sets of client data. Instead, the IRS will submit a request to Swiss tax authorities to root out clients whose use of UBS to manage their money can be classified as "tax fraud and the like."
of course tax fraud is "good fraud" right?
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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posted
The problem, Glass, isn't if 'tax fraud is "good fraud"', it's how far can we expect other countries to bend\break their own laws to obey our desires.
Let me explain this way...
Swiss banking secrecy laws are nuanced so that tax fraud (actively scamming the government) is a crime while tax evasion (simply not reporting income) is not. In order for the Swiss to 'legally' turn over this information, the requesting country has to provide ample proof that the individual has committed tax fraud.
So, my point is that if the U.S. Gov. has proof that the owners of 52,000(!) accounts are currently committing fraud, why aren't they prosecuting them based on said proof instead of fishing overseas?
In fact, Bloomberg ran a story on this that stated that Swiss banks are actually closing American accounts simply because the U.S. Gov is sticking its claws into UBS and they are afraid they will be next in line.
quote:Originally posted by SeekingFreedom: The problem, Glass, isn't if 'tax fraud is "good fraud"', it's how far can we expect other countries to bend\break their own laws to obey our desires.
Let me explain this way...
Swiss banking secrecy laws are nuanced so that tax fraud (actively scamming the government) is a crime while tax evasion (simply not reporting income) is not. In order for the Swiss to 'legally' turn over this information, the requesting country has to provide ample proof that the individual has committed tax fraud.
So, my point is that if the U.S. Gov. has proof that the owners of 52,000(!) accounts are currently committing fraud, why aren't they prosecuting them based on said proof instead of fishing overseas?
In fact, Bloomberg ran a story on this that stated that Swiss banks are actually closing American accounts simply because the U.S. Gov is sticking its claws into UBS and they are afraid they will be next in line.
posted
I'm not defending tax fraud. But I get a little antsy about our Government fishing for cash like this.
now, here's the real question. how does somebody hide legally gained assets in Switezerland?
it's not that easy to commit to tax fraud and leave no traces.
so i propose to you that they are not fishing, they know who they are after and why.
actaully, you can thank the Patriot Act for the new knowledge they have.
IMO? most of the money that makes it's way into these tax havens is laundered.
if it's honestly gained inside the country? then it has to be "laundered" out of the country to avoid paying taxes on it. that involves cooking all your books to hide it.
if it's illegally gained, then paying taxes on it is an admission of guilt so most illegally gained money is laundered out too.
there are very few legal scenarios where people make the kind of legal cash transactions that would be of interest to the IRS, or lead to the trouble of hiding it in a Swiss bank anyway.
all of this sudden, and i do mean VERY sudden concern about the govt taking its job too seriously by "conservatives" is laughable. just as it is laughable that liberals "suddenly" trust the govt.
awhile back i recall consrvatives saying you shouldn't worry about the govt reading your emails as long as you have nothing to hide? you have nothing to fear.
now? the same people are seeing monsters under their bed everyday.
this is a symptom of schizophrenia.
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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I find this particular issue had to find fault with.
I dunno...I guess it is all in your perspective. I would wager a guess that Relentless would call this overreaching.
From my personal view point it is the gov recovering from an 8 yr state of catatonia and starting to move again. Not over-reaching at all. Just actually starting to look around and figure out where the money in its money clip got off to while it was asleep.
-------------------- No longer eligible for government service due to lack of tax issues.
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Yeah I see a big problem with government acting as though other countries are nothing more than states... I fear it is a mentality that is taking hold with alot of governments...
I would say none of us deny that sooner or later a one world government will happen...
I do not doubt that many also know we are no where near evolved enough to do it correctly at this point... There's not a government nor a man in government now that wouldn't sell every citizen to slaughter were it to add a nickel to his account.
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posted
I agree with you that we are not evolved enough to have a one world government and what is scary to me is we have the weapons we have in the hands of mostly men that are just that plain and simple men that like all of us fly into emotional rages full of ego its to bad we ever went past a sword and shield
-------------------- Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise.
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Seems your agenda is just as visible even when your spelling is uncharacteristically flawed.. presumably by a common Friday night drink. Evolution of weaponry is not to be feared.. it is to be adored... We are beings notably different from others by our use and crafting of tools... Do not hate what you are. Be bipedal
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thats is a response with complete lack of logic. The most feared thing on earth is weaponry with out it we are not feared but we are the weakest of animals,even with our brains.
When you look at human history we grew at much faster a pace when peace was the order of the day and the order of our focus not bombs
-------------------- Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise.
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Humans have been around for.. what?... million years or so...? Do tell me the one day in there that they weren't either trying to kill one another or actually doing it. What was the first instrument grasped with a human hand? A stick. Why? To whack someone on the head.
We fight... it's what we do... When we aren't fighting we're preparing to fight...
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I watch very brutal people all day and the I come home to normal people and the burtal people are mentally ill normal every day people will snap every once in a while but most are a bunch of cup cakes.
I don't agree wit you unless you would like to be a guest of mine at work so you could explain that to the people thier
-------------------- Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise.
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