Voluntary, last call
The voluntary disclosure is passing under the banner of the last kilometer. By November 30, the games will be made. One can already say that the operation is a success announced. Order of Chartered Accountants of Milan has estimated that the transaction will derive from the tax authorities at least 4 billion Euros. But the most important aspect is that the voluntary will bring thirty billion which, once declared to the tax authorities, will enter the legal circuit. Compliance will become, as they say now.
But what happens to the capital that will decide instead of not re-emerge? It is even more substantial assets, although the bulk of the funds of Italians abroad, undeclared, is estimated at between 200 and 300 billion. Someone has already taken steps to resettle in one of the (few) tax havens still available. But most of the capital lie frozen in Swiss banks. Despite the proverbial precision, reliability, rigor, the Swiss banker, we can say that they too are going through a time of institutional confusion. They do not have a point: for centuries have been protected by banking secrecy that, in Switzerland, was a real state religion. In a few years it has been wiped out. Today, as the Italian tax authorities have a number of legal instruments to penetrate even projecting a secret which no longer exists: it can use the Convention against double taxation, or use the Tax Information Exchange Agriment (TIEA), or, a little ‘dated , multilateral conventions on administrative assistance, or, shortly, the automatic exchange of information (CRS) that has effectively cloned systems a bit ‘rough but effective of Facta. We are spoiled for choice. If we add to this that the Swiss criminal law is entering into force the punishment for aggravated money laundering tax evasion, one understands the reason for the change of team of Swiss banks, as guardians of the fact of the taxpayer-evader suddenly became the guarantors fairness and fiscal transparency: criminal and reputational risks have become too high.
But what will become of accounts not settled by December 1? Nobody know. But you can make two assumptions. Swiss banks close the account and send a check for an amount corresponding to credit to the address of the holder, as they did under the rules of the Facta with American customers. Of course, then they will do the reporting money laundering to the competent authorities: the customer is likely higher fines of capital itself and a criminal trial. Or it is all frozen. In fact as the customer, at best, lose the availability of its assets, provided that the bank does not face the money laundering reporting. The account holder can only apply to the Swiss judicial hoping that this will give him reason. But the road is impassable. In fact, they’re playing are the trumpets of judgment, better not to get on the wrong side.
