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Switzerland and Finland have concluded negotiations on extending administrative assistance in tax matters under Article 26 of the OECD Model Convention and initialled a revised double taxation agreement. The DTA was negotiated in accordance with the parameters decided by the Federal Council.

On March 13, 2009, the Federal Council decided that Switzerland would change policy on international cooperation in tax matters and adopt the OECD standard on administrative assistance in tax matters under Article 26 of the OECD Model Convention. The decision will permit an exchange of information on tax matters in individual cases where a specific and justified request has been made.

Following the Federal Council decision in March 2009, Finland is the twelfth country with which Switzerland has initialled a DTA containing the extended administrative assistance clause after Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, France, Mexico, the USA, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, and Austria. The initialling is the first stage on the way to a new or a revised DTA. In order to be removed from the "grey list" drawn up by the OECD Secretariat for the G20, the next step is for twelve agreements based on the OECD standard on administrative assistance to be signed. According to the OECD, it is only then that a state substantially implements the internationally agreed standard on administrative assistance in tax matters.T

The initialled text is still confidential. The cantons and business associations will now have the opportunity to submit their views. The Federal Council will then decide on whether to authorise the signature, after which the agreement will be published.