New measures by the German legislator to detect tax evasion

In recent years, German lawmakers have developed many activities to clarify tax evasion abroad. An essential part of this was the law on the exchange between different states on financial accounts in tax matters. The states concerned have undertaken to inform each other about the accounts of the respective citizens. Following an announcement by the German Federal Ministry of Finance on 29.01.2019, this list has now been updated.

The risk that tax arrangements involving foreign banks might be uncovered is increasing. Affected account holders should therefore carefully examine whether they can be accused of tax evasion. If this is the case, German lawyers who specialise in criminal tax law should examine the possibility of voluntary self-disclosure to avoid penalty.

If there is a suspicion that money is being transferred abroad to evade taxes, German tax investigators currently have potential access to information on bank accounts of the following states:

Andorra

Anguilla

Antigua and Barbuda

Argentina

Aruba

Azerbaijan

Australia

Bahamas

Bahrain

Barbados

Belgium

Belize

Bermuda

Brazil

British Virgin Island

Brunei Darussalam

Bulgaria

Chile

China

Cook Islands

Costa Rica

Curacao

Denmark

Dominica

Estonia

Faroe Islands

Finland

France (France)

Ghana

Gibraltar

Grenada

Greece

Greenland

Guernsey

Hong Kong

India

Indonesia

Ireland

Iceland

Isle of Man

Israel

Italy

Japan

Jersey

Cayman Islands

Canada

Colombia

Korea, Republic of

Croatia

Kuwait

Latvia

Lebanon

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Macau

Malaysia

Malta

Marshall Islands

Mauritius

Mexico

Monaco

Montserrat

Nauru

New Zealand

Netherlands

Nigeria

Niue

Norway

Austria

Pakistan

Panama

Poland

Portugal

Qatar

Romania

Russian Federation

Samoa

San Marino

Saudi Arabia

Sweden

Switzerland

Seychelles

Singapore

Sint Maarten

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Saint Kitts and Nevis

St. Lucia

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

South Africa

Trinidad and Tobago

Czechia

Turkey

Turks and Caicos Islands

Hungary

Uruguay

Vanuatu

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

Cyprus