Russian Federal Tax Service excluded Switzerland and Cayman Islands from list of countries of subject to automatic exchange of financial information

December 5, 2022, Russian Federal Tax Service (“FTS”) has updated its Order No. ЕД-7-17/986@[1] dated October 28, 2022 On a List of States that are Subject to Automatic Exchange of Financial Information (“Order”), thus excluding Switzerland and Cayman Island from the list. Both jurisdictions have been previously designated as “non-friendly” pursuant to Russian legislation enacted as reaction for imposition of sanctions following Russian invasion into Ukraine.

The automatic exchange of financial information between the countries is provided by joint OECD and Council of Europe Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. 

Russia has been applying this convention since 2015 (together with OECD Common Reporting Standard) for automatic exchange of financial information in regard to international groups of companies and Russian residents’ business outside Russia, for the purposes of their taxation.

In exchange forInstead of Switzerland and Cayman Islands, Kazakhstan, Maldives and Oman were included in the list.

What consequences does this have onThe exclusion of Switzerland and Cayman Islands? It meansmay have an additional impact, potentially rendering that all transactions made by Russian residents (physical natural persons) with into their Cayman and Swiss bank accounts, may be considered as illegal due to Russian law on currency regulation and control (except for so-called ‘special currency residents’ – who do not actually reside in Russia).

Exclusion of Switzerland and Caymans from this list also means additional obligations for Russian subsidiaries of international groups offoreign companies related to those jurisdictions.

[1] The Executive Order of Russian Federal Tax Service can be found at: https://www.nalog.gov.ru/rn77/about_fts/docs/12956210/.