Taxpayer Rights in the Context of the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI): Insights from Recent Swiss Case Law

This article examines the tension between taxpayer rights and the automatic exchange of information (AEOI), focusing on recent Swiss case law. AEOI, promoted by the OECD and G20, enables large-scale cross-border tax data transfers, raising concerns over privacy, data protection and legal remedies. In decisions 2C_780/2020 and 2C_946/2021, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court clarified that reporting financial institutions ensure data accuracy, while the Federal Tax Administration serves as a technical conduit. Also, upholding multilateral trust, the Court relied on OECD peer reviews and partner states’ commitments, yet dismissed broader rights concerns. An analogy with asylum law highlights the heavy evidentiary burden on challengers.