Economy Minister Pier Carlo
Padoan and the prime minister and finance minister of
Liechtenstein, Adrian Hasler, signed a tax information exchange
agreement Thurday that essentially abolishes banking secrecy in
the tiny landlocked central European country.
"The agreement will help us strengthen the fight against
tax evasion," the ministry said.
The signing of the agreement takes Liechtenstein off the
black list of countries that oppose voluntary disclosure, and
Italian citizens who have stashed undeclared income in its banks
will have to come clean.
The agreement is essentially same as the one Italy signed
with Switzerland on Monday.
That treaty increases sharing of tax information between
the two countries and is expected to help Italy track down tax
dodgers.
Tax evasion in Italy costs some 90 billion euros a year.
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