Italy, Liechtenstein sign tax treaty

(ANSA) - Rome, February 26 - 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.