On July15, 2010, Switzerland’s Federal Administrative Court rejected a UBS account holder’s complaint that sought to prevent the release of her client information to the U.S. tax authorities. The ruling is significant because it signals the likely end-game for UBS account holders with undisclosed accounts who had sought to prevent their account information from being delivered to the IRS.
HSBC appears to be the next target of U.S. government in its fight against offshore tax evasion. On June 21, 2010, the Department of Justice issued letters to HSBC clients informing them that they are subject to a criminal investigation.
The U.S. government expects to investigate thousands more cases of wealthy individuals dodging taxes through offshore bank accounts, in addition to the high profile and highly publicized case against UBS AG. It appears that in addition to probing the Swiss and Caribbean bank accounts, the U.S. may be looking at the Asian banks as well.
Offshore Tax Evasion by UBS Client