what's so good about swiss bank account
Banking in Switzerland According to the 2018 Financial Secrecy Index, Switzerland's banking secrecy laws have rendered it a premier tax haven since the 1900s.[25] One of the most prominent attractions to the disclosure protection laws is the distinction between tax evasion (non-reporting of income) and tax fraud (active deception).[57] Akin to the distinction between legal tax avoidance and illegal tax evasion in the U.S., the non-reporting of income is only a civil offense in Switzerland while tax fraud is a financial crime.[57] When foreign clients deposit holdings into a Swiss bank account, the bank is legally prohibited from disclosing balances or client information to tax authorities.[57] This prohibition can only be waved if the client has produced a written statement of consent or a financial crime has been directly linked to the bank account.[57] More often than not,[16] clients don't consent to foreign tax authorities which leaves only the latter circumstance available.[55] Many client services available in Switzerland (e.g. numbered bank accounts) are used to shield client data from tax authorities.[55]