Switzerland: Agreement to accept digital Certificates of Tax Residence from UK and Spanish applicants

30.11.2020

Clearstream Banking AG1 would like to inform customers that effective

immediately

the Swiss authorities have reached an agreement with the United Kingdom and Spanish tax authorities to temporarily accept digital Certificates of Tax Residence (CoTR) for the application of the double taxation agreements (DTA) between these countries and Switzerland.

Impact on customers

United Kingdom applicants

The Swiss tax authorities will temporarily accept digital CoTRs to complement Reclaim Form 86 used to claim the application of the DTA between Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

This is a temporary measure exclusively applicable during the COVID-19 pandemic period.

The respective authorities have also agreed, when the time comes, to jointly decide and announce the end of this pandemic period with the consequence of a return to the standard procedure where the Reclaim Form 86 section dedicated to the beneficial owner’s competent tax authorities must be completed.

Spanish applicants

The same principle as detailed above applies to Reclaim Form 90 used by Spanish beneficial owners to reclaim withholding tax deducted in excess at source.

These temporary procedural requirements are currently only applicable for the United Kingdom and Spanish claimants.

Further information

For further information, please contact the Clearstream Banking Tax Help Desk, Clearstream Banking Client Services or your Relationship Officer.

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1. This Announcement is published by Clearstream Banking AG (CBF), registered office at Mergenthalerallee 61, 65760 Eschborn, Germany, registered with the Commercial Register of the District Court in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, under number HRB 7500.