Facts
The Federal Tax Administration received two requests for international administrative assistance in tax matters from the French Directorate General of Public Finances. These requests concerned information on the bank accounts and tax situation of [A.] in Switzerland. In the context of these requests, the Federal Administration obtained information from Bank D. and the Geneva tax administration, in particular on the fact that [A.] had a right of signature on three bank accounts belonging to companies [B.] and C. The Federal Administration decided to grant the requested administrative assistance and to transmit certain information to the French authorities, in particular the account statements relating to the three bank accounts of which [B.] and [C.] were the account holders. This decision was notified to [A.] in Switzerland, while the notification to companies [B.] and [C.] was made by publication in the Federal Gazette. [A.] appealed against this decision to the Federal Administrative Court, which found the decision to be partially null and void due to a lack of notification to companies [B.] and C. The Court referred the case back to the Federal Administration so that it could properly notify the existence of the administrative assistance procedure to these two companies and give them a deadline to take a position. The Federal Administration appealed against this judgment of the Federal Administrative Court to the Federal Supreme Court.Considerations
3. The dispute essentially concerns the notification requirements that the Federal Administration must comply with in order to inform the persons concerned or entitled to appeal who reside abroad of the existence of an international tax administrative assistance procedure. 4. Art. 14 of the Federal Act on International Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (TAAA) specifically governs the information of the persons concerned and the persons entitled to appeal. When a person entitled to appeal is domiciled abroad, the Federal Administration must invite the holder of the information (here the Bank) to have a representative in Switzerland authorized to receive notifications designated by that person (Art. 14 para. 3 TAAA). 5. The Federal Administrative Court considered that the Federal Administration had not acted in a way that would allow the two companies [B.] and [C.] to take a position on the procedure before the decision of 26 April 2016 was issued, in violation of their right to be heard. 6. However, Art. 14 para. 3 TAAA does not allow…