Facts
The Federal Tax Administration received a request for administrative assistance from the French Directorate General of Public Finances concerning a list of taxpayers in connection with income tax, corporate tax, and wealth tax for the years 2010 to 2012. This request followed an investigation by the French judicial authorities into employees of the Swiss bank B. for unlawful banking or financial solicitation, money laundering by a criminal organization, and receiving of funds obtained through unlawful solicitation. A. is one of the persons targeted by this request as a French non-resident taxpayer. The Federal Administration granted administrative assistance to France concerning A. He appealed against this decision, obtaining its annulment by the Federal Administrative Court, which refused to entertain the request for assistance. The Federal Administration then appealed to the Federal Tribunal.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal upheld the appeal of the Federal Administration. It first considered that Art. 28 para. 3 let. b of the Double Taxation Convention Switzerland-France does not allow the refusal of administrative assistance on the ground that the request would be based on so-called stolen data. This provision only concerns the information requested, and not the factual circumstances underlying the request. The Federal Tribunal then examined Art. 7 let. c of the Federal Act on International Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (TAAA), which provides that…