REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Finance Minister Sri Mulyani is optimistic that Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) would assist the government in exploring potential tax revenues.

"I am sure AEOI can help explore how much potential tax revenue can be earned from those liable to pay tax but have not submitted it," Sri Mulyani said after signing a joint declaration between the Governments of Indonesia and Switzerland here, Tuesday.

The minister said that based on the data obtained from the Amnesty Tax Program, most tax evaders keep their assets in Singapore and Hong Kong.

"We will not say how much the asset is, as the most important thing is that all the places in the world that are usually considered a safe haven to cover up and hide assets have agreed to exchange information," she said.

The minister mentioned that AEOI assists developing countries that are struggling to obtain information on tax evaders.

Meanwhile, Swiss Ambassador to Indonesia Yvonne Baumann remarked that AEOI was a global standard that had been designed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries and implemented by all countries.

"Switzerland has a vested interest in implementing this transparency standard and adopting global standards. We realize there must be a global level-playing field, where we all have the same role," Baumann stressed.

Through the joint declaration, Indonesia and Switzerland agreed to exchange financial account information automatically in accordance with the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) starting 2018, with the first exchange in 2019 protected by data security assurance according to international standards.

Both jurisdictions also stated that they would share information on the development of CRS implementation in each country's domestic legislation and affirm the commitment to continue strengthening cooperation in the financial sector.

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