The degree of the Government’s proposal that will require banks to submit to the tax authorities the balances of bank accounts of all residents in Portugal deserved strong criticism of the National Data Protection Commission (CNPD) and before the opinion where it is said that the protection of banking secrecy is seriously compromised, the Ministry of Finance admits to welcome “in general” recommendations, but without jeopardizing the provision of such information once a year to the tax administration.
at issue, says the Government, is the rule of European law and the FATCA agreement with the United States for the exchange of financial information in tax matters between tax authorities.
the Directive European to transpose into national law requires the automatic exchange between States of accounts held in Portugal by non-residents and accounts held by residents abroad. To ride the new measures to combat tax evasion, the government extended this measure to residents in Portugal, determining that the Tax and Customs Authority (TA) has access to information equivalent to that will be transmitted to foreign entities, thus to know the balances almost all who have accounts in banks operating in the Portuguese market.
the Ministry of Finance submitted the diploma preliminary draft to the ICPD, who found the document a “clear violation” of the Portuguese Constitution. In the opinion, reported on Wednesday by the Journal News , the committee believes that the fact that the banks pass to send to the AT at the end of each year, file with the financial accounts represent a “restriction unnecessary and excessive fundamental rights to the protection of personal data and the protection of private life. “
the Inland revenue says the CNDP, already aware of many banking and commercial transactions, banking secrecy is lifted in many situations and “it is doubtful that the widespread knowledge of the account balances can still say that there is banking secrecy in national law.” Understanding contrary has the OECD, which have recently found that Portugal is among the countries where the powers of access to bank information by the tax authorities is among the lowest.
the sending of that data, vinca the ICPD affects “seriously the privacy of citizens” and “decisively shakes the banking secrecy in relation state.” When the CNDP says the law hurts the Portuguese Constitution, refers to the number two of Article 18, which provides that “the law can only restrict the rights, freedoms and guarantees in cases expressly provided for in the Constitution and must confine the restrictions the extent necessary to safeguard other constitutionally protected rights or interests. “
One of the criticized points has to do with the amount and content of the information that the aT will have access on citizens . “It is clearly too high to know financial information in such a high level of personal data holders (almost all owners and beneficiaries of resident financial accounts in Portuguese territory) without criteria are defined minimum (and proportionate) that indicate illegal tax behavior, or unless identify risk situations such behavior. “
the Ministry of Finance took note of warning, but in response to questions sent by PUBLIC, vinca that” the information in question is limited in scope (balances account once a year) excluding in particular the detail of the account records, the exact terms defined by the Directive and the FATCA agreement “
If the measure is adopted. – intention that the Government today reaffirmed – one of the issues that the National Commission for data Protection wants to see is safeguarded access bank data to third parties, to prevent other public or private bodies, as well as aT, are aware of the information submitted by banks. Something that claims to be “imperative” to ensure the law.
It is also necessary to ensure the protection of data when banks hire other companies to be able to communicate to the tax authorities those financial information.
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