Common Reporting Standard
CRS
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The OECD's global standard for the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts.
It is implemented in Switzerland by the AEOI Act, in Germany by the Financial Account Information Exchange Act (FKAustG) and in Austria by the Common Reporting Standard Act (GMSG).
In practice
Under the CRS, every entity in a family structure has a classification – financial institution, active or passive non-financial entity – which determines what banks report. In practice, the family office records the classification and its reasoning for each entity, keeps the self-certifications consistent across banks and reviews them whenever the activity of an entity changes. For trusts and foundations, the roles of settlor, trustee, protector and beneficiaries are maintained with their tax residences.
Distinctions and common mistakes
A trust or foundation that is professionally managed can itself be a financial institution with its own reporting duties. A common mistake is to sign the bank's self-certification without checking whether the classification is still correct.
Relevant in: EU-wide
Related terms
- Automatic exchange of information
- The annual automatic exchange of financial account information between tax authorities under the OECD's Common Reporting Standard.
- Tax identification number
- The number issued by the country of tax residence to identify a taxpayer.