Swiss banks and the government are being criticised by a group representing expat Swiss over alleged discriminatory treatment of citizens living abroad in US and Germany, according to Swissinfo, the media platform.

At its biannual meeting in Bern, the Swiss Abroad Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling for proposals allowing expatriates to keep their taxed assets in Swiss banks, the report said.

This move was in response to growing complaints, notably by Swiss expats in the US who were forced to close their accounts at short notice amid pressure by Washington to crack down on tax evaders.

The Swiss Abroad Council said the situation for many expats was “unacceptable” and rejected “any form of discrimination based on the country of residence or in the form of high minimum capital investment”.

In his opening address to the more than 130 representatives, the president of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad, Jacques-Simon Eggly, slammed banks’ policy toward the expat community as “embarrassing”.