The tiny Alpine principality of Liechtenstein has agreed to enter a multilateral pact on exchange information about tax, a move welcomed yesterday by major industrialised nations represented by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

The jurisdiction has stated it will sign the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters during the 21-22 November Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes in  Jakarta, Indonesia.

Liechtenstein also committed to implement automatic exchange of information with tax authorities worldwide and engage in bilateral negotiations to resolve the tax position of current clients of financial institutions based in Liechtenstein, the OECD said in a statement.

The convention provides for all forms of mutual assistance: exchange on request, spontaneous exchange, tax examinations abroad, simultaneous tax examinations and assistance in tax collection, while protecting taxpayers’ rights.

The 61 signatories to the convention are: Albania, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, UK and US.