Commentaries: Art. 36

The FTA shall carry out audits to assess whether Swiss paying agents fulfil their obligations under the agreements.
For the purpose of clarifying the facts, it may:
1. inspect the books, receipts and other documents of Swiss paying agents on site or order the surrender thereof;
2. obtain information in writing and verbally;
3. summon representatives of Swiss paying agents for questioning.
Where the FTA determines that a Swiss paying agent has not or has inadequately fulfilled its obligations, it shall give it an opportunity to comment on the deficiencies found.
Where the Swiss paying agent and the FTA cannot reach an agreement, the FTA shall issue a ruling.
On request, the FTA shall issue a declaratory ruling on:
1. the status of paying agent;
2. the basis for levying the one-off payments, the final withholding tax or the tax finality payment;
3. the content of the disclosures in accordance with Article 6 or 16;
4. the content of certificates.
The FTA shall draw up an annual summary report outlining the main findings of the audits performed during the previous calendar year. It shall formulate the report such that the individual Swiss paying agents cannot be identified. SIF shall forward the report to the competent authority of the partner state and publish a summary of this report.