In light of the recent case law of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on the protection of personal data in the context of the Privacy Shield between the US and the EU, Switzerland has been reassessing the conformity of the Privacy Shield to the Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP).

In his annual position paper, the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) concludes that the current regime does not ensure an adequate level of protection for the communication of data from Switzerland to the United States, thus aligning his position to the one taken by the European Union in the past weeks.

Although the FDPIC’s analysis does not prejudice the existence of the Privacy Shield regime, it will be important for Swiss operators who currently exchange data with the US to monitor changes in the applicative framework of the norm.

In particular, they will have to consider the possible impact on the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the tax reporting system currently forcing adhering countries to communicate US persons’ data to the American authorities.

SOURCE: www.admin.ch