Switzerland has come out of the list of `tax haven' countries with the signing of 11 different taxation agreements with various countries and the incorporation of a protocol to its tax treaty with the United States that incorporates the internationally agreed tax information standard.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has taken Switzerland off the list of non-cooperative tax havens, following these agreements, an OECD release said.

"Switzerland has signed 11 taxation agreements with different nations and most of them are significant economic partners like the US and the UK," the release noted.

The 11th agreement for the exchange of information in tax matters signed by Switzerland and the US meets the OECD standard, the release said.

OECD said Switzerland is also expected to shortly sign another agreement. This will mark the 12th agreement conforming to the OECD standard and will mean that Switzerland joins the category of jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard, it said.

"Because of the time difference, this will be reflected in the regular progress report to be issued Friday morning in Paris," the release added.

"This is a very meaningful development and it shows that OECD countries are prepared to step up to the mark. Our congratulations to the Swiss authorities. Signing agreements is only one step in a process. What we will now be looking for effective implementation by all countries," OECD secretary-general Angel Gurría stated.

Since the progress report was first published on 2 April, OECD said, unprecedented progress has been made towards transparency and exchange of information for tax purposes. All 88 jurisdictions surveyed by the Global Forum have now committed to the OECD standards. Moreover, jurisdictions that had not substantially implemented the standard on 2 April have signed more than 150 agreements since then while many more are under negotiation.

"As a result, 11 jurisdictions - Aruba, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Bahrain, Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands Antilles and San Marino - have moved to the category of jurisdictions having substantially implemented the standard since 2 April. Switzerland will now join that category."

"The Global Forum will be able to assess more carefully the extent to which agreements are signed with partners that have a significant interest in exchanging information, the extent to which agreements are implemented in practice and a jurisdiction's willingness to continue to enter into agreements even after it has reached the threshold," the OECD secretary-general added.