Automatic exchange of information: does your tax office know?

Automatic exchange of information is a system under which financial intermediaries, including P2P lending platforms where reporting rules apply, collect a client's tax-residency data and report account information to their home tax authority. That authority can exchange the information with the investor's country of residence. Declaring foreign investment income does not depend on whether such a report has arrived.

This is not tax advice; the applicable regime depends on individual residency status and personal circumstances. This article refers to the 2026 tax and reporting period and reflects OECD Common Reporting Standard materials checked as of 24 September 2026. Exact exchange relationships and local declaration rules should be checked with the OECD and the relevant national tax authority.

What Is Automatic Exchange of Information and Who Reports?

Automatic exchange of information, or AEOI, allows tax authorities to exchange defined financial-account information without waiting for an individual request.

The Common Reporting Standard (CRS) is the OECD framework used for this purpose. Under it, participating jurisdictions require Reporting Financial Institutions to identify reportable accounts, collect tax-residency information and report specified data to their local tax authority. That authority can then exchange the information with the relevant jurisdiction of tax residence.

The practical chain is straightforward: verification, tax residence, intermediary report, cross-border exchange, then the investor's own declaration under local rules.

Maclear is a P2P lending platform and financial intermediary under Swiss financial regulations and is a member of PolyReg SRO. Maclear does not withhold tax at source for the investor; declaration and payment remain governed by the investor's own jurisdiction.

Does My Bank Report to Tax Authorities Automatically?

Yes, where the institution and account fall within the applicable reporting framework. Banks are among the financial institutions commonly covered by the CRS.

Automatic reporting is therefore different from a tax authority discovering an account by chance. Whether a particular account is reportable still depends on the rules and exchange relationship applying to the institution, account and jurisdictions involved.

What Data Does a P2P Platform Send, and How Often?

The CRS uses a defined set of account and account-holder information. Its purpose is to identify the taxpayer, connect the account to a jurisdiction of residence and provide financial information for the relevant reporting period.

For a reportable individual account, the information can include the account holder's name, tax identification number, tax residence, account number, period-end account balance or value, and reportable income or other aggregate amounts.

Reporting is generally annual for the previous reporting period. The financial intermediary reports to the tax authority in its own jurisdiction, and that authority can then transmit the relevant information to the tax authority in the investor's jurisdiction of residence.

This is not necessarily a line-by-line copy of every transaction shown in the investor's platform statement. CRS reporting works with defined account-level and aggregate reporting fields.

What Data Gets Shared Under the Common Reporting Standard?

Shared data can include identifying information, tax residence, a tax identification number, account number, account balance or value, and reportable income or other aggregate amounts.

Exact fields and coverage depend on the account and the applicable CRS rules. Current requirements should therefore be checked against OECD material and the reporting jurisdiction's official guidance rather than inferred from the platform statement alone.

Why KYC Data and Tax Residency Are Part of the Same Chain

Tax reporting begins with the information used to identify the customer and establish tax residence.

During onboarding and Know Your Customer (KYC) verification, an investor may provide residence details, a tax identification number and a tax-residency self-certification. The same residence information can then be used as part of CRS due diligence and reporting.

An incorrect or outdated tax residence can therefore affect where information is reported. The residence recorded during initial verification should not be assumed to remain accurate indefinitely.

What Happens If I Change Tax Residency Mid-Year?

Update the financial intermediary when your tax residence changes. Reporting is tied to the residency information held through the institution's due-diligence process, so outdated records may continue to reflect the previous jurisdiction until they are corrected.

A change of residence can also affect the investor's own declaration obligations. Updating the platform record does not replace checking the filing rules in the jurisdictions affected by the move.

Does Declaring Depend on Whether the Report Was Received?

No. The obligation to declare foreign investment income does not arise because a CRS report reached the tax office. It arises under the tax rules of the jurisdiction in which the investor is required to file.

Automatic exchange is an information mechanism. It allows tax authorities to receive data that can be compared with domestic declarations, but a delayed, incomplete or inapplicable report does not remove an investor's separate reporting obligation.

Do I Need to Declare Foreign Platform Income If It Was Not Reported?

Yes, if the income is reportable under the rules that apply to you. Financial-institution reporting and personal tax filing are separate processes.

The absence of a report is not evidence that income can be omitted. The official tax authority in the investor's jurisdiction of residence remains the primary source for determining what must be declared and how.

Automatic exchange of information does not create the obligation to declare foreign investment income — that obligation exists independently of any report, and the absence of a report is not evidence that none will arrive.

Country-Specific Reporting and Declaration Rules

This article stops at the international reporting chain. The tax return, form and treatment of foreign lending income depend on the investor's jurisdiction.

For the next step, use the relevant country article in the tax matrix:

• Germany — How to Declare Foreign P2P Interest in Germany: Anlage KAP
  Covers declaration of foreign lending interest through Anlage KAP.

• Italy — Quadro RW and Tax on Interest From Foreign Platforms
  Covers the Italian reporting framework for foreign-platform holdings and lending income.

• Portugal — Declaring Foreign Lending Interest in Portugal: Anexo J
  Covers Category E foreign-source interest and the Anexo J filing structure.

• Poland — Poland Tax on Foreign P2P Interest: Who Files What and When
  Covers the shift from domestic withholding to self-declaration when no Polish withholding agent exists.

• France — Fiscalité Crowdlending
  Use the existing country page for French declaration rules.

• Spain — Fiscalidad Crowdlending IRPF
  Use the existing country page for Spanish filing treatment.

These are navigation points only. The country-specific rules are intentionally not reproduced here.

What to Check Before Assuming You Are Not Covered

Start with official sources rather than with whether you have personally seen a tax report.

First, check the tax residence recorded by the financial intermediary. Then verify whether the institution and account fall within the applicable reporting framework, whether an exchange relationship exists between the relevant jurisdictions, and which reporting period applies.

The OECD publishes the Common Reporting Standard, tax-residency resources and information on activated exchange relationships. National tax authorities publish the local rules governing declaration and filing.

Do not assume that a foreign platform location, the absence of withholding tax, or the absence of a visible report means that no information exchange can occur.

Key takeaways

• Under the OECD Common Reporting Standard, financial institutions report account data to their own tax authority, which can exchange it with the investor's country of residence.
• Reported data is account-level and aggregate, not a transaction-by-transaction copy of the platform statement.
• The tax-residency information collected during KYC verification is the same data that drives CRS reporting.
• An outdated tax residence on file can send information to the wrong jurisdiction, so the record should be updated after a move.
• The duty to declare foreign investment income exists independently of whether any report was sent or received.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my tax office already know about my foreign P2P income?

It may receive information automatically where the intermediary, account and jurisdictions fall within the applicable CRS framework. The report generally moves from the financial institution to its local tax authority and then to the investor's jurisdiction of residence. The timing of that exchange does not change the investor's separate obligation to declare income under local rules.

What data does a P2P platform report about me?

Where CRS reporting applies, the data can include identifying information, tax residence, tax identification number, account number, account balance or value, and reportable income or other aggregate amounts. CRS reporting is not necessarily a transaction-by-transaction copy of the platform statement. Exact fields depend on the account and the rules applying to the reporting institution.

Do I still have to declare income if no report was sent?

Yes, if the income is reportable under your local tax rules. Automatic exchange and personal filing are separate mechanisms. A missing, delayed or inapplicable CRS report does not remove a declaration obligation. Check the official guidance in your jurisdiction of residence rather than using the existence of a report as the test.

What happens if I change my country of tax residency during the year?

Update your tax-residency information with the financial intermediary and check the filing rules in the jurisdictions affected by the move. Reporting is based on the residence information identified through due diligence. Until the information is updated, records may still reflect the previous residence, but that does not replace your own declaration obligations.

Where do I check the exact reporting rules for my country?

Use the official tax authority in your country of residence and the OECD's CRS resources. The OECD publishes the reporting standard, tax-residency material and exchange-relationship information, while national authorities explain domestic filing obligations. Consulting or aggregator articles can provide context, but they should not replace primary sources for current coverage, dates or thresholds.

This is not tax advice; the applicable regime depends on individual residency status and personal circumstances. The article refers to the 2026 tax and reporting period and reflects OECD Common Reporting Standard materials checked as of 24 September 2026. Check the OECD and your national tax authority for the rules applying to your reporting period and residence.

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About Maclear

Maclear AG is a Swiss-based P2P lending and crowdlending platform headquartered in Switzerland. The company operates as a financial intermediary in the non-banking sector and is a member of PolyReg SRO, in compliance with Swiss financial regulations including AML, KYC, and GDPR. Maclear offers retail and qualified investors access to vetted business loan opportunities, with built-in risk assessment, a Provision Fund, and a Secondary Market for liquidity.

The content of this article is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment, financial, tax, or legal advice. P2P lending and crowdlending investments carry a risk of partial or total capital loss. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Liquidity on a secondary market is not guaranteed. Readers should conduct independent research and consult qualified advisors before making any financial decisions. Availability of products and services may be restricted in certain jurisdictions.