FACTBOX-Status of bank secrecy protection in Europe

Sept 24 (Reuters) - Switzerland is rushing to sign an additional tax information deal to secure its removal from a tax haven list on Thursday, when a meeting of G20 nations starts.

Here are details about European countries who have been maintaining strict laws protecting banking privacy:

* ANDORRA -- In May, the OECD's Committee on Fiscal Affairs removed Andorra from its list of uncooperative tax havens following its commitment to implement OECD standards of transparency and effective exchange of information.

* AUSTRIA -- On Wednesday, the OECD removed Austria from its "grey list" of countries which have not fully implemented global tax standards. After signing bilateral tax agreements with Andorra and Gibraltar last week, Austria had raised to 12 the number of countries with such deals.

* BELGIUM -- In July, Belgium was removed from the grey list after it signed 12 agreements with other countries to exchange tax-related information.

* BERMUDA -- On July 3, Bermuda and Germany signed a bilateral agreement for the exchange of information for tax purposes, bringing to 13 the number of agreements Bermuda has entered into with other countries. Bermuda was one of the first jurisdictions to commit to the international standard of transparency and exchange of information in May 2000.

* CAYMAN ISLANDS -- On July 8, the Cayman Islands signed an agreement with the Netherlands for the exchange of information for tax purposes. It had signed tax treaties with Nordic countries on April 1.

* GUERNSEY -- On March 26, Guernsey signed an agreement with Germany to share information for tax purposes.

* JERSEY -- In March, Jersey signed an agreement with France to combat tax fraud by exchanging information. It had already signed similar agreements with Britain, Germany, and the United States. Jersey is Britain's largest offshore centre. Bank deposits on the island were 206 billion pounds ($306 billion) at the end of 2008.

* LIECHTENSTEIN -- On Sept. 15, Liechtenstein agreed an OECD-compliant tax information exchange deal with France.

Liechtenstein and Britain said on Aug. 11 they signed an agreement to encourage British clients of banks in Liechtenstein to voluntarily disclose untaxed money. The deal provides special conditions between 2010 and 2015 to encourage clients with British tax arrears to declare themselves.

On July 10, Liechtenstein struck a tax information deal with Germany which allows the exchange of information on request. In Dec. 2008 it signed a similar agreement with the United States, which paved the way for the exchange of bank data in certain cases of tax evasion.

It has also agreed to relax its strict bank secrecy laws and commit to OECD standards on tax transparency and data exchange, as well as be more co-operative with other tax authorities on request. New regulations require named account holders rather than permitting banks to issue numbered accounts. In May, the OECD removed Liechtenstein from the list of uncooperative tax havens.

* LUXEMBOURG -- Luxembourg, which holds an estimated $1 trillion of global offshore assets, said in July it was taken off the OECD "grey list" of non-cooperative countries after signing 12 agreements of exchange of information. The latest protocol was with Norway.

-- Banking secrecy law says that those who work in financial institutions cannot reveal information to the outside world except in money-laundering cases.

* MONACO -- Monaco signed a deal on Sept. 8 to abide by international norms in exchanging information about U.S. citizens who may be evading taxes by keeping money offshore.

-- Ten days later a senior official said Monaco was confident it would be in a position to join the global "white list" of nations using international recognised tax standards when G20 nations meet in Pittsburgh. The official said Monaco had made commitments with 16 countries and that 12 agreements had already been signed.

* SAN MARINO -- On Aug. 3, San Marino said the country expected to be removed from the OECD "grey list" by September. San Marino was taken off a previous OECD's blacklist in 2003.

-- San Marino has agreed to allow account holders to keep bank secrecy by paying withholding tax.

* SWITZERLAND -- A Swiss diplomatic source said on Thursday the government planned to sign a 12th double-taxation treaty, fulfilling conditions for being be taken off the international tax haven list drafted by the OECD. An 11th tax treaty was signed with the United States on Sept. 23.

-- In August, Switzerland agreed to reveal the names of about 4,450 wealthy American clients of UBS to U.S. authorities in a tax dispute settlement that pierced its bank secrecy.

-- Switzerland and Britain signed a new treaty on September 7, giving British tax authorities more access to banking information. It signed a similar tax deal with France in August.

-- On March 13, Switzerland agreed to relax its strict bank secrecy rules and cooperate more on tax evasion. It would embrace OCED standards for tax cooperation and exchange of information. Switzerland will only pass on information following detailed requests on individual cases.

-- Banks supply information requested by foreign governments pursuing criminal investigations of individuals. Switzerland allows EU account holders to keep bank secrecy by paying a withholding tax.

-- Is the world's biggest offshore centre with about $2 trillion, or about 27 percent, of estimated global offshore assets, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

* THE EU SAVINGS TAX DIRECTIVE:

-- Under the landmark EU savings tax directive, introduced in 2005, countries can choose between the option of automatically sharing tax data with other tax authorities or impose a withholding tax on the income from EU citizens' savings.

Sources: Reuters; OECD (www.oecd.org)

(Writing by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit; Additional writing by Carl Bagh and Jijo Jacob; Editing by Victoria main)