Government has signed a tax information exchange agreement with Switzerland. It provides for having access to banking data in that country. This data will be provided on demand. Replying supplementaries in the Lok Sabha on Friday, the Finance Minister Mr. Pranab Mukherjee said that the agreement will be effective from 1st of April this year. The agreement is important in the wake of the reports that some Indians and corporate firms have stashed their black money in Swiss banks. Mr. Mukherjee said that all the formalities for operationalizing the avoidance of double taxation agreement with Switzerland will be completed after that country concludes the internal process. He said India has already signed avoidance of double taxation agreement with Colombia, Ethiopia, Taiwan and Tanzania but they have not yet come into force. The Minister informed the House that India has negotiated a number of such agreements and in the last two years tax information exchange agreement has been signed with 16 countries. The avoidance of double taxation agreement has been renegotiated with 21 countries and such new agreements have been signed with 18 other countries.