Bär & Karrer

In a referendum held on May 19 2019, the Federal Act on Tax Reform and AHV Financing (TRAF) was adopted by the Swiss people and the cantons. The reform includes several measures directed at corporate income taxation, such as the abolition of tax privileges for certain types of companies (status companies) and the implementation of internationally accepted replacement measures such as a patent box or the ability to super-deduct R&D costs (up to 150% of actual costs). The reform also contains tax measures at the shareholder level. The majority of the measures will be in force as of January 1 2020.

The Swiss federal government’s pre-draft DLT Act will be under public consultation until the end of June 2019. Daniel Flühmann and Peter Hsu of Bär & Karrer look at some of its most forward-thinking proposals

Capital gains realised through a disposal of shares held for private investment purposes by Swiss resident individuals are generally exempt from Swiss income taxes. In certain circumstances, such capital gains are assimilated to dividends, salary or compensation payments for the renouncing of a right, in which case they become subject to income tax.