Council of States committee rejects voluntary withholding tax
Published: Friday, Jan 26th 2024, 17:10
العودة إلى البث المباشر
Voluntary withholding tax is probably off the table: in contrast to the National Council, the responsible Council of States committee does not want Swiss and resident taxpayers to be able to voluntarily deduct part of their income tax directly from their salary.
In March 2023, the Grand Chamber narrowly approved a corresponding parliamentary initiative by Emmanuel Amoos (SP/VS). The Economic Affairs Committee of the Council of States (WAK-S) has now clearly rejected the proposal to deduct taxes directly from salaries. The decision was made by 10 votes to 3, as reported by the parliamentary services on Friday. The small chamber will make the final decision.
The majority of the WAK-S considers the requested measure to be too administratively burdensome at all levels, as stated in a press release. In addition, the option of a voluntary advance tax payment already exists today. In the case of a direct deduction from wages, those affected would also not have the money for their other needs. For them, financial advice would be more helpful than voluntary withholding tax.
The Commission minority would like to support the initiative on the grounds that a direct deduction from wages would result in fewer people getting into debt. In addition, companies already have the necessary know-how. Many of them already pay withholding tax for foreign employees.
According to a 2020 federal survey, almost ten percent of the population were in arrears with their taxes, Amoos explained his initiative. This has a significant impact on municipalities, cantons and the federal government. Every year, public administrations have to write off hundreds of millions of francs in tax debts as bad debt losses.
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