Home Office Activity and the Establishment of a Permanent Establishment for Tax Purposes - a Stocktaking
The world of work has changed drastically in the wake of COVID-19. We are talking about the era of "New Work". Many employees now regularly work in a home office at their place of residence in Switzerland, but also at locations worldwide. This article focuses on the question of whether an employee's home office can become a permanent establishment of the company for tax purposes and which aspects need to be considered. Swiss tax law practice has recently been partly controversial and unclear in this regard.
The place of actual administration in intercantonal relations - an assessment of recent case law.
The place of actual administration is becoming increasingly important in intercantonal relations. If a legal entity moves its statutory seat to another canton, the canton of departure examines the substance available in the canton of arrival. The relevant external objective criteria are office premises, staff and fixed network connection. The business activity, and thus the subjective content of the management as such, are given too little consideration. This problem is to be demonstrated once again on the basis of three recent court decisions.
Combating the misuse of letterbox companies
On 22 December 2021, the European Commission published a draft directive to combat the abusive use of letterbox companies within the EU. The directive, which is to be classified under ATAD III, imposes reporting obligations on letterbox companies and leads to the loss of tax benefits if certain substance criteria are not met.
Taxation of the Digital Economy - OECD Agreement on Global Tax Reform (Pillar One and Two)
137 countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) - including Switzerland - agreed to a comprehensive global tax reform on 8 October 2021. The global tax reform aims to introduce a worldwide redistribution of profits of multinational corporations with a turnover of more than 20 billion euros (Pillar One) and a global minimum taxation of 15% for multinational corporations with a turnover of more than 750 million euros (Pillar Two). The implementation of the reform will pose major challenges for companies, but also for states. Pillar One will result in multinationals becoming taxable in a state even if they have no physical facilities such as offices or premises in that state. At least 25% of profits exceeding 10% of turnover will be taxed in the states where the turnover is generated, irrespective of the existence of a physical presence. Pillar Two will introduce a global minimum tax of 15%. The tax rate will be calculated at the state level and not at the individual company level. In addition, the calculation of the global minimum tax will be based on taxable profit and taxable net income, an international accounting standard and not local legislation, such as Swiss commercial law. This article explains how Pillar One and Two work, the currently envisaged implementation of the reform in Switzerland, its impact on global tax and location competition and on Swiss-based companies.
Compensation paid by Swiss companies to foreign directors
This video provides information on the possible tax and social security implications of a board of directors resident in an EU country in the case of a Swiss company limited by shares if the board of directors is also self-employed in its country of residence.
FTA publishes circular no. 29c "Capital contribution principle
The FTA published Circular No. 29c "Capital Contribution Principle" on December 23, 2022.
FTA publishes tax statistics for individuals and legal entities 2019
On November 3, 2022, the FTA published the 2019 tax statistics.
FTA publishes interest rates for direct federal tax 2023
On October 13, 2022, the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) published the - unchanged - interest rates for the 2023 direct federal tax:
Update of the areas of application for tax relief
On October 10, 2022, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER) adopted an amendment to the "Ordinance of the EAER on the Determination of the Municipalities Included in the Areas of Application for Tax Relief" for the purpose of updating the areas of application for tax relief under regional policy.
Withholding tax: application of the limitation periods for refunds
On September 13, 2022, the FTA published a notice regarding limitation periods for the claim for refund of withholding tax in case of informal rejection (without issuance of a formal decision) of refund applications.
Federal Council opens consultation on ordinance on minimum taxation of large corporate groups
On August 17, the Federal Council opened the consultation on the Ordinance on the Minimum Taxation of Large Corporate Groups (Minimum Taxation Ordinance, MindStV).
Strategies and challenges in tax due diligence
Workshop on "Strategies and Challenges in Tax Due Diligence" by Matthias Marbach and Juliette Buob on the occasion of the ISIS seminar "Current Tax Topics in M&A Transactions" on 21 March 2024.
Tax aspects of financing
Workshop on "Tax Aspects of Financing" by Stefan Oesterhelt and Daniel Bieri on the occasion of the ISIS seminar "Current Tax Issues in M&A Transactions" on March 21, 2024.