Moving house and saving on taxes: cantonal guidelines and exceptions
Updated on 12.06.2025 CEST
Published on 01.04.2022 CEST
When moving house, it’s important to plan ahead – including your finances
Are you planning to move soon? If so, you may find yourself saving on taxes – or paying more. This is because tax rates vary considerably across Switzerland. Find out how these differences could affect you.
What is taxed and how high are the rates?
Due to the Tax Harmonization Act, which is binding for all cantons, what is taxed is the same throughout Switzerland.
The tax rates, however, are not uniform because municipalities and cantons have so called 'tariff autonomy'. Consequently, the difference between tax rates can be considerable. Two examples:
- Income tax
Here, the maximum tax rates vary between 20 percent (canton of Zug) and 45 percent (canton of Geneva). - Wealth tax
There are also significant differences between the maximum tax rates on wealth: in Nidwalden, they are the lowest at 0.1 percent, while in Geneva they are the highest at 1 percent.
What is the cutoff date for taxes when you move?
You pay your income and wealth taxes retroactively in the canton you live in at the end of the year. Therefore, the cutoff date is December 31. So if you move from Geneva to Zug on December 1, for instance, you pay your taxes for the entire year in Zug. Moving can therefore be worthwhile from a tax perspective. This applies throughout the year.
This rule also exists within the canton of Zurich. For instance, if you move from Winterthur to Meilen, you pay your taxes in Meilen for the entire year.
Two important exceptions
When a company relocates, it pays taxes pro rata temporis (proportionally to the year) in both the departure and arrival cantons. For instance, if a company moves its registered office from Zurich to Nidwalden on July 1, it will pay taxes in Zurich for 181 days and in Nidwalden for 184 days.
The second important exception concerns the withdrawal of capital from pension plans, such as your pension fund, vested benefits or the pillar 3a. These withdrawals are taxable in the canton where you were residing when you accessed the capital.
An example: You live in Zurich and receive your pension fund assets on July 1. Three months later, you move to Appenzell. While you pay income and wealth taxes for the entire year in your new place of residence, your old canton of residence, Zurich, is entitled to tax the pension capital.
From a tax perspective, it would have been better to wait until after the move to withdraw the capital. With a payment of one million Swiss francs, for instance, you would have saved around 100,000 francs in Appenzell.
Are you thinking about moving?
If you are considering to change your place of residence, it is worth considering the financial implications. We would be happy to help you with this. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about your tax planning.
End-of-year tax questions
From October onwards, we receive an increasing number of questions about tax planning. With good reason: If you want to optimize your tax situation, you need to do so before the end of the year. Our experts provide answers:
Ironically, an unexpectedly simple way to save taxes in Switzerland is through taxes themselves. This is because outstanding tax liabilities can be deducted from your assets.
Voluntary contributions to your pension fund are attractive because they offer tax advantages. However, there are also restrictions and risks that you should be aware of.
Renovations that maintain the value of your property can be deducted from your taxes. If you plan this maintenance in advance, you can maximize your deductions year after year.
All of our investment experience for your retirement savings: Vontobel Volt® is the actively managed investment solution for your pillar 3a and for thematic investing in line with your convictions.
Tax advice in context
Those unfamiliar with the tax system can easily fall into a tax trap. This is because not all taxpayers are up to date with the tax authorities' knowledge when dealing with them directly. Our experienced tax experts negotiate all Swiss tax issues with the authorities on an equal footing and obtain binding tax rulings where necessary.
Contact us to analyze your tax situation with our experts.
Updated on 12.06.2025 CEST
Published on 01.04.2022 CEST
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Show more articlesClaude Frosio
Head Tax Consulting