In the vote on Sunday, May 19th, 2019, Swiss voters adopted the
"Tax reform and AHV financing" bill. The Federal Council
and Parliament thus address two important political issues: on the
one hand, ensuring a competitive, internationally compliant tax
system and on the other hand, securing adequate AHV pensions in the
future.
1. What does the adoption of the vote mean for Swiss
companies?
Abolition of cantonal tax statuses / reduction of profit
tax rates
The most significant reform is the abolition of cantonal tax
privileges or tax regimes, which is expected to take effect on
January 1st, 2020. Companies that have so far benefited from such
privileges, i.e. in particular holding and domicile companies, have
been able to benefit from a complete or extensive exemption from
cantonal income taxes and a greatly reduced capital tax rate,
depending on the extent of the privileges. The abolition means an
additional tax burden for previously privileged companies. In
