After a stalemate last week, Switzerland’s federal parliament and upper house found a way forward this week on the abolition of imputed rent that both houses could agree on, reported SRF.

Photo by Thomas P on Pexels.comFor more than seven years, the National Council and the Council of States have been discussing how to do away with the imputed rent, which is an amount added to the taxable income of homeowners. Now, after a lot of back and forth, the two houses have finally agreed on a way forward.

One of the sticking points was whether to abolish imputed rent on secondary as well as primary residences. This week, the two houses agreed to abolish it for both and to allow cantons to introduce property taxes on secondary residences to make up the shortfall in tax revenue. In addition,

Every year, the bank UBS publishes its Worry Barometer, a poll that ranks the greatest concerns among Swiss voters. This week, it released the results for 2024. This year’s top concerns are healthcare, environmental and climate protection and retirement provision.

Photo by Marcus Aurelius on Pexels.comPolling for the survey conducted from mid-August to mid-September and included the views of 2,250 voters.

The survey revealed a rise in financial concerns. Financial uncertainty and higher cost of living are reflected in around one-third of the top 10 concerns. This includes the clear number one by a significant margin. in 2024, Swiss voters were most concerned about health issues, health insurance and premiums (48%). Concern for the environment followed in second place (32%),

In 2022, Swiss voted to increase the official retirement age of women from 64 to 65, bringing it into line with the age for men. Later, an error was found in some of the numbers presented to voters to justify the change. After the error was revealed, the Socialist and Green parties asked Switzerland’s highest court to overturn the vote because of these erroneous figures. This week, the court rejected the complaint, reported RTS.

Photo by Matthias Zomer on Pexels.comThe federal court’s judges, consisting of two women and three men, said that the consequences of repealing the vote would be difficult to predict from a legal persective. The increase in VAT to help fund state pensions that was accepted by voters alongside the rise in retirement age is already underway. A refund would not be

A project to end Switzerland’s controversial system of imputed rent was launched more than seven years ago. This week, discussions in Bern suggest the project’s chances of sucess remain narrow.

Photo by Melike Benli on Pexels.comIn Switzerland, anyone who owns a property retained as a primary or secondary residence must add a fictional rent to their taxable income, which is calculated based on the location and size of the property. The system was introduced during the second world war to fund budget shortfalls and has since remained.

Many homeowners come out ahead because mortgage interest and the costs of home maintenance are allowable tax deductions. However, those with small mortgages and new homes requiring little repair often end up paying more tax than they would without

On Thursday, Switzerland’s federal parliament accepted a budget for 2025 by 120 versus 73 votes, reported RTS. Opposing votes came from politicians on the left, who make up a large minority in Switzerland’s lower house.

Photo by Louis on Pexels.comIncluded in the budget were an increase in military spending, cuts to farm subsidies and large cuts to international aid. Increases in state pensions, known as an extra 13th month, will go ahead as planned starting in 2026.

Spending on Switzerland’s military spending will significantly higher. The figure approved by parliament on Thursday is CHF 530 million greater than the number put forward by the Federal Council.

Other changes addopted by parliament include authorising the use of tasers on public transport (132 versus 60 votes) and a

New data show that tourism accounts for 25% of the total traffic on Swiss roads, reported SRF. The Federal Council report shows that leisure and tourism account for 53% of passenger road traffic, with the other 47% made up of commuting to and from work.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.comRegular leisure traffic by residents of Switzerland accounted for 27% of road traffic, 12% was locals engaging in tourism, 13% foreigners travelling for tourism and 47% commuting. The remaining 1% is rounding.

Tourism includes everything that is done beyond everyday mobility. This includes holidays, day trips or business trips but not commuting or regular leisure activities such as going to the gym or the cinema.

The report’s authors expect tourist traffic to increase in the future, requiring a plan

In Switzerland, nearly half a million people are struggling with debt. This week, parliament discussed new measures that may offer relief to those unable to dig themselves out of insolvency, reported RTS.

Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels.comIn Switzerland, personal bankruptcy does not extinguish your debts in the same way as it does across much of the rest of world. Instead, once all your assets have been liquidated, any remaining creditors receive IOUs for any money still owed to them. And while it brings an immediate end to debt proceedings and allows you to spend all of your salary, any assets you inherit or accumulate post bankruptcy can still be claimed by creditors.

In addition, it is possible to inherit debt from an insolvent estate under Swiss law. This can generally be

Across much of the developed world, gender pay disparities all but disappear if comparisons are made like for like, looking at individuals doing the same function in the same company, according to Korn Ferry Hay Group research, which looked at 20 million salaries at 25,000 organizations in 100 nations. However, because of job and career differences women continue on average to earn less than men. Recent data published by Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show this average pay difference was 16.2% in 2022 in Switzerland, down from 18% in 2020 and 19% in 2018.

Photo by Sora Shimazaki on Pexels.comThese analyses are far from perfect. The Korn Ferry Hay Group research is based only on those workers in its database. The FSO spreads the net wider to include organisations

Electric heat pumps have a lower carbon footprint than gas and oil heating systems. They are more energy efficient, and, when gas, coal and oil electricity generation are eventually phased out of the grid, they will be close to emission free. However, the number of heat pumps being installed in Switzerland is falling, and the number of new gas and oil heating systems is on the rise, according to a report by RTS.

Photo by Heiko Ruth on Pexels.comSo far in 2024, Swiss homeowners have installed 12% more gas and oil heating systems than they did in 2023. At the same time the number of new heat pumps installed is down by around a third, according to ImmoClimat.

In some parts of Switzerland, such as Basel and Geneva, it is virtually impossible to install gas or oil heating. However, in

Last weekend, Swiss voters rejected a plan to invest in road infrastructure, partly due to the CHF 4.9 billion price tag. This week, Switzerland’s federal parliament learned the CHF 16.4 billion budgeted for rail infrastructure expansion between now and 2035 could reach more than CHF 30 billion, reported SRF.

Swiss Rail © Ciolca | Dreamstime.comThe cost overrun was first reported by the Neue Zürcher Zeitung and later confirmed by the Federal Office of Transport (FOT). CHF 8.5 billion of the surprise cost relates to new projects such as station conversions, new tracks and parking facilities. The remaining CHF 5.5 billion is a cost overrun related to already planned projects such as the Brütten Tunnel between Zurich and Winterthur.

How, or even if, these additional cost will be

The rising cost of Switzerland’s compulsory health insurance is a major political issue. The government has hatched a plan aimed at improving incentives in the hope it will reduce the seemingly never ending rise in health insurance premiums. However, a number of people sceptical of the plan’s ability to deliver the saving have organised a vote against it, which takes place this weekend.

Photo by Harald Hechler on Pexels.comThe plan is focused on how various healthcare services are paid for. Health insurance premiums only cover a portion of Switzerland’s total healthcare costs. Much of it is paid out of the taxes collected by cantons. According to the federal government the current structure creates perverse incentives that make total healthcare costs higher than they need to be.

The rising cost of Switzerland’s compulsory health insurance is a major political issue. The government has hatched a plan aimed at improving incentives in the hope it will reduce the seemingly never ending rise in health insurance premiums. However, a number of people sceptical of the plan’s ability to deliver the saving have organised a vote against it, which takes place this weekend.

Photo by Harald Hechler on Pexels.comThe plan is focused on how various healthcare services are paid for. Health insurance premiums only cover a portion of Switzerland’s total healthcare costs. Much of it is paid out of the taxes collected by cantons. According to the federal government the current structure creates perverse incentives that make total healthcare costs higher

Most people in Switzerland rent. This means the nation has strict tenancy rules, some of which are viewed as too strict by the current government. Both parliament and the Council of States have come up with two changes aimed at limiting the actions of tenants, which are considered abusive.

Photo by Peter Lengacher on Pexels.comThese two votes are the result of objections to government plans rather than popular initiatives. After a plan is agreed by the government, if the public can gather 50,000 signatures, a vote aimed at rejecting the plan can be launched.

Under current rules tenants are permitted to temporarily sublet their homes or individual rooms. This right also applies to business premises. Tenants are not currently required to inform landlords and to obtain written

On 24 November 2024, the Swiss will vote on four questions. The first is a federal government plan to invest in expanding Switzerland’s motorway network.

© Thomas Stoiber | Dreamstime.comThe government’s plan aims to alleviate six motorway bottlenecks. The Federal Council points out that traffic on the nation’s highways has more than doubled since 1990 and the estimated CHF 4.9 billion investment is needed to keep the country moving efficiently. In addition, it says more motorway capacity will reduce the amount of traffic taking detours through residential areas to avoid congestion on clogged motorways.

The plan is focused on eliminating bottlenecks on the following six sections of the motorway network:

The A1 between Le Vengeron and Nyon

The A1 between Bern-Wankdorf and

Over recent weeks, mercury found in the tinned tuna sold across Europe has sparked a debate about the product. This week, RTS revealed the mercury levels of much of the tinned tuna sold in Switzerland.

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Pexels.comRecent tests across Europe revealed that all of the nearly 150 brands of tuna tested contained mercury, with around 10% containing more than the legal limit of 1mg per kilogram. Tests conducted by RTS in Switzerland also found mercury in all of the 55 brands tested.

Mercury is a neurotoxin, which affects nerve and brain function and can affect brain and neural development. It is naturally present in the environment, however, pollution from human activity adds further to natural levels.

Predators like tuna end up

Switzerland came second in this year’s World Digital Competitive Ranking, which ranks 67 nations across the world.

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.comThe 2024 World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, produced annually by IMD, placed Singapore at the top, followed by Switzerland and Denmark.

This year’s ranking is the highest for Switzerland over the eight years that the report has been published.

Switzerland progressed significantly in high-tech exports (9th), e-participation (up 11 places to 27th), and cyber security (11th). Its key strengths are intellectual property rights, international experience, communications technology, knowledge transfer, and drawing highly skilled foreign personnel. In 2023, Switzerland was ranked fifth. 

Switzerland typically leads the world

In 2025, many wage earners will see their pay rise. However, the increases may not be sufficient to cover the rising costs, rising health insurance premiums in particular.

Who will receive more pay next year? Migros and Coop, Switzerland’s two largest private employers have announced pay increases of 1% to 1.3%, reported SRF. Denner, which is part of the Migros group, has said it will boost pay by 1.1% next year. Airline Swiss, another large employer, has announced a 2% pay boost. Other pay hikes have yet to be announced or negotiated. Swiss Rail remains in pay negotiations.

Based on a wage survey run by bank UBS in November 2024, wages are expected to rise on average by 1.4% next year. Another survey run by Switzerland’s Federal Institute of Economic Research (KOF) estimates a 1.6%

Switzerland’s pension system has three elements. The first is a state pension linked to the number of years worked. This is funded by a tax. The second is a salary based scheme funded by salary deductions, and the third is an optional element known as the third pillar. Contributions to all of these are tax deductible, providing an economic incentive to pay into them. This week, the Federal Council announced a change to third pillar contributions, reported SRF.

© Gfadel | Dreamstime.comThe change allows missed payments to be made in later years, which means less of the tax sheltering benefit of these payments is lost if a payment is missed.

From 2025, anyone who has not paid the maximum amount, which is currently CHF 7,056 per year, into the third pillar pension in previous years

Data published this week by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) shows that residential housing has risen in price by 18% since 2019. In the most recent quarter (Q3 2024) it rose 0.7%.

Photo by maxxup on Pexels.comWith prices rising by 19%, stand alone houses have risen by more than apartments (+17.4%) over the same period. With the exception of Q1 2020, Q1 2021, Q1 2022, Q1 2023 and Q1 2024, the price of individual homes has risen every quarter since Q4 2019.

The greatest price increases were seen in the usual hotspots around Zurich, Basel and Lake Geneva – the chart below shows Q3 2024 price increases by municipality – click here for direct access to chart.

In many places around Zurich, Basel and Lake Geneva prices are up 1.5% in Q3 2025. In most rural municipalities, prices

At the beginning of the Covid pandemic there was talk of closing Switzerland’s borders. However, it was clear that Swiss hospitals and businesses near Switzerland’s borders would not function without the workers who cross the border daily to work for them, and the notion was dropped. Statistics published this week by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show the number of cross-border workers at record levels.

© Krasnevsky | Dreamstime.comAt the end of September 2024, around 403,000 people residing in France, Germany, Italy and further afield crossed into Switzerland to work. This figure is 2.4% higher than at the the same point in 2023. The total number has grown by 19% in the five years since 2019 when the figure was 339,000.

57% of cross-border workers were resident in France,

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) has started the process of issuing a new series of banknotes by launching a design competition, it announced this week.

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The new banknotes will not be issued until the early 2030s at the earliest, said the bank. The new series will be dedicated to the unique topography of Switzerland and will be launched under the theme “Switzerland and its high altitudes”.

The 10-franc note will reflect Switzerland’s lowland plateau, the 20-franc note the Mittelland, the 50-franc note the Jura, the 100-franc note the foothills of the Alps, the 200-franc note the mountains, and the 1,000-franc note the high mountains.

Any designer working in Switzerland may apply to take part in design submission. The competition, for which twelve designers will

Pending new legislation means widows and widowers will soon receive a pension only until the youngest child reaches the age of 25. Currently, widows, but not widowers, receive a pension for life. For widowers the payments currently stop when the youngest child turns 18. This week, the Federal Council sent instructions to parliament to enact the reform, reported RTS.

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.comThe change has partly been driven by the need to find savings to balance government budgets. It also responds to the gender discrimination inherent in the current system, which favours women. The discrimination in the current system was brought to political attention by a widower who won a discrimination case at the European Court of Human Rights in October 2022.

Others have also

This week, Switzerland’s federal government said it expects to run a deficit of CHF 900 million in 2024, a figure significantly below the original forecasted deficit of CHF 2.6 billion.

Bern © Sean Pavone | Dreamstime.comThe original figure has now dropped twice, once in June by CHF 1 billion and now by a further CHF 0.7 billion to CHF 0.9 billion.

The recent forecast reduction is driven by higher receipts (+0.4 billion), mainly from investment activities, and lower spending (-0.3 billion), driven by some areas of government spending coming in lower than budgeted.

The forecast includes net figures after ordinary spending (+0.2 billion) and after additional extraordinary spending (-0.9 billion).

The net result after ordinary spending now falls well within what is allowed

In 1962, Switzerland introduced a law that required underground bomb shelter space be constructed for all residents. Since then shelters have been built into houses and communal spaces have been built by municipalities for those living in a building without one. This week, the federal government announced plans to increase spending to renew and maintain the nation’s stock of bomb shelters, reported SRF.

Bomb Shelter © Petrarichli | Dreamstime.comThe 1962 law, which was born from the threat of nuclear warfare during the cold war, requires one square metre of shelter space per person. Those who build a new house without a bomb shelter must contribute to the cost of spaces in a communal facility.

The bomb shelter rules, which exist only in Switzerland, have made the nation an

A study published this week found that nearly 1 in 20 (4.8%) people under 18 in Switzerland received social welfare in 2022, reported RTS. Children made up 33% of the total population on welfare. The report called for more money to ensure this group is sufficiently supported.

Photo by SRIPADA STUDIOS on Pexels.comThe 76,000 children in Switzerland receiving social assistance often live restricted lives. There is a need for action regarding the level and design of social assistance benefits, said the authors. This group is often disadvantaged regarding social integration and access to school support services, for example access to music and sporting activities. This impacts on their ability to get a level of education that could help them escape poverty.

Children from poor families

From 2025, the tax free allowance for goods imported into Switzerland will fall from CHF 300 per person to CHF 150, decided the Federal Council this week. While some, such as Swiss retailers are happy with the change, many consumers and consumer associations are not.

Photo by Waldemar on Pexels.comPoliticians in St. Gallen and Thurgau, two cantons bordering on Germany, have long campaigned for the complete abolition of the tax-free limit. They have even held votes on the subject. Walter Schönholzer, an elected official in Thurgau, told SRF that he thought the change was a step in the right direction, but not enough. For him, a CHF 50 limit would be the highest he would deem acceptable, but he would prefer zero.

Others disagree with this position. Switzerland is well known for high

On Wednesday, farmers came together in Bern to protest against planned cuts to subsidies, reported RTS.

Photo by Sergio Zhukov on Pexels.comBecause of the way farming is structured in Switzerland, farmers are heavily reliant on the support of tax payers to make ends meet.

The federal government, which is running and projecting fiscal deficits, has come up with ways to cut spending. According to the government, the cuts are spread across the board, which includes savings on the amounts it spends supporting farmers. The government plans to cut several hundreds of million francs from farm subsidies from 2025 to 2029.

However, the Swiss Farmers’ Union and other groups representing farmers argue that the agricultural sector is not responsible for the fiscal deficits and should

Consumer prices at the end of September 2024 were only 0.8% higher than the were at the end of September 2023, reported Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) this week. This is the lowest annual rate of inflation since July 2021.

Photo by Connecting Flights Guide on Pexels.comConsumer Price Inflation (CPI) dropped by 0.3% during the month of September 2024. The recent monthly decline was driven by the falling price of international travel, both in terms of airfares and hotel expenses. In addition, the prices of petrol, diesel and heating oil fell. These declines exceeded rising fruit and berry prices, the main source of inflation.

Across 12 months, the price of imported goods, which have benefited from the strength of the Swiss franc, have declined in price by 2.7%. Over

This week, two PLR/FDP parliamentarians proposed increasing the price of the motorway vignette required to drive on the Swiss motorway network, reported SRF.

© Stefano Ember | Dreamstime.comThe two politicians making the proposal are from the cantons of Schwytz and Ticino, two cantons affected by the heavy traffic passing through the Gotthard tunnel, one of the key north-south connections through the Alps. The proposed higher vignette cost is aimed at deterring foreign road users from choosing Swiss roads to connect with Italy.

Heinz Theiler says the Swiss motorway vignette at CHF 40 is far too cheap. Swiss transport infrastructure was financed by taxpayers to generate economic income, not cheap transit for European tourists in cars.

The motion submitted to the National Council,

This week, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, Switzerland’s Health Minister, announced health insurance premiums will rise by an average of 6% in 2025 to CHF 378.70 a month. However, the range of the increase varies from 1.5% to 10.5% depending on the canton of residence.

© Alexlmx | Dreamstime.comAccording the minister, the increase is driven by rising health care costs and inflation. Another driver is the changing age structure of Switzerland’s population. Older people require significantly more care than younger people, who make up a shrinking percentage of the population. New drugs and treatments are also adding to the cost.

The government has been trying to implement cost saving measures for many years with little to show for it. According to Baume-Schneider, a proposal for uniform