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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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

On 26 September 2024, The Swiss National Bank (SNB) announced further eased its monetary policy by lowering its key rate for the third time in a row by 0.25% to 1%. SNB Bern © SNBThe SNB started cutting its key rate before the European Central Bank (ECB) and the US Federal Reserve (Fed). It first cut the rate in March 2024 from 1.75% to 1.50%, then again in June 2024 to 1.25%, and then this week to 1.00%. The Fed made its first cut in September 2024 from 5.25% to 5.00%. While the ECB cut...

On 22 September 2024, the Swiss will vote on two popular initiatives. The first is the biodiversity initiative “For the future of our nature and our landscape”. The second is on a plan to reform Switzerland’s occupational pension system. Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.comReform of Switzerland’s pension system is an increasingly pressing issue given the predictable demographic shift underway. Occupational pensions (2nd pillar) are pots of money built up from salary deductions....

This week, Switzerland’s parliament voted in favour of spending an extra CHF 4 billion on the nation’s military, bringing annual military expenditure to 1% of GDP earlier than planned, reported RTS. The extra CHF 4 billion will bring the total budget to CHF 30 million spread across the period from 2025 to 2028. Photo by Mickäel O’Neill on Pexels.comThe Federal Council, Switzerland’s seven member cabinet, had wanted to cap military spending for the period at CHF 26 billion. However,...

Data published this week by Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show a decline in the number of vacant homes, both to buy and rent in Switzerland. Photo by Ksenia Chernaya on Pexels.comOn 1 June 2024, there were 51,974 empty homes in Switzerland, representing 1.08% of the country’s total housing stock. The number was down by 2,791 (-5.1%) compared to the number a year earlier. The drop in vacant homes follows three years of declines. In 2020, there were 78,832 vacant homes...

A survey report published this week shows that the population of Switzerland increasingly sees immigration as a challenge and desires political action. © Alexander Sorokopud | Dreamstime.comOverall, while the economic and cultural effects of immigration are viewed positively, the strains on infrastructure, housing and the environment are viewed negatively. In addition, negativity towards immigration is showing among groups that were once friendly to immigration, said the authors....