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After years of stalemate an updated double taxation agreement (DTA) between Switzerland and the United States has been ratified and is now in force. American and Swiss representatives signed the necessary documents last week. #AmbMcMullen and State Secretary Daniela Stoffel at the @efd_dff exchanged instruments of ratification of the Protocol of Amendment to the Double Taxation Treaty today in Bern, representing a milestone in tax relations between the ?? and ??. @USTreasury...

The number of people with debts in default continues to rise in Switzerland. © Siriporn Kaenseeya | Dreamstime.comAt the end of July 2019, 561,000 people, 6.5% of the population, were unable to service their debts according to the price comparison website comparis.ch. The figures, based on data from the credit analysis company CRIF include those who have failed to make repayments and are being pursued by creditors or have declared bankruptcy. The highest rates were in the cantons...

Every year, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) gives advance warning of compulsory health insurance premiums for the coming year. © Ginasanders | Dreamstime.comAfter years of rising premiums, many will be relieved by the small projected increases for 2020. Across all of Switzerland, the average premium is expected to rise 0.2% to CHF 315.40 a month. On average, adults will pay CHF 374.40 (+0.3%), young adults (19-25) CHF 265.30 (-2.0%) and children CHF 98.70 (+0.0%)....

Next year the canton of Geneva plans to spend CHF 9,143 million. However, forecast revenue is only CHF 8,553 million, leaving a shortfall of CHF 590 million, according to a cantonal government press release. © Elenaphotos | Dreamstime.comThe canton’s finances have been hit hard from both sides. Costs will rise significantly, mainly due to the bailout of the state employee pension fund (+213 million) and higher health insurance subsidies (+176 million). In addition, the canton’s...

Switzerland’s government been grappling with the politics of extending universal tax-funded parental leave for a number of years. © Tetiana Chernykova | Dreamstime.comSome are pushing for paternity leave for fathers and others for a shared pool of parental leave, which mums and dads can apportion. There is also a popular vote working its way through the system which aims to create four weeks of paid leave specifically for fathers. Recently, Philipp Müller put forward a motion for...

As more baby-boomers – born from 1946 to 1964 – retire, Switzerland will faces a shortage of workers, according to Credit Suisse, a bank. © Georgerudy | Dreamstime.comEconomists at the bank estimate that 1.1 million people in Switzerland will retire over the next 10 years, a figure which includes nearly 800,000 people currently working. By 2021, there will be more people leaving the job market than joining it. The current peak in Switzerland’s age pyramid is 55 years old, the age of...

With the celebration over, attention has shifted to the cost of the Fête des vignerons, Vevey’s once-in-25-year winegrowers festival. Vevey’s Fête des vignerons set to make a large lossAs the bills come in it looks like the festival will make a loss of CHF 16 million, according to the François Margot, who was interviewed by the newspaper 24 heures. Fête des Vignerons: “Le manque à gagner sur les spectacles de jour est de 16 millions.”https://t.co/ww5AqMcl7E— 24heures (@24heuresch)...

Health care in Switzerland is funded by a mixture of taxes and health insurance premiums. Much of the insurance premiums paid are compulsory with no discounts offered to non-smokers. © Mcwilli1 | Dreamstime.comAccording to figures recently published by the Swiss association for smoking, the annual direct medical costs of smoking are CHF 3 billion (2015), or CHF 350 per person. This sum represents 3.9% of Switzerland’s total annual health spending. Tobacco use is the main risk factor...

In 1998, GDP per person in Switzerland was CHF 59,693. Recently published statistics put the figure at CHF 80,986 in 2018, a rise of 36%.  © Mr.siwabud Veerapaisarn | Dreamstime.comWhen Swiss GDP per capita is expressed in globally comparable US dollar terms its rise is even greater. In US dollar terms Swiss GDP per capita grew from US$ 41,497 to US$ 82,839 between 1998 and 2018, a rise of 100%. In Germany the same figure went from US$ 27,341 to US$ 48,196, a rise of 76%, in France...

Recent figures show an annual 4.2% rise in the number of vacant homes in Switzerland, extending a trend that started 10 years ago, according to the Federal Statistical Office. © Ppvector | Dreamstime.comAt the start of June 2019, there were 75,323 vacant homes, representing 1.66% of Switzerland’s total stock of homes. However, high vacancy rates in some regions masked low ones in others. While cantons such as Solothurn (3.40%), Thurgau (2.65%), Jura (2.59%), Aargau (2.59%),...