Switzerland's Federal
Department of Finance (FDF) has announced in a press release that it has
revised certain rules concerning expatriates, and that the revised rules will
enter into force on Jan. 1, 2016. Following the revision, the definition of an
expatriates will be more narrowly defined. Furthermore, the revised rules
define the structure of certain expatriate deductions, including housing and
other costs.
Background. In 2009,
a parliamentary initiative called for the legality of the Expatriates Ordinance
to be examined, according to the FDF's press release. A legal opinion from the
Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) basically confirmed its constitutionality and
legality.
However, the FOJ
recommended that the provisions on deductions relating to private school costs
and removal costs should be correspondingly stated more precisely during the
next legislative revision. Subsequently, the abolition of the deductions was
called for in two other parliamentary initiatives. However, the Council of
States rejected these initiatives.
The Federal Council
also considered these deductions to be justified in principle, but instructed
the FDF to examine the prerequisites and procedures for the individual
deductions. On the basis of this examination, several clarifications were
recommended for the ordinance, and these were widely accepted in the hearing
conducted in spring 2014.
On Jan. 16, 2015, the
FDF announced that it has revised the Expatriates Ordinance and that the new
rules will be in effect on Jan. 1, 2016.
Definition of an
expatriate. To be classified as an expatriate under the Expatriates Ordinance,
an individual must be a senior employee or a specialist, with special
professional qualifications, who is sent to Switzerland temporarily by their
non-Swiss employer.
Deductibility of
housing and other costs. According to the press release, in the future,
expatriates' housing costs will deductible only if a dwelling abroad is
permanently maintained for their own use. Furthermore, moving costs are
deductible only if they are directly related to the move.
Private school
tuition costs are deductible for minors, for children with a foreign mother
tongue attending a foreign language private school, provided that public
schools do not provide instruction in the child's native language.
Finally, costs
relating to food, transportation, and supervision before and after classes are
not deductible, according to the FDF press release. If you
would like more details about these or any other aspect of the law, please do
not hesitate to call.
(651) 621-5777, (952) 583-9108, (612) 224-2476, (763)
269-5396
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