Confederation couldn’t get anything: cantons want to avoid OECD minimum tax

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The minimum corporate tax is a compromise. Swiss voters accepted it on Sunday – with a 78 percent yes vote. Companies above a certain size must pay 15 percent profit tax in the future.

This will generate extra tax revenue, probably from 2024. Then the Federal Council wants to introduce the additional tax to reduce the previous tax revenue to 15 percent. Three quarters of this extra money should go to the cantons and a quarter to the federal government. That’s the compromise.

But now some cantons want to circumvent this agreement, write the Tamedia newspapers. Because until 2024 they have enough time to increase the cantonal profit tax. As a result, most or even all of the additional tax revenue would remain in the cantons. A retroactive additional tax would defeat its purpose. The alliance would be empty.

This is legally allowed

According to the Tamedia newspapers, some cantons have already increased the tax rate for large companies. The canton of Neuchâtel. At the beginning of this year, he set the tax rate at 15 percent. In mid-May, the canton of Geneva followed suit and increased the corporate income tax from 14 to 14.7 percent. This is legally allowed.

Other cantons could follow. These include the cantons of Vaud, Schaffhausen and Basel-Stadt. It’s all about a lot of money because they have a low tax rate. However, when asked by the Tamedia newspapers, the cantons said nothing had been decided yet. The talks would continue.

Zug’s financial director, Heinz Tännler (63), is not doing well. He says to the Tamedia newspapers: “Whoever raises taxes independently breaks the rules of the game.” The compromise with the federal government goes back to Tännler’s initiative. That is why he has no understanding for the behavior of the other cantons, even though his own canton of Zug would have benefited most from the extra income.

The Bundesrat wants to have everything covered

The Federal Ministry of Finance, led by Federal Council member Karin Keller-Sutter (59), is not impressed. A spokesperson told the Tamedia newspapers: “In the filing notice, the Federal Council pointed out that the incentive for the cantons to raise their tax rates is all the higher the lower the cantonal share is and that this means they generate additional would come in.”

In any case, the Federal Council initially advocated that all income should remain with the cantons. (rba)

Source:Blick