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So now: Switzerland will tax international companies higher than before from 2024. The Federal Council implements the OECD minimum tax system. According to the rules of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, internationally active companies with a turnover of more than $750 million will have to pay 15 percent profit tax in the future.
The fury in the economy is great. “The federal government is unnecessarily introducing a location disadvantage for the Swiss economy. If we had postponed it, we would not have had any problems abroad,” says Frank Marty, head of finance and taxes at the economic umbrella organization Economiesuisse. “This is essentially a cold tax increase.”
“Not in the interest of the economy”
According to the constitution, the Federal Council must implement minimum taxation to “protect the interests of the Swiss economy as a whole,” Marty added. “But this introduction until 2024 is anything but that.”
In recent weeks, the economy has done everything it can to delay the introduction. According to reports, the two pharmaceutical companies in particular, Roche and Novartis, have lobbied heavily for a postponement. For them, tax reform will be extremely costly. Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter (60) was not impressed by this.
For some companies it doesn’t matter…
Does Switzerland want to be the model student again? The federal government says no. The requirements are being met and it makes sense to introduce taxes now: “According to our latest information, important European countries such as Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Ireland, France and probably Luxembourg are now introducing the tax,” the spokesperson said. from Keller-Sutter. Pascal Hollenstein.
“If Switzerland had waived this, Swiss subsidiaries of companies from these countries would have been taxed there.” This means: it doesn’t matter to these companies, but Switzerland would lose tax revenue. Half of the estimated 1 to 2.5 billion francs that the reform is expected to raise.
…for others yes
However, things look different for Swiss companies and companies headquartered in one of the countries. For example for Roche and Novartis. However, federal experts point out that most other states are likely to implement tax reform in 2025 – so it would only be a matter of a year.
This argument doesn’t sit well with Marty: to say it’s only a year away is “pretty nonchalant.” After all, the issue is whether companies have to pay 1.5 billion francs more in taxes this year.”
The tax chief of Economiesuisse doubts whether the OECD reform will really get off the ground. Big question marks are in order. Three-quarters of the 140 states that signed the tax reform would not implement it until later. Or not at all: “Neither the US nor China is taking any steps to adopt the rules.” And without these economic giants, global recognition would be difficult.
Who is ultimately right will be proven. For the time being, relations between politics and business are frosty.
Source:Blick
I am Liam Livingstone and I work in a news website. My main job is to write articles for the 24 Instant News. My specialty is covering politics and current affairs, which I’m passionate about. I have worked in this field for more than 5 years now and it’s been an amazing journey. With each passing day, my knowledge increases as well as my experience of the world we live in today.
