Over the last few years mortgage interest rates have been exceptionally low in Switzerland. However, since mid-December 2021 they have risen and are at levels last seen in 2018. According to recent data collected the newspaper Finanz und Wirtschaft, Swiss mortgage interest rates are 0.25 percentage points higher than a month earlier. 10-year guide rates […]
New Swiss company tax rate set for 2024
On 12 January 2022, the Federal Council decided to implement the minimum tax rate for companies that was agreed by the OECD and G20 member states last year. The 15% minimum tax rate is to come into force on 1 January 2024. The new minimum 15% tax rate, which will apply to multinational companies with […]
Majority against a general 30 km/hour speed limit in Swiss cities
The number of 30 km/hour speed zones is rising in Swiss cities and towns. Some are considering plans such as making 30 km/hour zones standard and 50 km/hour zones an exception. However, a recent poll suggests 84% of the population supports the current system of a 50 km/hour standard limit, with exceptions for 30 km/hour […]
US court rejects Swiss Gruyere cheese challenge
In Switzerland, Gruyère is a cheese with a strict recipe originally produced in a region (with a town) of the same name in the Swiss canton of Fribourg. On 7 January 2022, a judge at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia affirmed a ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark […]
No weakening expected in Swiss house prices
The Swiss housing market continues to rise with no signs of weakening, reported RTS this week. According to the real estate platform immoscout24, the average price per m2 for a family home in Switzerland has risen from CHF 6,700 to CHF 7,200 over the last 12 months, a rise of 7%. Apartment prices have risen […]
Swiss researchers develop edible alternative to plastic packaging
Packaging lightens the human load on the environment by substantially cutting food wastage. However, it comes with its own environmental problems. Micro plastic can now be found in many corners of the ecosystem. Swiss researchers might have come up with a solution that improves the problem at both ends by turning certain food waste into […]
Cost of Swiss postage hiked for first time in 18 years
From 1 January 2022, the cost of posting a standard letter for next day delivery (A-class) is 10% higher and a B-class letter 6% higher. These price hikes are the first of their kind in 18 years, reported RTS. The cost of posting a standard A-class letter is now CHF 1.10, up from CHF 1.00, […]
Man must reimburse welfare payments with inheritance, rules Bern tribunal
In some parts of Switzerland, welfare payments are sometimes considered more like bridging loans to help someone through a financially difficult period rather than a one-way payment. A recent case in the canton of Bern shows this system in action. According to 20 Minutes, a man who received welfare over 20 years was asked to […]
Switzerland’s new president in 2022
In Switzerland, the position of president is ceremonial. Switzerland’s executive is led jointly by all seven members of the Federal Council, known as les sept sages (the seven wise ones) in French-speaking Switzerland. From left to right: Guy Parmelin, Alain Berset (vice-president), Simonetta Sommaruga, Viola Amherd, Walter Thurnherr (Federal Chancellor), Ueli Maurer, Ignazio Cassis (president), Karin Keller-Sutter. […]
Tax burden set to rise in 10 Swiss cantons in 2022
The tax burden is set to rise in 10 Swiss cantons and fall in 16 in 2022, according to data published this week by the Federal Finance Administration (FFA). Nationally, the tax burden in 2022 will represent 24.6% of Switzerland’s tax potential, down from 24.8% in 2021. While the national tax burden percentage offers some […]
