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Saxer tips BL

Saxer tips for your tax return. Summary of important points.

 

Important:

Please notify us of any changes which took place in 2023, such as:

  • Birth of any children (name, date of birth), or children which are newly registered with you
  • If children are no longer in education (as of December 31, 2023)
  • Changes in marital status
  • Gifts/legacies (when, from whom/to whom, how much?)
  • Changes in employment status (e.g. change from 60% working hours to full-time on July 1, 2023)
  • Property sold or bought in Switzerland or abroad

 

Here is the checklist of documents required for your tax return (these are guidelines and do not claim to be exhaustive)

 

All:

  • Original tax return form 2023 – activation code
  • Statements as of December 31, 2023 and interest statements 2023 for all bank and postal accounts (Switzerland and abroad)
  • Wealth tax statements or statements of deposit of all your shares as of December 31, 2023 held in Switzerland and abroad
  • Bank charges, custody account fees, safe fees, etc.Any debit interest certificates for 2023 (see in the back)
  • Original documents from your lottery win (domestic lottery and domestic sports betting a. o. are tax free up to CHF 1 Mio.)
  • Sickness expenses: Please request a statement from your health insurance provider showing expenses which you paid yourself in 2023 (see in the back)
  • Disability-related costs (see in the back)
  • Documents for charitable donations made in 2023 (see in the back)
  • A document of the surrender value of life insurance as of December 31, 2023
  • Details of car: brand, new price, year when vehicle was manufactured

Employed persons:

  • Yearly salary statements, attestations of unemployment benefit, daily allowance payments received, signed income statement in the case of self-employment
  • Gaps in employment: Confirmation that you were not working between such and such a date and did not earn any income during this period
  • Specific occupational expenses (advanced training, membership, etc.)
  • Documentary evidence of any voluntary contributions payments into pension funds
  • Certificate confirming your contributions to third pillar pension
  • Possible confirmation from your employer regarding use of car (see in the back)
  • Documentary evidence of cost of third-party childcare (day care centre, after-school day care centre, etc.) if both parents are working, disabled or in further education tax relief available for children up to 14 years old.
  • Income of self-employed activity which are taxed with the simplified procedure (e.g. for cleaning ladies, etc.) must be indicated for information purposes. Please also send in the 2023 statement of the AHV

Pension recipients:

  • Pension entitlement statements from your pension fund 2023 or credit note of the bank transfer from your pension fund 2023
  • Evidence of AHV pension 2023 (attestation from compensation fund or credit advice).
  • Any AHV contributions paid in 2023 (persons who are retired, disability pensioners, etc.)
  • Recipients of care allowances for persons unable to look after themselves: Also enclose an up-to-date ruling from the compensation fund. This qualifies for a special deduction.

Separated/divorced spouses:

  • Details of maintenance contributions/alimony
  • If you are a single with children we need to know if you lived together with a partner on December 31, 2023.

Documents

Shares, bonds and investment funds

A wealth tax statement and the confirmation of dividend payments from your bank will provide all the necessary information or

in the case of custody statements a list of taxable values is virtually essential. Otherwise, you will have to pay for the work we have to do in order to identify the various purchases and sales. It’s necessary to provide the dividend statements 2023 (payment date 2023).

Send us a list you have prepared yourself. In this case, we shall copy your figures over to your tax return without checking them. We shall forward any questions from the tax office regarding these figures to you.

Debts

Debit interest 2023 paid to banks or private individuals can be deducted from your income. If you currently have a consumer loan of any kind, call the lender and request a debit interest certificate for 2023. Default interest (on tax liabilities) also qualifies as debit interest.

 

Charitable donations (only for an institute in Switzerland)

Please send us deposit receipts, letters of thanks for 2023 or prepare a list of charitable donations yourself.

Occupational expenses / further education

We automatically apply the flat-rate deductions for occupational expenses. If you need to commute to work by car we require the following:

  • Letter from your employer confirming that you need your car or
  • Evidence showing that it would take you longer than 1¼ hours to commute by public transport (one way). Please tell us the length of your journey to work in kilometres (one way). See also innovations on the first page.
  • Deduction for meals are only possible when your midday-break is to short to eat at home (less than 45 min. at home). Please talk to us about it.
  • Other occupational expense: If you have receipts/bills for further education, union fees etc. you can send them to us.

Sickness expenses and disability-related costs

In 2023, sickness expenses borne by yourself will be fully deductible in the case of cantonal taxes and partially deductible in the case of federal taxes (excluding health insurance premiums). To claim such expenses you can:

  • Request a statement of 2023 from your health insurance provider showing expenses which you paid yourself or
  • Prepare your own list (list doctor’s bills, deducting contributions paid by your health insurance provider and enclose original bills)
  • Additional deductible items include: cost of dental treatment, glasses, orthopaedic insoles, etc. The additional deduction is only possible, if they are not cleared by your health insurance. Please enclose relevant bills
  • Essential dietary expenses for persons who suffer from coeliac disease or phenylketonuria qualify for a flat-rate deduction (please request a doctor’s certificate the first time you make the deduction).

Many attestations from the health insurance providers show “uninsured expenses”. These need to be backed up with documentary evidence. Otherwise, the tax office will not approve any deduction. Please enclose the relevant paperwork.

Disability-related costs

A big part of nursing home costs for persons in need of nursing care qualify as sickness expenses, or as disability-related expenses for cases classed as care level 2 or higher (based on the BESA scale). Please ask for a yearly statement.

Flat-rate deductions for recipients of care allowances for persons unable to look after themselves. Please enclose an up-to-date ruling from the compensation fund. There are also flat-rate deductions for the deaf or for kidney patients requiring dialysis. Blind people can claim actual additional expenses incurred (e.g. for guide dogs).

Property owners (in Switzerland as well as abroad)

  • Taxable value/owner-occupier rental value sheet from canton BL.
  • Property outside BL: owner-occupier rental value for property located in a different canton (please send us the last tax allocation for the canton in which the property is located).
  • List of any rental income 2023 (rent excluding ancillary costs)
  • Maintenance costs: send us all your original invoices (billing date 2023). We shall prepare a list of deductible (value-preserving) expenses (billed according to the amount of work involved) or
  • Send us a list you have prepared yourself. In this case, we shall copy your figures over to your tax return without checking them. We shall forward any questions from the tax office regarding these figures to you.
  • Mortgage interest 2023
  • Any ground rent income 2023
  • For owner-occupied apartments: to enable us to determine whether you will benefit more from a flat-rate deduction or from a deduction of actual expenses incurred we need to see the annual bill from the condominium association for 2023. We also need a statement showing your share of the fund assets and interest income of the condominium association.
  • Deduction for underuse: if you don’t use all rooms of your house/apartment we advise you.

Bills from the tax administration

If you enclose last year’s tax bills (incl. details of your assessment), we can check whether all deductions were accepted. If you have to pay significantly more than we predicted we recommend you to send us the demands as soon as you receive them so that we can get in touch with the tax administration. We hope you will understand that we have to charge for the work this entails. An objection can be done within 30 days from the invoice date. It has to be in written way if no mutual consent can be found with the tax authorities.

Reduce your tax bill

The very best legal way to cut down your tax bill is undoubtedly by paying into a Pillar 3a pension scheme. We will be happy to provide you with advice on the options available.

Please note

Our company has a very good reputation at the tax authorities. This is mainly because we do things properly. To ensure that we retain this good reputation we make a point of investigating anything that is not clear. We would therefore urge you to stay on the side of caution and send us too much paperwork rather than too little.

A few points on our own behalf

  • Copies? – No thanks! It’s easier for us to make all the necessary copies ourselves.
  • Please send us your documents and paperwork without staples or paperclips. This makes our work much easier. Thank you.
  • Payments at the counter of the post office will cause charges. We would appreciate if you pay our invoice in cash or through a bank/post transfer. Thanks.
  • Switzerland will collect data from January 1, 2017 on and exchange them with more than 100 countries.
  • Since 1 January 2010, tax evaders have had the chance to file a one-off voluntary disclosure of their affairs without being prosecuted and without incurring a fine. In previous years we have been able to assist numerous clients wishing to wipe the slate clean and clear their conscience. Ask Pia Krummenacher to explain what you need to do.
  • If you wish to make sure that your tax return has been completed by May 31, 2024 (without the CHF 40 extension fee), your forms and all necessary documents must reach us by March 31, 2024 at the latest.
  • We will take care of your extension until December 31, 2024, if your tax retrun is not completed by May 31, 2024 and if we have done your tax return 2022.
  • Deadlines for secondary tax returns (second canton): We will not ask for an extension.