National Council decides
National Council wants higher federal share of OECD minimum tax
According to the will of the National Council, the federal government should receive half of the additional income from the implementation of the OECD minimum tax for internationally active corporations. The grand chamber approved a corresponding application on Thursday.
Finance Minister Ueli Maurer campaigned in vain for the solution of the Federal Council and the Council of States in the National Council. (archive image)
According to the will of the National Council, the federal government should receive half of the additional income from the implementation of the OECD minimum tax for internationally active corporations. The grand chamber approved a corresponding application on Thursday. In principle, the National Council approved a proposal from its Commission for Economic Affairs and Taxes.
The Finance Committee of the National Council was also behind the split. However, the Economic Commission added a clarification in the preliminary consultation: According to this, a canton’s share of the supplementary tax should not have exceeded an upper limit of 400 francs per inhabitant. However, the Council deleted this provision.
With its decision, the National Council is opposed to the Council of States. In September, the latter spoke out in favor of giving 75 percent of the income to the cantons where the companies concerned are located and 25 percent to the federal government. A minority of the preliminary advisory commission also advocated this solution, but they did not find a majority.
referendum in view
The proponents of an equal split argued in particular that the referendum on the new constitutional article could only be won with a balanced distribution of the proceeds. Without this, the gap between low- and high-tax cantons would also continue to widen.
“We have to win this referendum,” said Markus Ritter (middle / SG). It’s about building bridges.
Finance Minister Ueli Maurer described the Council of States’ solution as a carefully balanced compromise between the federal government and the cantons. The proposal by the majority of the Commission endangers solidarity, he warned without success. As a result, less money flows into the financial equalization system.
Minimum tax of 15 percent
At the heart of the OECD/G20 tax reform is a minimum tax rate of 15 percent for all companies with annual sales of more than 750 million euros. According to the Federal Council, around 2,000 companies in Switzerland are affected by the reform. 600,000 purely nationally active SMEs are not covered by the new regulation.
The Federal Council wants to implement the new rules with a supplementary tax. The people and cantons are expected to vote on the constitutional amendment required for this in early summer 2023.
In the overall vote, the Council accepted the corresponding federal resolution with 127 votes to 43, with 18 abstentions. The business goes back to the Council of States. (SDA)