Am I obliged to pay tax with 20k yearly income

Hi. I was wondering how the tax office operates. At the moment I am making less than 20,000 Swiss francs per year. I am a Swiss citizen. Am I still obliged to pay tax?

Hi gentnovo33.

Swiss Federal, cantonal and municipal governments all use progressive tax schedules. This means people with low taxable income pay low (or no) taxes, and people with high taxable income pay high taxes.

Your taxable income is your income minus exemptions and claimed tax deductions. Taxes vary broadly between cantons and municipalities, so there is no one-stop answer to your question. But as a general rule, you will pay little or no taxes with a taxable income of 20,000 francs per year.

If you are a Swiss citizen, permanent resident (C permit) or the spouse of either of these, you have to submit tax returns. If you are eligible to pay taxes, you will be sent a tax bill.

Some cantons send provisional tax bills ahead of the tax year. In some cantons (like Zurich), paying these provisional tax bills is voluntary. In others (like Aargau), you must pay provisional tax bills in advance. In this second case, you receive tax refunds or possible additional tax bills after your tax returns have been submitted and processed.

If you are not a Swiss citizen or permanent resident and you are not married to one, your taxes are deducted from your salary automatically by your employer (assuming you are eligible to pay taxes).

Best regards from Moneyguru