Swiss Parliament Rejects Initiative To Tax Huge Inheritances

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) A national tax on million-franc inheritances for climate protection has no chance in parliament. This content was published on June 17, 2025 - 16:18 2 minutes Keystone-SDA

• Deutsch de Räte lehnen Initiative zur Besteuerung von Millionen-Erbschaften ab Original Read more: Räte lehnen Initiative zur Besteuerung von Millionen-Erbschaften a

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On Tuesday parliamentarians also rejected an alternative constitutional article to the initiative put forward by the Juso, the youth section of the left-wing Social Democratic Party. The initiative will therefore be put to the ballot box without a counter-proposal.

The Senate voted against it on Tuesday by 36 votes to seven with one abstention. The Juso is calling for a tax of 50% on estates of over CHF50 million ($62 million). The revenue should go to the federal government and cantons and be invested in climate protection, it says.

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It is also calling for measures to prevent tax avoidance, particularly in relation to emigration. The fact that the tax would be due immediately after a yes vote had already triggered lively discussions about emigration.

It is also feared that succession in family businesses would be made more difficult or impossible by the high tax. Opponents also warned of losses in income and wealth tax because the new tax could drive the richest out of the country.

Translated from German by DeepL/ts

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