Apply for a subsequent ordinary tax assessment

If your income and assets exceed certain thresholds (more than CHF 3,000 in income or more than CHF 80,000 or CHF 160,000 in assets for taxpayers jointly), you are obliged to apply for a subsequent ordinary assessment. This requirement ensures that all financial resources are taxed correctly.

Many taxpayers opt for a voluntary ex post assessment in order to claim specific expenses that were not taken into account in the withholding tax rate or were only deducted at a flat rate. This allows for a more precise tax calculation and potential tax savings by deducting actual costs.

Deductible items that can be recognised include actual professional expenses, contributions to the pension fund and pillar 3a, costs for training and further education up to a maximum of CHF 12,000 per year, as well as expenses for childcare, alimony payments, interest on debt and extraordinary costs due to illness or disability.

The application for a subsequent ordinary tax assessment must be submitted by 31 March of the following year. For persons leaving Switzerland, this period ends on the day of their official deregistration. An extension of this period is not possible, which makes timely submission essential.