Federal Council wants to digitalize tax procedures - Contrary to the wishes of parties and associations

Digitalization is in full swing and has also started in the tax sector. For this reason, the Federal Tax Administration (ESTV) has set itself the goal that in the future all tax data can be submitted electronically. The Federal Council adopted a message on this on May 20, 2020.

On May 20, 2020, the Federal Council adopted the message on the "Federal Act on Electronic Procedures in the Tax Area". With this proposal, the Federal Council implements the Schmid motion, which demands the electronic submission of the tax declaration or the application for reimbursement of the withholding tax.

Federal taxes digital

The digital transformation has also started at the Federal Tax Administration (ESTV). To account for new digital developments, the tax authority has set itself the goal that in the future all data for those taxes collected by the Confederation (value-added tax, withholding tax & stamp duties) can and, under certain circumstances, must be submitted electronically. The Federal Council maintains the possibility of obliging taxpayers to submit tax documents electronically, even though various parties and associations have spoken out against it in the consultation process. Among others, the CVP, FDP, SVP as well as the associations economiesuisse and TreuhandSuisse criticized the lack of data protection in electronic input procedures. In addition, it was demanded that the state's E-Governance systems should be made more user-friendly, as people who are not tech-savvy should not be disadvantaged by the digital transformation. The Federal Council justifies its decision with the, in its opinion, great need of the general public for the electronic handling of tax matters.

Facilitations also at the cantonal level

Furthermore, the Federal Council's proposal foresees facilitations in the submission of the tax declaration for the direct federal taxes (income, wealth, profit, & capital taxes). New regulations should allow the cantons to dispense with the requirement for a handwritten signature in electronic submissions. The signature requirement should be replaced by the electronic confirmation of the information by the taxpayer themselves. This is to ensure the authenticity and integrity of the submitted data within the framework of cantonal law. But there should also be facilitations concerning the electronic transmission of tax documents in the opposite direction. The Federal Council proposes that the cantons may henceforth open the tax assessment electronically with the taxpayer's consent.

In view of the data protection concerns raised by various parties as well as industry associations during the consultation process, one can look forward to the further course of developments in the area of digitalization of tax procedures and especially the decision-making process of the Federal Assembly.

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