Switzerland
Not an EU member · 26 cantons with their own tax powers
The decisive point for holding structures: there are no recurring shareholder costs. Formation is more expensive, running it costs nothing.
The country
Not an EU member but closely tied through bilateral treaties. Nine million people, Swiss franc.
26 cantons with their own tax powers. Decades of political stability, a first-class banking centre.
Choosing the canton is a real decision: the total burden ranges from just under twelve per cent in Zug to over twenty per cent in other cantons.
Tax and obligations
- Federal tax of 8.5 per cent on after-tax profit, plus cantonal and municipal tax.
- Participation deduction for dividends and gains from qualifying holdings.
- Patent box and research deduction at cantonal level.
- Withholding tax of 35 per cent on dividends, largely reclaimable under double taxation treaties.
Registers and transparency
The commercial register is public and names management and authorised signatories. There is no public register of beneficial owners; the company keeps an internal record.
Company forms
GmbH (CHF 20,000, paid in full) · AG (CHF 100,000, of which 50,000 paid in) · General and limited partnership · Foundation · Branch
What you need to know
The share capital of CHF 20,000 is NOT included in the formation price and must be paid in FULL — unlike Germany and Austria there is no partial payment. In return, no recurring shareholder costs arise afterwards: over ten years Switzerland is therefore cheaper than the formation price suggests.
Our product for this jurisdiction
Swiss GmbH
€6,950
Fixed price, first-year government fees included, one point of contact through to incorporation.
See scope and price