Das Schweizer Recht unterscheidet zwischen der Steuerhinterziehung, die mit Verwaltungsbussen geahndet wird, und dem Steuerbetrug, der eine Straftat ist. Die hier versammelten Beiträge erläutern diese Unterscheidung, die straflose Selbstanzeige, die Steuerpflichtigen einmal im Leben offensteht, wenn sie nicht deklarierte Einkommen und Vermögenswerte offenlegen, das Verfahren sowie die nachzuzahlenden Steuern und Zinsen und die Regeln über die Amts- und Rechtshilfe gegenüber ausländischen Steuerbehörden. Sie richten sich an Privatpersonen und Unternehmen, die ihre steuerliche Situation in der Schweiz bereinigen oder auf ein ausländisches Ersuchen reagieren müssen.
The automatic exchange of information has made undeclared assets visible to tax authorities around the world. Swiss law allows taxpayers to regularise their position once in their lifetime without a penalty, provided that the authorities do not yet know of the undeclared income and assets.
The penalty-free voluntary disclosure is available once in a lifetime for direct federal, cantonal and communal taxes. The taxpayer must cooperate fully in establishing the amounts and endeavour to pay the back taxes and interest, and the authorities must not yet be aware of the undeclared items. A later disclosure is still possible, although it leads to a reduced penalty and no longer to full exemption.
Swiss law distinguishes tax evasion, which is punished with a fine, from tax fraud, which involves forged or falsified documents and is prosecuted as a criminal offence. The distinction also matters for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters. Back taxes can generally be recovered for up to ten years, which is why a voluntary disclosure usually covers that period and requires careful reconstruction of older records.
Heirs can also regularise assets that the deceased failed to declare. A simplified recovery procedure for heirs limits the back taxes to the last three years before death, with interest, and no penalty is imposed. Holders of crypto assets, offshore companies and trusts should review their filings with particular care, since valuation, beneficial ownership and the attribution of income often raise difficult questions.
The articles explain the difference between tax evasion and tax fraud, the penalty-free voluntary disclosure, the tax and interest that are recovered, and the regularisation of undeclared crypto assets and offshore structures.