Crowdfunding and Taxation in Switzerland

Crowdfunding – i.e. raising money via online platforms – in Switzerland is still in its infancy. Although the individual forms of funding are essentially nothing new under civil law, many uncertainties remain under tax law. The main problem affecting not only those involved in the transactions (e.g. backers, recipients of the funds and brokerage platforms), but also the tax authorities, is a lack of relevant experience. Yet taxation represents a not insignificant transaction cost, which must be reflected in business plans and financial planning. It is therefore vital that anyone entering into a crowdfunding transaction should clarify the tax situation at the onset of the project.

This analysis offers a preliminary overview of possible problem areas and demarcation issues. It starts by outlining the various types of taxation of potential relevance to crowdfunding. It then discusses these in more detail in relation to the four main categories of crowdfunding. This overview should be seen as a pragmatic guide: not only does it make no claim to be complete, it also covers only Switzerland and does not touch on the nondomestic situation.

Read the full article here: https://www.mme.ch/en/magazine/magazine-detail/url_magazine/crowdfunding_and_taxation/