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Protection against unjustified debt collection – new rule from 2026

In Switzerland, debt enforcement proceedings can be initiated without the claim having to be proven beforehand. An entry is made in the debt collection register as soon as the payment order is issued, which is visible to third parties (e.g. banks, landlords or business partners). This can have considerable disadvantages for those affected.

To prevent abuse, it is possible to have unjustified debt enforcement against third parties suppressed.

New since January 1, 2026:

• An application for non-disclosure can be made at the earliest 3 months after service of the payment order.
• The deadline for this application has been extended from 1 year to 5 years.
• The creditor must prove that the claim has been pursued.
• If this proof is not provided, the entry is hidden from third parties.

However, non-disclosure is excluded if the claim has been acknowledged or paid (e.g. without a legal proposal, full payment or acknowledgement of debt).

The new rule significantly strengthens legal protection against abusive debt collection.

Abolition of imputed rental value – reform of residential property taxation

The imputed rental value is a notional income for owner-occupied residential property that previously had to be taxed. At the same time, owners were able to deduct maintenance costs, energy-related investments and debt interest for tax purposes.

The referendum on September 28, 2025 decided to abolish this system.

The most important changes:

• The imputed rental value does not apply to owner-occupied properties.
• Maintenance costs for such properties can no longer be deducted in future.
• Energy-related investments are also no longer deductible for direct federal tax purposes (cantonal exceptions possible).
• The deduction of debt interest is severely restricted.

An exception applies to first-time buyers:

In the first 10 years after acquisition, debt interest can be deducted to a limited extent.

The reform will come into force on January 1, 2028 at the earliest. Until then, the previous rules will continue to apply.

AHV reform – dividends instead of wages

Employees with an interest in their own company can receive income as a salary or dividend. These two forms are treated differently for tax and social security purposes.

Dividends:

• do not count as earned income
• are not subject to AHV contributions
• are only partially taxed for shareholdings of 10% or more

This creates an incentive to pay out more dividends and fewer wages in order to save on taxes and social security contributions.

Today, compensation funds can intervene if:

• Dividends are obviously excessive
• at the same time a wage that is not in line with the market.

A dividend is often considered excessive if it amounts to 10% or more of the tax value of the shareholding.

As part of a future AHV revision, it will be examined whether excessive dividends should automatically become partially subject to AHV contributions in future.

Child tax deduction – entitlement and apportionment

The child deduction is a social deduction for direct federal tax and cantonal taxes. It takes into account the additional costs for children.

Principles:

• Entitlement exists for underage children or children in education.
• The decisive factor is who actually bears the maintenance costs, not just the legal maintenance obligation.

For separated parents:

• If one parent bears the majority of the costs → full child deduction
• In the case of joint care → split equally

The following applies to underage children with maintenance payments:

• Recipient of maintenance payments receives the child deduction
• Payer can deduct maintenance payments for tax purposes

For direct federal tax 2025, the child deduction amounts to CHF 6,800 per child. In addition, the parental ratereduces thetax by CHF 263 per child.

The specific structure differs from canton to canton.

Read the entire article in the latest issue of EXPERT INFO in the downloads section.