Shares in %
2022 receipts
Value added tax: 24 679 mn
Direct federal tax: 26 331 mn
Withholding tax: 3 888 mn
Mineral oil tax: 4 434 mn
Stamp duty: 2 483 mn
Tobacco duty: 2 082 mn
Other tax receipts: 7 206 mn
Nontax receipts: 4 175 mn
Extraordinary receipts: 1 592 mn
VAT accounted for 32.7 % of total receipts, making it the most important source of receipts for the Confederation, together with direct federal tax. Domestic consumption is taxed. This includes the acquisition of domestic goods and services, as well as imports. Exports are not subject to VAT.
Direct federal tax accounted for 34.9 % of total receipts. Together with value added tax, it is the most important source of receipts for the Confederation. Direct federal tax is levied on the income of natural persons and on the net profit of legal entities. The proportions of income tax and profit tax receipts are more or less balanced at 48 % and 52 %, respectively, of direct federal tax. The 2022 receipts were derived mainly from taxable income and profits from 2021.
Withholding tax accounted for 5.1 % of total receipts. Withholding tax is designed as a safeguard tax for direct taxes and is intended to ensure that income from movable capital assets is taxed (especially dividends and interest income). The receipts arise from the difference between funds received and reimbursed (including the provision for refunds still expected).
The consumption tax levied on petroleum and fuel, among other things, amounted to 5.8 % of total receipts in 2022. Overall, around three quarters of these receipts are earmarked for road transportation and aviation (60 % of the basic tax and all of the surtax).
Stamp duty accounted for 3.2 % of total receipts. Transfer stamp tax, which accounts for almost 60 % of stamp duty, is levied on purchases and sales of Swiss and foreign securities. The revenue from transfer stamp tax depends on the volume of taxable securities turnover of Swiss securities dealers. The issue tax on the accumulation of net assets/equity fluctuates considerably, as it depends on the equity requirements of companies. The third component is insurance premium stamp duty, which is collected on certain insurance premiums and whose trend is relatively stable.
Tobacco duty accounted for 2.7 % of total receipts. This duty is levied on domestically manufactured and imported tobacco products and substitutes. The revenue is used to co-finance the federal AHV contribution.
Other tax receipts consist essentially of transportation levies (e.g. heavy vehicle charge and motorway tax), incentive fees (e.g. CO2 tax), the grid supplement and import duties. They accounted for 9.4 % of total receipts.
Nontax receipts accounted for 5.4 % of receipts. They include receipts from royalties and concessions, such as the basic amount of the Swiss National Bank's profit distribution (667 mn). Nontax receipts also include items such as the military service exemption tax, cantonal contributions (e.g. cantonal contributions to the railway infrastructure fund), miscellaneous receipts (e.g. building receipts) and financial receipts (e.g. interest receipts).
Extraordinary receipts accounted for 2.1 % of total receipts. They were derived mainly from supplementary profit distributions by the SNB (1.3 bn), which have been recognized under extraordinary receipts since 2021, thereby offsetting some of the coronavirus-related debt, which is shown in the debt brake's amortization account.
Development of selected 2022 receipts
in CHF mn and %
Receipts
Value added tax
Stamp duty
Mineral oil tax
Tobacco duty
Withholding tax
Direct federal tax
In 2022, receipts posted weak year-on-year growth of 1.0 % (+0.8 bn) and reached 76.9 billion. This was attributable mainly to higher receipts from value added tax (+1.1 bn) and direct federal tax (+0.9 bn). Value added tax benefited from robust consumption and rising import prices, while in the case of direct federal tax, receipts from profit taxation experienced strong growth. However, withholding tax suffered a sharp decline (-1.0 bn). The low level of receipts was mainly due to estimate corrections (-1.9 bn), as the receipts recorded in 2019-2021 were too high from today's perspective.
Value added tax (VAT) receipts grew by a substantial 4.8 % (+1.1 bn) to 24.7 billion in 2022, but fell short of nominal GDP growth (+5.4 %). The rise in value added tax receipts was largely due to import tax receipts, which surged in 2022 because of high inflation (especially abroad). The budgeted figure was also exceeded by a long shot (+1.2 bn), as the assumptions made at the time of budgeting were overly pessimistic.
Stamp duty receipts amounted to 2.5 billion and thus significantly exceeded the figure in the budget (+413 mn, or +19.7 %). On the one hand, the abolition of issue tax planned for May 1, 2022 was rejected in the popular vote on February 13, 2022 (+196 mn). On the other hand, transfer stamp tax receipts were also much better than budgeted (+181 mn). However, the prior year's very high figure was not matched (-4.8 %, or -125 mn).
Mineral oil tax receipts decreased by 2.7% (-121 mn) relative to the previous year, and fell well short of the budgeted figure (-256 mn, or -5.5 %). The relatively high level of prices, the price differences relative to foreign countries (fuel discounts abroad), and the increase in electric vehicles led to lower receipts.
Tobacco duty receipts were higher than budgeted (+51 mn) but lower than the previous year (- 176 mn). The lower receipts resulted from the considerable decline in cigarette sales (-6 %). Once the COVID-19 measures were lifted, more cigarettes were again purchased abroad in less expensive countries or in duty-free stores. Tobacco duty helps finance the federal AHV/IV contribution.
Withholding tax receipts amounted to 3.9 billion in 2022. Relative to the previous year, receipts rose by around 20 % to almost 40.1 billion, due mainly to dividends, the largest component of withholding tax. Rising interest rates and the end of negative interest rates prompted beneficiaries to claim their withholding tax refunds. Consequently, 35.8 billion was refunded in 2022, representing a rise of over 50 %. Factoring in the outstanding refunds for 2022, receipts for fiscal 2022 are estimated at 5.7 billion. In addition, the receipts recorded for 2019-2021 were too high from today's perspective. The ensuing corrections were applied to 2022 (-1.9 bn). As a result, receipts for 2022 ultimately amounted to 3.9 billion, which was significantly lower than both the prior year and the budget (-1.0 bn and - 3.2 bn).
Direct federal tax receipts climbed by 0.9 billion (+3.7 %) year on year, and also came in slightly above budget (+0.1 bn). Profit tax receipts posted robust growth (+0.9 bn, or +7.1%). This was mainly due to the economic recovery seen in fiscal 2021 following the sharp downturn of 2020 caused by the COVID- 19 pandemic. By contrast, income tax receipts virtually stagnated (+0.3 %). Although receipts from the main tax year (2021) increased, those from earlier tax years (2020 and before) dropped sharply (-17 %).
Development of 2022 receipts
in CHF bn and % of GDP
Receipts posted subdued growth of 1.0 %, or 0.7 billion, in 2022, meaning that receipt growth was significantly weaker than nominal GDP growth (5.4%). The receipt ratio thus dropped sharply from 10.4 % to 10.0 % of GDP.
Data
Detailed data for longer periods are available under the following links:
- Link data portal
- Link Open Government Data
Downloads
Last modification 01.05.2023