SWITZERLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Natalie Dini and Peter Vogt, Tax Partner AG
9. Planning for Non-Traditional Families 9.1 Children Children Born out of Wedlock Parentage is automatic for the birth mother; paternity comes by marriage, voluntary acknowledgment or court ruling. Once parentage is established, the child has the full forced-heirship share and counts in any “children/issue” clause. Adopted Children Full adoption severs legal ties to the biological family and creates a new parent-child link to the adopter(s). Adopted children inherit and enjoy forced-share pro - tection exactly like biological children of the adop - tive parents, but have no rights in the birth parents’ estates. Surrogate-Born Children The Swiss Constitution and Reproductive Medicine Act ban surrogacy in Switzerland; the woman who gives birth is always the legal mother in Swiss law. After a foreign surrogacy, the genetic/intended father is usually recognised; the intended mother must adopt the child in Switzerland. Until that adoption is final, the child inherits only from the recognised parent(s). Legality of Surrogacy All forms of surrogacy inside Switzerland are crimi - nal offences and contracts are void. Only two legal parents are recognised; intended mothers (or second fathers) must complete a step-child adoption after foreign surrogacy. 9.2 Same-Sex Marriage Same-sex couples with a registered partnership as well as same-sex married couples are recognised and are subject to the same tax rules as other spouses.
Once appointed, the guardian/curator is subject to continuous KESB supervision: they must file an open - ing inventory, annual accounts and regular activity reports. In addition, major acts (eg, sale of real estate or use of capital) need prior KESB approval. 8.3 Elder Law Switzerland uses the so-called three-pillar social security system: • First pillar – old age and disability pension: State- run, pay-as-you-go, old-age and survivors, disabil - ity and short-term income-loss insurance; funded by compulsory payroll contributions plus a federal subsidy and designed to cover basic living costs. • Second pillar – occupational pension: Funded savings accounts run by employers and pension funds; mandatory for employees above an annual salary threshold, with contributions split between employer and employee, aimed at maintaining the pre-retirement standard of living. Voluntary addi - tional contributions by the employee are usually tax deductible. • Third pillar – private provision: Voluntary, tax- favoured individual saving. Additional measures and recent developments include the following: • first pillar – voters approved a 13th monthly old age and survivors’ pension from 2026; • third pillar – the federal maximum pillar 3a deduc - tion is increased regularly and for tax year 2025 will be CHF7,258 (or 20% of income up to CHF 36,288 for the self-employed); • supplementary pensions ( Ergänzungsleistungen ) can be applied for so that rent, nursing-home fees and health costs are covered; • elderly or disabled persons who need daily help can claim a federal disability and care allowance; and • tax relief for family care – most cantons now allow deductions for certified home-care costs and for contributions to parents’ or grandparents’ support.
10. Charitable Planning 10.1 Charitable Giving
Swiss based charitable institutions benefit from a tax exemption for corporate income taxes, as well as asset and gift tax, if they meet the legal requirements. They are subject to either a federal or cantonal super - visory authority as regards their charitable activities.
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