Tax season ≠ happy season

Wealth management fees can be deducted

Did you know you can deduct your administrative costs and management fees for your investments from your taxes? No matter who is charging you for wealth management (the bank, a broker, Selma, etc.) you can deduct these costs from your tax. Just enter your costs, charges and fees in the field “Kosten für die Verwaltung des beweglichen Privatvermögens” (loosely translated “Costs of managing liquid private assets”).

Real estate and what to consider

Of course, real estate you own belongs to your wealth and is part of the Swiss tax law. 

Here you find a quick run-down on what to consider and do when owning real estate. 

1. A rule of thumb is: Everything you invest in your house or apartment which counts as “maintenance” is tax deductible. 
2. Mortgage interest is tax deductible, which could help you save a lot. 
3. Have your children moved out and you have unused rooms in your house? You can request a reduction of the “Eigenmietwert”. But consider, if granted you are not allowed to use the space anymore - not even for storage. 
4. Planning on selling a property? Consider you have to pay “Grundstückgewinnsteuer.” The taxes get lower the longer you owned the real-estate. This is tracked in full years, so maybe it makes sense to keep your house or apartment for another year. 🤔

Any other tips?

Medical expenses

Most of your medical expenses are usually covered by your health and accident insurance. But under certain circumstances, you might be able to deduct part of it from your tax return. This is especially noteworthy if you have high dental costs or a high deductible.

Energy-saving measures

Did you install a newer, much more modern heating system in your home? Chances are you could deduct the costs of your tax return. Investments aimed at saving energy or to protect the environment such as installing double-glazed windows or insulating the facade can, in most cases, be claimed as maintenance costs and thus are deductible. 

Pillar 3a reminder

All your contributions and payments to your pillar 3a account are tax deductible as well.

Your tax report at Selma

If you are a client you will receive a tax report once a year. This report shows you all details about your investments and helps you when filling in your tax statement. As soon as the various ETFs that you are invested in have reported the annual return data to the authorities, Selma can generate your tax report.

This happens typically in the beginning of March and you will get notified by email, once everything is available in your Selma web app. 

For your pillar 3a account you will get the tax confirmation in January from our partner VZ via mail (like - actual mail, not email). Of course, you can also download your pillar 3a payment confirmation from your Selma account.

Want to know more about your tax report? Check out our FAQ.