Property transfer tax: what you pay in your canton

In Zurich, Zug and Schwyz, you pay no property transfer tax. Zurich abolished it with effect from 1 January 2005; Zug and Schwyz do not levy one.^{2 3 1} Only land registry and notarisation fees apply there.⁴ In Lucerne, by contrast, the buyer pays 1.5 per cent of the purchase price. Deals under CHF 20,000 are exempt.⁵

Aargau levies no classic property transfer tax. It does charge a land register levy (Grundbuchabgabe) of 0.4 per cent, which has the character of a tax. Buyer and seller are jointly liable for it.^{6 1} St Gallen and Appenzell Innerrhoden each charge 1 per cent from the buyer. St Gallen halves the rate between parents and children.^{7 9} Appenzell Ausserrhoden charges at most 2 per cent; the municipality may set a lower rate. Unless agreed otherwise, both sides pay half each.⁸

What this means for you. At the same purchase price, the canton decides whether the tax is zero or up to several tens of thousands of francs.

The rule is simple. In most cantons, the buyer owes the tax.¹ The buyer alone owes it in Bern, Lucerne, Fribourg, Solothurn, Basel-Stadt, Valais, Neuchâtel and Jura, among others.¹ In Nidwalden, St Gallen, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Thurgau and Ticino, the seller is also jointly liable. The state can therefore also claim the tax from the seller there.¹

This expressly applies to Lucerne and Fribourg too: there, the buyer alone owes the tax in principle, according to the official overview.^{1 5} Only a few cantons split the tax by law, such as Basel-Landschaft and Obwalden.¹ In Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Aargau, the parties agree between themselves who pays, but are jointly liable for it.^{8 6 1}

What this means for you. Check the purchase contract to see who bears the tax under the agreement. The law only sets the default rule, not every clause in the contract.

A tax is levied by the state without a direct service in return, as revenue for the general public.¹ A fee, by contrast, pays for a specific service. Examples are the land registry entry or notarisation of the deed. In principle, its amount may not exceed the cost of that service.¹

In Zurich, Zug, Schwyz, Uri, Glarus and Schaffhausen there is no property transfer tax at all, only such fees.¹ In Ticino, the two are combined: one eighth of the levy counts as a fee, seven eighths as a genuine tax.¹ In the remaining cantons, the property transfer tax comes on top of the land registry fees. It does not replace them.¹

Do not confuse the property transfer tax with the property gains tax (Grundstückgewinnsteuer). That tax only covers the profit made on a sale, not the change of ownership itself.¹ More on this in calculating property gains tax and notary and land registry.

What this means for you. The notary’s statement often shows several items, not just one.