For what must property tax be paid?
The following are subject to land tax
- farms and forestry (land tax A) and
- Real estate, e.g. single-family houses, condominiums, commercial properties (real estate tax B).
Until 2024:
The basis for the tax calculation is solely the value of the business or the land (assessed value). However, the value ratios as of January 1, 1964 are decisive here. The standard values will only be used as the basis for property tax up to and including 2024.
From 2025:
From 2025, the basis for calculating the tax for real estate tax A will be the capitalized earnings value of the business. For real estate tax B, the areas of the parcels and the buildings as well as the use of the buildings will be decisive.
The owner's personal circumstances are not taken into account when determining the tax base.
The tax is determined in a three-stage procedure (see links under "Related topics").
The responsible municipality assesses the property tax after determining the assessed value (until 2024) or the equivalent amounts/property tax value (from 2025) and the assessment of the property tax assessment amount by the responsible tax office. In this process, the property tax assessment amount communicated by the tax office is multiplied by the assessment rate that the municipality has set in advance in its bylaws. The municipality has wide discretion in determining the assessment rate.
The property tax can be waived, among other things, if the normal yield of the business or the property is substantially reduced and the owner is not responsible for this. The application for remission must be submitted to the municipality.
Who has to pay the real estate tax?
The owner of the agricultural and forestry business or the land must pay the property tax.
If the land is rented out, the property tax can be apportioned to the tenant as part of the operating costs.
If the ownership changes because the agricultural and forestry business or the land was sold, given away or inherited, the new owner must pay the property tax as of January 1 of the following year. For the year in which the ownership of the land changed, the old owner still has to pay the property tax. The old and new owners can agree among themselves that the costs will be paid by the new owner. This does not have to be communicated to the tax office or the municipality. The municipality itself may not demand the property tax for this calendar year from the new owner, but must still approach the previous taxpayers for it.