Individual Taxation: How Would It Affect You?

On the eighth of March, 2026, citizens will vote on a proposed change in the way that income taxes are levied. Under the existing system, married couples are normally taxed as a single unit. But if the proposed change is adopted, all residents will be taxed individually from 2032, at the latest.

Unmarried individuals are already taxed on an individual basis. But because the proposal also includes changes to tax rates, this group of residents would also be affected.

In this article, moneyland.ch calculates the impact that the proposed change would have on your personal finances. Important: As an independent comparison service, moneyland.ch does not make any recommendations for voters. The information provided in this article simply shows the impact of the proposed new system, based on official data.

Analysis based on four different profiles

moneyland.ch analyzed the impact of the proposal for these profiles:

• Unmarried individuals without children
• Married couples without children
• Unmarried individuals with children
• Married couples with children

The profiles are based on the current legal system: From a tax perspective, unmarried individuals, divorcees, widows, and widowers are considered to be individually-taxable entities. Unmarried couples are not considered to be a joint unit for tax purposes, and each partner is taxed individually.

A separate set of tax rates applies to married couples, registered partnerships, and single parents.

The following analysis applies to individuals with a taxable income of up to 250,000 francs, and families with a taxable income of up to 500,000 francs.

• Unmarried individuals without children

Single adults are already taxed individually, and would continue to submit tax declarations as they currently do. But the changes to tax rates would affect the size of your tax bill.

A comparison between the existing and proposed tax rates reveals these results for direct federal tax:

• If your taxable income is below 23,500 francs, you would not pay any taxes at all under the proposed tax system. Under the existing system, the threshold is 18,500 francs.
• If your taxable income is less than 94,000 francs, you would pay less taxes under the proposed system than under the existing system. 
• If your taxable income is above 94,100 francs, you would pay more taxes under the proposed system.
• The maximum tax burden of 11.5 percent would apply from 732,100 francs. Under the current system, the threshold is 793,400 francs.

The graph below shows the direct federal tax calculations for taxable incomes between 1000 and 250,000 francs.

• Married couples without children

If the proposal is adopted, each partner will have to fill out their own tax declaration, and each will receive a separate tax bill. While that may seem like a relatively minor adjustment, it would in fact mark a fundamental change in the way that taxes are calculated. Both incomes will be taxed separately, meaning the individual incomes earned by each partner would determine the taxes due.

A comparison between the existing and proposed tax rates reveals these results for direct federal tax:

• Under the existing tax system, couples without children do not pay any taxes at all if their combined taxable income does not exceed 33,000 francs. Under the proposed system, couples in this category would not pay any taxes if each partner’s individual income does not exceed 23,600 francs. That means couples with just one income earner would have to pay taxes if their income exceeds 23,600 francs. But for couples in which both partners earn an income, the threshold would be as high as 47,200 francs, depending on how their incomes are distributed.
• Couples with a single earner would pay taxes from a taxable income of 23,600 francs, and would therefore pay more taxes than they do currently.
• For many income levels, couples in which one partner earns 90 percent of the taxable income would pay more taxes under the proposed system. But the proposed system would result in lower taxes for taxable income levels between 46,600 and 50,400 francs, between 61,900 and 93,400 francs, and above 162,000 francs.
• Couples in which one partner earns 80 percent of the taxable income would pay less taxes, in most cases. The only situation in which that is not the case is if the couple’s combined taxable income is between 29,500 and 35,700 francs.
• Couples in which one partner earns either 50 percent, 60 percent, or 70 percent of the taxable income would pay less taxes, in total, than under the current system.

• Unmarried individuals with children

The tax exemption for each underage child and for each young adult completing their initial education would be raised from 6800 francs to 12,000 francs per year and child. This change, in combination with the changes in tax rates, would affect how much taxes you have to pay as a single parent with children.

A comparison between the existing and proposed tax rates shows these results for direct federal tax: 

• Under the existing tax system, you pay no tax at all if your taxable income is less than 55,900 francs. Under the proposed system, the threshold would be a lower 54,400 francs. The threshold is raised if you have more than one child.
• For a single parent with one child earning up to 85,000 francs, the taxes would remain similar to the current taxes. If you earn more than that amount, your tax bill would be higher under the proposed system.
• For a single parent with two children earning up to 95,800 francs, the taxes would be lower than under the existing system. If you earn more than that amount, your tax bill would be higher under the proposed system.
• For a single parent with three children earning up to 109,900 francs, the taxes would be lower than under the current system. If you earn between 110,000 and 168,000 francs, your tax bill would be higher under the proposed system. But if your income is higher than 168,000 francs, the proposed system would result in a lower tax bill.

About the calculations: moneyland.ch used the higher tax exemption for children in its calculations. The taxable income shown uses the current bases for calculating taxable income.

• Married couples with children

Under the proposed system, each of the two partners would be able to deduct 6000 francs per child from their separate income. Under the existing system, the couple as a unit can claim just one deduction of 6800 francs for each child. Along with the changes to tax rates, the new system of tax deductions would change the amount of taxes that families pay. 

A comparison between the existing and the proposed tax systems shows the following results for direct federal tax:

• A married couple in which one parent earns the income would pay more taxes under the proposed system. Single-earner families would remain tax-exempt if their income falls below 43,900 francs (one child), 54,400 francs (two children), or 63,600 francs (three children).
• Married couples with one child in which one partner earns 90 percent of the taxable income would pay higher taxes if both partners’ taxable incomes combined does not exceed 68,600 francs. That threshold increases to 82,500 francs for couples with two children, and 87,400 for couples with three children.
  It is interesting to note that from a taxable income of around 155,000 francs, a married couple with children would pay less taxes under the proposed tax system than under the current system.
• Married couples in which one partner earns 80 percent of the taxable income would, in almost every case, pay less taxes than under the current system. The only exception to this rule is a family with one child and a combined taxable income between 53,700 and 57,200 francs.
• Married couples in which one partner earns 50, 60, or 70 percent of the taxable income would pay less taxes under the proposed tax system than under the current system.

About the calculations: moneyland.ch used the higher tax exemption for children in its calculations. The taxable income shown uses the current bases for calculating taxable income.