Switzerland To Draft New Customs Tax Act

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

16 September 2020

On September 11, 2020, the Swiss Federal Council launched a consultation on proposals for the total revision of the customs system.

In 2018, Switzerland began the "DaziT program" to modernize the Federal Customs Administration (FCA). Under the initiative, which will run until 2026, customs, tax, and duty collection processes are being simplified, harmonized, and fully digitalized. The aim is to strengthen the competitiveness of Switzerland as a business location and to increase security at the border.

The FCA will ultimately be transformed into a new organization, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security.

Alongside the creation of the new organization, Switzerland is redrafting its Customs Act into a new Customs Tax Act and developing a new legal framework for the new authority. Among other things, the new Customs Tax Act will standardize all processes for the collection of taxes and for the control of the cross-border movement of goods and people by the new authority. Once revised, the Act will more concisely govern customs duties, the determination of these duties, and penalty provisions.

The consultation will close on December 31, 2020.

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