Steuer-Zerleger/CH/pillar-3a/pension-or-lump-sum/lump-sum-withdrawal/property-gains-tax/inheritance-tax/tax-by-municipality, all calculators

How much tax do you save today with pillar 3a or a pension fund buy-in – and what does the withdrawal cost later? Franc by franc, by federal, cantonal, municipal and church tax.Pillar 3a and pension fund buy-ins: save now, pay later – all cantons and all municipalities.Not just a number – see how your income and wealth tax comes about, franc by franc: federal, cantonal, municipal and church tax, bracket by bracket. All 26 cantons, all municipalities.Income and wealth tax bracket by bracket – all cantons and all municipalities.How much tax does a payout from your pension fund, pillar 3a or vested benefits cost? One-off and separate from your salary – broken down block by block into federal, cantonal, municipal and church tax.Lump-sum withdrawal tax block by block – all cantons and all municipalities.A lifelong pension or a lump sum from your pension fund? What you keep after all taxes – compared year by year, with federal, cantonal, municipal and church tax.Pension or lump sum: what you keep after all taxes – all cantons and all municipalities.How much property gains tax will you pay when you sell your flat or house? Gain, period of ownership and tax scale broken down – with cantonal, municipal and church tax where they apply.Property gains tax when you sell – all cantons and all municipalities.How much tax is due when you inherit or receive a gift? Tax-free amount, tax scale and municipality broken down – for every relationship, with a comparison of all 26 cantons.Inheritance and gift tax – all 26 cantons, every relationship.One household, every municipality: what your profile pays in income and wealth tax in each municipality in Switzerland – as a map, canton comparison and ranking.One household in all municipalities – map and ranking.

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Inheritance tax and gift tax calculator

How much tax is due when you inherit or receive a gift? The calculator breaks down the tax-free amount, tariff and municipality for every relationship, from child to unrelated person, includes earlier gifts and compares the same gift or inheritance in all 26 cantons.

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R1Overview

Compare this household across all municipalities ›

One-off tax on the payout · separate from other income

Estimate only, not adviceEarly withdrawal for home ownership (WEF) is taxed in the same way

Pension or lump sum? Compare what is left after all taxes ›

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R2Who takes how much

R3Staggering

R4Lump sum in blocks of 50,000

InfoGood to know about lump-sum withdrawals

Early withdrawal for a home (WEF)

An early withdrawal from a pension fund or pillar 3a for home ownership is taxed in the same way as a payout and added to your other withdrawals in the same calendar year. If you later repay an early withdrawal from the pension fund, the tax you paid is refunded on request, without interest; this right lapses 3 years after the repayment (Art. 83a BVG). The repayment is not deductible from income, and an early withdrawal from pillar 3a cannot be repaid. The calculator does not include the repayment.

Buy-in before withdrawal

If you bought into your pension fund in the 3 years before the withdrawal, the tax authority may reverse the deduction for the buy-in (Art. 79b para. 3 BVG). This is not included here.

Pension or lump sum?

A pension is taxed every year together with your other income; a lump sum is taxed once, separately.

Pension instead of lump sum?

After the withdrawal

The withdrawal, after tax, counts as part of your wealth (wealth tax) – for the first time on the reference date of 31 December of the year of withdrawal; interest and returns from it are income.

Staggering and tax avoidance

Staggered withdrawals are common, for example across several pillar 3a accounts or partial withdrawals from the pension fund. If withdrawals are split up only to save tax, the tax authority may in an individual case treat this as tax avoidance and add the withdrawals together.

Estimate only, not advice

Calculated according to the rules of each canton and checked against the FTA calculator; the tax assessment is what counts. Not taken into account: residence abroad (tax at source) and benefits for surviving dependants or in the event of invalidity.

R2Who takes how much

R3Per franc more or less

R4Income in tax brackets

Tip: tap or hover over rows, bands and bars to see the details.

R5Marginal-rate steps

Use the left and right arrow keys to move the income; Home and End jump to the edge.

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Map base: Federal Statistical Office (FSO), ThemaKart set 2026; © swisstopo (swissBOUNDARIES3D, official building address directory)

How the Steuer-Zerleger calculates: explanation, questions and examples for 2026

How the Steuer-Zerleger calculates

The calculator works out inheritance tax and gift tax for all 26 cantons. There is no federal inheritance tax. The canton responsible is the one where the deceased last lived or where the donor lives; real estate is taxed by the canton in which it is located.

The relationship is decisive: spouses and registered partners are exempt everywhere, children almost everywhere. For parents, siblings, cohabiting partners and unrelated persons, each canton has its own tax-free amounts and rates. That is why you first choose who inherits or receives the gift; the calculator only asks about conditions that count in your canton, such as how long a cohabitation has lasted.

From the amount the person receives, the calculator deducts the tax-free amount or checks the threshold. It applies the canton’s tax scale to the rest – depending on the canton, a fixed rate, bands or a surcharge. The municipality only counts in Fribourg, Vaud, Lucerne and Graubünden. Earlier transfers are included if they fall within the canton’s time limit.

You see step by step how the amount comes about, and the same transfer in all cantons. Business succession, usufruct and cases involving other countries are not covered. It is an estimate; the tax assessment is what counts.

Frequently asked questions

Do children pay inheritance tax?

In most cantons, no. Of the 24 cantons with an inheritance tax, 20 exempt descendants entirely. They are taxed in Appenzell Innerrhoden (1% above CHF 300,000), Neuchâtel (3%), Vaud (on inheritances of more than CHF 1 million per branch) and in 38 municipalities in the canton of Lucerne (1–2%, threshold CHF 100,000). In Solothurn an estate fee on the whole estate is added, even for descendants.

Which cantons levy no inheritance tax?

Obwalden and Schwyz levy neither inheritance tax nor gift tax. Lucerne has no gift tax; however, gifts made in the 5 years before death count towards the inheritance there. There is no federal inheritance tax; the popular initiative was rejected on 30 November 2025. What counts is the canton where the deceased last lived; real estate is taxed by the canton in which it is located.

Do spouses pay inheritance tax?

No. Spouses and registered partners are exempt from inheritance and gift tax in all cantons. Cohabitation is different: the rules vary greatly from canton to canton, from full exemption to the rate for unrelated persons. The calculator asks about the conditions that count in the selected canton.

How are cohabiting partners taxed?

This is where the cantons differ most. Cohabiting partners are exempt in Graubünden, Lucerne, Nidwalden, Uri, Valais and Zug; in 13 cantons a lower rate applies; in Appenzell Innerrhoden, Geneva, Schaffhausen, Thurgau and Vaud there is no preferential treatment. The cohabitation must usually have lasted 5 years, in Lucerne 2, in Bern and Fribourg at least 10 and in Jura more than 10 years; in Graubünden evidence such as 3 years of shared household or a child in common is enough.

What is the difference between a tax-free amount and a threshold?

A tax-free amount is always deducted; only what lies above it is taxed. With a threshold, nothing is owed up to that amount, but above it the whole amount is taxable. So the tax jumps at a threshold: one franc more can cost a lot. In the derivation, the calculator states what applies in your case and shows such jump points.

Do earlier gifts count?

Often, yes. Many cantons add together earlier transfers from the same person to the same person – for the tax-free amount, for the rate or for both. How far back varies from canton to canton. Under ‘Earlier transfers’ you can enter up to five earlier amounts with the year; the calculator only takes into account those that fall within the canton’s time limit.

Does the municipality play a role?

Only in four cantons. In Fribourg and Vaud the municipalities levy a surcharge, in Lucerne individual municipalities levy a tax on descendants, and in Graubünden municipalities have their own rates. In all other cantons the tax is the same throughout the canton, even where the municipalities receive a share of the revenue.

How is the value of an inheritance determined?

You enter the amount yourself: what the person receives after deducting debts – for an inheritance, their share of the estate. Real estate usually counts at its tax value or market value, securities at their market price on the day of death or of the gift. Each canton sets its own valuation rules; the calculator uses the amount you enter.

Inheritance tax in 2026 on CHF 500,000 in all cantons

Inheritance of CHF 500,000 to one person, without earlier transfers. The deceased’s residence is in the cantonal capital – this only counts in Fribourg, Vaud, Lucerne and Graubünden. Next to the amount (below it on narrow screens) is the rate as a percentage of the inheritance. For your own case, use the calculator above.

Inheritance tax in 2026 on CHF 500,000 in all cantons
CantonChildCHFRateParentsCHFRateSiblingsCHFRateCohabiting partnerCHFRateUnrelated personCHFRate
Obwaldenno inheritance tax
Schwyzno inheritance tax
Zug0tax-free0tax-free28,3605.67%0tax-free70,90014.18%
Nidwalden0tax-free0tax-free24,0004.80%0tax-free72,00014.40%
Appenzell Innerrhoden2,0000.40%19,2003.84%29,7005.94%99,00019.80%99,00019.80%
Glarus0tax-free23,6254.73%41,1608.23%41,1608.23%102,90020.58%
Aargau0tax-free0tax-free73,80014.76%32,9006.58%109,20021.84%
Bern0tax-free41,9708.39%41,9708.39%41,9708.39%111,92022.38%
Uri0tax-free0tax-free38,8007.76%0tax-free116,40023.28%
Valais0tax-free0tax-free50,00010.00%0tax-free125,00025.00%
Thurgau0tax-free32,6406.53%70,00014.00%140,00028.00%140,00028.00%
Zurich0tax-free12,0002.40%67,50013.50%122,40024.48%140,40028.08%
Basel-Landschaft0tax-free0tax-free70,50014.10%70,50014.10%147,00029.40%
St Gallen0tax-free47,5009.50%98,00019.60%47,5009.50%147,00029.40%
Solothurn0tax-free0tax-free50,00010.00%75,00015.00%150,00030.00%
Basel-Stadt0tax-free34,8606.97%52,29010.46%52,29010.46%156,87031.37%
Appenzell Ausserrhoden0tax-free0tax-free108,90021.78%58,80011.76%158,40031.68%
Ticino0tax-free0tax-free58,34511.67%58,34511.67%171,50034.30%
Graubünden (Chur)0tax-free0tax-free49,2309.85%0tax-free172,30534.46%
Jura0tax-free35,0007.00%70,00014.00%70,00014.00%175,00035.00%
Schaffhausen0tax-free33,5006.70%70,60014.12%176,50035.30%176,50035.30%
Fribourg (Fribourg)0tax-free0tax-free44,1798.84%69,42413.88%185,13037.03%
Lucerne (Luzern)9,5001.90%57,00011.40%57,00011.40%0tax-free190,00038.00%
Neuchâtel13,5002.70%13,5002.70%75,00015.00%100,00020.00%225,00045.00%
Vaud (Lausanne)00.00%62,89012.58%125,00025.00%250,00050.00%250,00050.00%
Geneva0tax-free0tax-free107,91921.58%268,29653.66%268,29653.66%
  • Cohabiting partner: assumes 12 years of shared household at the same place of residence and no child in common, in Appenzell Ausserrhoden also support or shared means. This meets the minimum durations of all cantons.
  • Solothurn: in addition, there is the estate fee on the whole estate – CHF 4,000 for an estate of CHF 500,000; it is not included in the table.
  • Lucerne: descendants pay inheritance tax in only 38 of the 79 municipalities, including the municipality of Luzern.