Inheritance tax, civic duty initiatives headed for defeat as Swiss polls close

A clear message, but not shared by all: activists at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, January 2025. Keystone / Michael Buholzer

First projections for this Sunday’s vote show the Swiss population has resoundingly rejected both a proposal to tax the super-rich on their inheritance and a call for all citizens to perform civic duty.

According to Lukas Golder of research institute gfs.bern, some 84% of voters said no to the civic duty proposal, while around 76% rejected the inheritance tax initiative, with a three-percentage point margin of error. Polls closed at 12pm on Sunday.

For the backers of a proposed new inheritance tax on the rich, it was always going to be an uphill battle. The idea – a 50% levy on bequests above a tax-free amount of CHF50 million ($61.8 million) – was rejected by government, most political parties, and a well-funded opposition campaign warning of capital flight and disruption to business. A poll ten days ahead of the vote showed just 32% of voters were in favour of the idea.

The Young Socialists, a left-wing youth party linked to Switzerland’s Social Democrats, argued that the rise in wealth inequalityExternal link in the country was not just a problem for democratic cohesion, but also for the climate; the super-rich contribute disproportionately to global warming, they claimed. The proceeds from the levy would have gone directly towards measures to mitigate climate change.

Initiators also said the tax-free amount of CHF50 million meant just a tiny fraction of people – some 0.05% – would be directly affected. But opponents argued that the wider economic clout of this rich minority – via job creation and the payment of other levies – was vital for the state, and that many would be chased out the country by a tax-rate which Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter described as “close to expropriation”.

>> How Switzerland’s current inheritance taxes – levied at the cantonal and local level – compare internationally:

It isn’t the first time in recent years that Swiss voters have had a say on taxing the rich. Amid debates about rising inequality, a 2021 initiative to tax capital gains and a previous attempt in 2015 to introduce a national inheritance tax also failed – again, largely because of fears about job losses and disruption to business.

Increased skepticism over civic duty initiative

The other initiative on the ballot, which calls for a system of mandatory civic duty to be performed by all citizens, is also projected to have failed. The last gfs.bern survey before the vote showed 64% of voters planned to reject it, up 16 percentage points compared to a month earlier, when the outcome looked more uncertain.

For women in Switzerland, military service is currently voluntary; authorities are keen to boost numbers. Keystone / Gaetan Bally

The “For a committed Switzerland” initiative, launched by an association, had strong support from left-leaning voters at the start of the campaign. But in parliament, only the centrist Liberal Greens and the Evangelical Party endorsed it, while the government and a majority of lawmakers urged a no vote.

Currently, compulsory service is limited to the army, civil defence and civilian service. The civic duty initiative foresees both men and women choosing from additional forms of service to benefit society, such as protecting the environment, assisting vulnerable people, and helping with disaster prevention. Under the proposal, the authorities would define the exact tasks based on the country’s needs. 

Swiss citizens living abroad could take part on a voluntary basis, as is now the case for military service. The authorities could also decide to extend it to foreign nationals living in Switzerland.

Those who support the initiative argued the current system is outdated, as it does not apply to all Swiss residents, including women. Civic duty for all, they said, would promote gender equality, strengthen social cohesion and increase civic engagement. By expanding the pool of people who could be mobilised, it would also guarantee enough forces for the army and civil defence. The Swiss military expects it will face a shortage of trained personnel by 2029.

But the last gfs survey showed that, although a majority of voters believe compulsory civic duty would be positive for solidarity, some 70% were afraid it would be too costly for the cantons to implement. Detractors also argued it could set equality back, as serving risked putting an additional burden on women, who do more unpaid work than men.