SWISSMOD – A New Tax-Benefit Model of Switzerland
- University of Liechtenstein, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Germany
- FRIBIS, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Germany
Cite this article
as: T. Kirn, P. Oschwald, R. Anderl; 2025; SWISSMOD – A New Tax-Benefit Model of Switzerland; International Journal of Microsimulation; 18(2); 1-20.
doi: 10.34196/ijm.00320
Figures
Figure 1
Comparison of observations per canton in SILC (imputed) and SHP, own calculations based on SILC (2020) and SHP (2020) data.
Figure 2
Distribution of total wealth variable, own calculations based on SILC (2020) and SHP (2020) data.
Figure 3
Comparison of individual and joint federal income tax burden, simulated with SWISSMOD version 1.0.
Figure 4
Comparison of individual and joint cantonal income tax burden, simulated with SWISSMOD version 1.0.
Figure 5
Comparison of individual and joint municipal income tax burden, simulated with SWISSMOD version 1.0
Figure 6
Comparison of Individual and joint cantonal wealth tax burden, simulated with SWISSMOD version1.0.
Figure 7
Comparison of household tax burden, based on Swiss SILC (2020) data and simulations performed by SWISSMOD version 1.0.
Tables
Table 1
Overview of simulated benefits and social insurance contributions in SWISSMOD.
| Policy | Simulated: Yes (Y) or No (N) | |
|---|---|---|
| Contributions | Benefits | |
| Old-Age Insurance (OASI) | Y | N |
| Disability Insurance (DI) | Y | N |
| Compensation for mandatory work and maternity (MB) | Y | Y (maternity benefit) |
| Occupational pension (OP) | Y | N |
| Accident insurance (AI) | Y | N |
| Unemployment insurance (UB) | Y | Y |
| Family Allowance (FA) | Y | Y |
| Educational Allowance (EA) | Y | Y |
| Social Assistance | non-contributory | Y (partially) |
| Maternity Benefit | Y (part of MB) | Y |
| Supplementary Benefits (SB) | non-contributory | Y |
| Bridging Benefits (BB) | non-contributory | Y |
Table 2
Overview of simulated taxes in SWISSMOD.
| Tax | Simulated: Yes (Y), No (N), Partially (PS) | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Income Tax (Federal) | Y | |
| Individual assessment | Y | |
| Joint assessment | Y | |
| Personal Income Tax (Cantonal) | Y | |
| Individual assessment | Y | |
| Joint Assessment | Y | |
| Personal Income Tax (Municipal) | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Individual assessment | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Joint assessment | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Personal Wealth Tax (Cantonal) | Y | |
| Individual assessment | Y | |
| Joint assessment | Y | |
| Personal Wealth Tax (Municipal) | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Individual assessment | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Joint assessment | PS | Restricted to cantonal capital |
| Value added tax | N |
Table 3
SWISSMOD Macrovalidation Table, calculations based on 2023 tax-benefit policies in Switzerland.
| Simulated Tax/Benefit/SIC | Baseline Values (million CHF) | External Values (million CHF, year in brackets) | Simulated/External Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taxes | |||
| Federal Income Tax | 11,354 | 13,306 (2023) | 0.85 |
| Cantonal Income Tax | 27,244 | 28,285 (2022) | 0.96 |
| Municipal Income Tax | 20,157 | 19,226 (2021) | 1.05 |
| Cantonal Wealth Tax | 3,672 | 5,535 (2022) | 0.66 |
| Municipal Wealth Tax | 2,871 | 3,410 (2021) | 0.84 |
| Benefits | |||
| Social Assistance (including Housing Benefits) | 2,651 | 2,509 (2022) | 1.06 |
| Supplementary Benefits | 2,729 | 3,044 (2023) | 0.90 |
| Bridging Benefits | 110 | 26 (2023) | 4.22 |
| Maternity Benefit | 1,245 | 1,104 (2023) | 1.13 |
| Unemployment Benefit | 4,307 | 4,013 (2023) | 1.07 |
| Family Allowance | 3,126 | 4,500 (2022) | 0.69 |
| Educational Allowance | 1,541 | 1,800 (2022) | 0.86 |
| Social Insurance Contributions | |||
| Total Employee SIC | 42,087 | 58,210 (2022/2023) | 0.72 |
| Total Employer SIC | 44,568 | 62,719 (2022/2023) | 0.71 |
Data and code availability
The Swiss Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (SILC)-data is available at the website of the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO): https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/wirtschaftliche-soziale-situation-bevoelkerung/erhebungen/silc.htmlThe Swiss Household Panel (SHP) data is available upon request at the website of FORS: https://forscenter.ch/projects/swiss-household-panel/data/Please contact the authors for information on code availability.
Download links
A two-part list of links to download the article, or parts of the article, in various formats.