Should I share everything with tax advisor?

Taxes
1

I decided to have my first tax return filled by a company, and use it as a template for the following years, however I am not sure about one thing.

Now, I’m not advocating or asking for tax evasion practices, however in my previous post some of the comments said that the amount of days I spend in home office or in the office are not checked -nothing stated in my contract about this- and I can just deduct the maximum amount for travel and food.

Should I discuss this with the tax advisor, or just put in 0% for home office? Or even if I say how much I work from home, they will optimize it the best way? What is standard practice in this case? Same fore public transport, I pay the yearly GA in a monthly bill, and not buy it month by month, which would cost more, which should be reported and deducted in this case?

2

It is quite simple: Whenever the tax law offers a flat rate deduction (Pauschaler Abzug) you can deduct it without having to prove your real cost. You only have to fulfill the requirements that allow the deduction itself.

Now with your question of home office days: You don’t need to prove your meal costs per day or how often you really use the train GA, but deducting more meals is technically tax fraud, same if you deduct higher cost for a train GA than you pay (tough this differs a bit by canton, some give flat deduction that might be higher than your actual cost). Home office is also generally a bit tricky because it really only became a topic through Covid and many cantons have had a least temporary some simplifications in place, but by now in most you would indeed have to track your home office days (or rather in practice take a reasonable estimate).

What is the Swiss standard you ask? Be honest, pay your taxes.

Your tax advisor is quite irrelevant by the way. Some will see this very relaxed (also because it’s very rarely challenged by the authorities), some will want to make sure it’s 100% correct. In any case, it’s your taxes and remains your responsibility.

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3

Thank you for the detailed reply. Well, yes I should track the food expenses, but I meant that if I have 2 days a week home office and deduct 1920 a year for meal costs instead of 3200, and then 1380 for home office costs then we will end up in the same place, just more complicated.

4

Maybe there are local differences, but to my knowledge you can’t deduct anything for home office, unless your employer confirms it’s a remote job and there are no office facilities etc.

That said, unless there are very clear instructions to do otherwise, I treat the meal deductions as flat rate, like home office didn’t exist. As you say, it’s easier for everybody.

I’d even argue you should be able to deduct the full 1600/3200 even if only working 60%, and it should be inflation adjusted.

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5

Thank you, this was my though process as well, but since I am not doing the taxes myself this year I wasn’t sure how to handle it with the accountant. If I tell them I only work x% in the office, maybe they won’t do a flat deduction.

6

The accountant that’s done my tax filing the last three years suggested I share absolutely everything upfront, as it establishes a baseline and builds on it over the years, with each passing year minimizing the chance of problems. Ie if you’ve told the steuerverwaltung that you’re part owner of a property in another country, it won’t be an issue if 10-15 years later big lump sum shows up in your bank statement, if they’ve seen your securities build up from 0 to XXXX the same, there’s paper trail and proofs.

Coming from a country where the tax agency’s main job is to skin honest people alive, because there’s so many crooks and tax evaders I tend to think more towards not creating problems with the taxman, rather than utilizing all possibilities, this thread however made me wonder, I am a homeworker by contract, yet I never claimed anything for it and the advisor never asked. Perhaps I should do this retrospectively next year.

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7

If you hired a trustworthy tax advisor, and not just somebody who does the paper work for you, I’d expect you should share anything, including your questions and then get advice on the options.

I’d definitely check that for your situation, by yourself or with the “advisor”. I don’t have experience on this specific topic, but understand you might well be able to deduct things like part of the rent or equipment bought, if any. No lunch, though :wink:Still, that could be thousands in deductions.

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