Property tax in Switzerland, how the taxable value works
No canton values your home the same way, and three of them charge a yearly tax on that value. Here are the methods, the rates and the figures to check.
By the Envergure editorial team
There is no federal property tax in Switzerland. Each canton sets the taxable value of your home and its own rates, and that value must stay close to market value without exceeding it. Geneva adds a complementary property tax of 1‰, or 0.2‰ on your main residence.
Is there property tax in Switzerland?
Not at federal level. Switzerland levies no federal wealth tax and no federal property tax. Both belong to the cantons and their communes, each with its own rates, as the Federal Tax Administration booklet sets out.
Federal law adds one strong constraint. Under the law on the harmonisation of direct taxes, your wealth, property included, is valued in principle at market value, with rental yield counting only as a secondary input (art. 14 para. 1 LHID).
Two terms to know. Market value is the price a buyer would pay today under normal conditions. Yield value is the annual rent the property brings in, capitalised at a rate.
The Federal Supreme Court lets cantons pick their own method. What it forbids is any general rule that systematically undervalues market value, such as the flat 60% discount found contrary to art. 14 para. 1 LHID in ATF 124 I 145.
Property tax in Switzerland, canton by canton
Ten cantons, ten ways of doing it. The table gives each one's valuation method, or the separate tax it levies on that value.
| Canton | Method or separate tax | Key figure |
|---|---|---|
| GE Geneva | Complementary property tax on the taxable value, on top of ordinary wealth tax | 1‰, 0.2‰ on a main residence |
| VD Vaud | Average of yield value and market value, capped at market value (LEFI) | (yield + market) / 2 |
| FR Fribourg | Arithmetic mean of market value and twice the yield value (decree 631.33) | (market + 2 × yield) / 3 |
| VS Valais | Homes, rental buildings and non-agricultural land taken at their cadastral value | 100% of cadastral value |
| NE Neuchâtel | Cadastral assessment, weighted average of intrinsic value and yield value (REI) | weighting varies with the gap |
| JU Jura | Official value set by decree, no formula confirmed by an open official source | check with the canton |
| ZH Zurich | New taxable values from the 2026 tax period, with a steep average rise | +48% house and condominium, +41% apartment block |
| GR Graubünden | Two thirds yield value for housing, half for commercial use (Wegleitung 2023) | (2 × yield + market) / 3 |
| AG Aargau | New valuation model based on current market prices, in force since 1 January 2025 | no fixed percentage published |
| SG St Gallen | No open official source confirms the method currently applied | check with the canton |
Rules read on 21 October 2026 in the cantonal texts and in the Federal Tax Administration booklet. Zurich applies from 1 January 2026 according to the BDO summary, Valais under its cadastral value regulation (as at 1 January 2017) and Neuchâtel under the REI of 1 November 2000. For Jura, the government message on the tax law revision announces a revision of agricultural and forestry values, not yet adopted.
Three cantons in the table charge an annual tax straight on that value. In Geneva, the rate is 1‰ for an individual and drops to 0.2‰ where the owner lives in the property. For a legal entity it runs from 1‰ (a company using the building itself) to 1.5‰ (a non-profit association or foundation that rents it out) and 2‰ (a for-profit company that rents it out).
A Geneva building certified for high energy performance (HPE or THPE) is exempt from that tax for twenty years, starting the year the cantonal energy office issues the certificate (art. 78 LCP). In Fribourg the property tax is communal, with a coefficient between 1‰ and 3‰ of the taxable value. In Valais the land tax is 1.00‰ for an individual and 1.75‰ for a legal entity, plus 0.80‰ to the canton.
How much is property tax in Switzerland, a worked example
Example, complementary property tax on a Geneva main residence
- Taxable value set by the canton
- CHF 1,200,000
- Rate for a main residence
- 0.2‰
- Mortgage debt deducted
- CHF 0
- Total
- CHF 240 a year
Assumptions behind the example, a taxable value of CHF 1,200,000 notified by the tax office, a flat lived in by its owner on 31 December, no deduction for mortgage debt. The same property let out moves to the 1‰ rate, CHF 1,200 a year. Ordinary wealth tax comes on top, at your cantonal and communal rates.
In cantons that average two values, the work happens before that. In Graubünden, a house with a yield value of CHF 650,000 and a market value of CHF 900,000 gives (2 × 650,000 + 900,000) / 3, or CHF 733,333, rounded down to CHF 733,000. That is the figure that enters your taxable wealth.
How the taxable value is assessed, and how to check it
- Start from your tax assessment The taxable value appears there under the name your canton gives it, cadastral assessment in Neuchâtel, cadastral value in Valais, Steuerwert in Zurich and Graubünden.
- Look in the land register too In the canton of Vaud it is set by the property valuation commission and shown on the land register extract.
- Use the right date In Geneva as in Neuchâtel, your taxable property wealth is fixed as at 31 December of the year the tax is due for.
- Compare it with market value If the taxable value is above what your property would fetch, it breaches the federal ceiling, and that is the strongest ground for asking for a correction. A useful starting point, what your house is worth.
- Check your canton's formula In Valais, the yield value of a rental building comes from capitalising the average gross rent over three years at a rate of 7% to 12%. In Graubünden, undeveloped land outside the farming zone is taken at two thirds of market value.
- Watch for revaluations Zurich rebased its values on 1 January 2026, Aargau on 1 January 2025, on a five-year cycle and with some 250,000 properties reassessed.
- Your latest tax assessment, showing the property's taxable value
- The land register extract or your cadastral assessment notice
- Gross rents collected over the past three years, for a rental building
- The date your continuous occupation began, for the Geneva 4% yearly allowance
- The HPE or THPE certificate, if your Geneva building holds one
Where owners get caught out
The detail of the new Zurich model explains the gap. Rebuild cost now follows the building insurance index, up from 1000% to 1120%. The deduction for age can reach 40% instead of 30%. The capitalisation rate for income properties is set commune by commune, between 4.8% and 6.5% rather than a flat 7.05%, and each commune may keep at most nine location classes.
Frequently asked questions
What is property tax in Switzerland?
It is a cantonal and communal charge on the taxable value of your property, not a federal one. In most cantons the property simply enters your wealth tax base. Geneva, Fribourg and Valais add a separate annual tax on the property itself, between 0.2‰ and 3‰ of that value.
Do you pay property tax in Switzerland as a foreigner?
The taxes described here follow the property, not the owner's nationality. Geneva's complementary property tax is charged on the taxable value and ignores the owner's debts and financial capacity. Graubünden even publishes a guide for taxpayers resident in another canton, which shows the duty follows the property.
How much is property tax in Switzerland?
Between 0.2‰ and 3‰ of the taxable value where a separate tax exists. Geneva charges 1‰, or 0.2‰ on a main residence. Valais charges 1.00‰ to individuals. Fribourg leaves the coefficient to each commune, between 1‰ and 3‰. Wealth tax is charged on top, at cantonal rates.
How is the taxable value of a property assessed?
By your canton's own formula. Vaud averages yield value and market value, Fribourg averages market value with twice the yield value, Graubünden weights yield at two thirds for housing. Valais starts from the cadastral value, Aargau from a model tracking current market prices. Market value is always the ceiling.
What is property tax in Zurich?
In Zurich the figure that matters is the taxable value, and it was rebased from 1 January 2026. Single-family houses and condominium units rose 48% on average, apartment blocks 41%. The imputed rental value rose far less, 11% and 10%. The valuation method changed too, through the building insurance index, the age deduction and commune-level capitalisation rates.
Is real estate tax the same as wealth tax in Switzerland?
No, and in Geneva you pay both. Ordinary wealth tax is assessed on your estate at your canton's rate. The complementary property tax is a tax on the asset, charged on the property's taxable value with no deduction for the debt secured on it or for your financial capacity. Both are read off the same taxable value.
Is there a property tax calculator for Switzerland?
You can do the sum in one line. Take the taxable value from your assessment and multiply it by your canton's rate, with nothing deducted. CHF 1,200,000 at 0.2‰ gives CHF 240 a year. What a sale itself costs is another matter, set out in the costs of selling a property in Switzerland.