Climate impact of tax reliefs in Switzerland

This report identifies federal and, subsidiarily, cantonal tax reliefs that indirectly induce large amounts of greenhouse gas emissions. We estimate the extent of these additional emissions as well as the budgetary cost of the tax reliefs. Those with the largest impacts should be further analysed before deciding to amend or even remove them with a view to contributing to reaching the net-zero target and balanced public budgets. The main tax reliefs that we found to influence choices and behaviours towards greater climate impacts are the exemption of international aviation from mineral oil and value-added taxes, the deductibility of commuting costs, the exemption of light commercial vehicles from the heavy vehicle fee and the insufficient level of that fee for heavy commercial vehicles, the favourable income tax treatment of company cars and free parking, and the reimbursement of the mineral oil tax to licensed transport companies. Eliminating these tax reliefs entirely would lower GHG emissions by 2.5 million tonnes per year and improve federal revenues by 2.8 billion francs, and cantonal and communal revenues by 1.7 billion francs.