JD Supra Switzerland

Law Firm

Latest documents

• Swiss Immigration Update - Quarantine for Travelers Entering from Certain Countries and Masks Compulsory in Public Transport

  While Switzerland started to ease pandemic related requirements and opened its borders, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country is slowly rising again. In response,  Swiss authorities announced the following restrictions in effect as of July 6, 2020...

• COVID-19: Swiss Government Financial Assistance Measures -COVID-19 – The Swiss government’s measures to support the Swiss economy

  Since mid-March 2020, the Swiss government has enacted a number of measures to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) on the Swiss economy.
 
 The most important measure was announced on 20 March 2020 to help SMEs survive the short-term effects of COVID-19 by providing cash flow assistance....

• CAS Sun Yang v Wada

  In an award released on 28 February 2020, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ("CAS") upheld the appeal filed by the World Anti-Doping Agency ("WADA") against the Chinese swimmer Sun Yang and the Fédération Internationale de Natation ("FINA"), imposing on the Olympic champion an eight-year competition ban and effectively terminating his career....

• 100,000 DNSSEC domain names for .CH

  SWITCH, the Registry responsible for running the .CH country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), recently announced that in late December 2019 some 100,000 .CH domain names had been registered using Domain Name System Security Extension (DNSSEC). 

• Switzerland – New Gender Pay Gap Requirements

  Switzerland has joined the growing list of jurisdictions to introduce legislation to address the gender pay gap.
 
 Effective July 1, 2020, employers with 100 or more employees (including part-time and hourly employees) will be required to conduct an internal gender pay gap analysis every four years until June 30, 2032. Affected employers will be required to complete their first internal analysis by June 30, 2021.

• Littler Global Guide - Switzerland - Q2 2019

  Employers Must Cover Work Space Expenses for Home Office Work -
 
 Precedential Decision by Judiciary or Regulatory Agency -
 
 On April 23, 2019, the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland held that employers must pay for rental costs for private rooms in which an employee works during home office if telework is mandated and/or the employer does not provide a workplace for the employee.

• Meritas Guide To Defective Products Litigation in EMEA - Switzerland

  1. What claims may be brought for liability for defective products? Is liability based on fault/ negligence, or strict liability, or both?
 
 Defective product claims can in the first place be brought in accordance with the sales contract and/or the legal provisions of the Swiss Code of Obligations (“CO”). Most often, the legal provisions are modified by general terms and conditions (“GTC”), which is standard for consumer products. In addition, general tort law and/or the Product Liability Act (the “PLA”) may apply.
 
 The liability under the PLA is a strict liability, requiring a defective product (and, of course, a damage) only, while contractual or tort claims require a fault by the seller or other liable party. In case of tort, the fault must be proven by the claimant, in case of contractual claims the defendant must show that he was not at fault....
 
 Please see full Chapter below for more information.

• Switzerland: New FinTech Regulation

  • On 2 November 2016, the Swiss Federal Council announced that it planned to reduce barriers to market entry for FinTech companies.
 
 • The program of the Swiss Federal Council comprised three pillars consisting of (i) the extension of the maximum holding period of third party monies from 7 days to 60 days, (ii) the introduction of a regulatory “sandbox regime” and (iii) the introduction of a new FinTech licence to be granted by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA).
 
 • The first two pillars were introduced on 1 August 2017.
 
 • The third pillar, a new FinTech licence, arrived on 1 January 2019.

• Update: Swiss tax law changes: Federal Act on Tax Reform and AHV Financing

  • On 17 January 2019, sufficient signatures were filed requesting a referendum on the Federal Act on Tax Reform and AHV Financing (TRAF).
 
 • The public vote will be held on 19 May 2019.
 
 • If TRAF is accepted by the public vote, the entry into force is still planned for 1 January 2020.
 
 • Some cantons are implementing or have already implemented the revised cantonal tax laws in parallel with TRAF.

• Switzerland: New Laws on Financial Institutions

  • Following the 2008 crisis, Switzerland launched a legislative project to create uniform competitive conditions for financial intermediaries and improve client protection.
 
 • Swiss Parliament adopted the FinIA on 15 June 2018.
 
 • The FinIA is part of the new financial market architecture and sets the authorization conditions and organisational requirements for financial institutions for prudential (official) supervision.
 
 • On 24 October 2018, the Swiss Federal Counsel initiated the consultation on ordinances containing the implementing provisions for the FinIA.
 
 • The FinIA is to enter into force together with the implementing ordinances on 1 January 2020.

Featured documents

• As Swiss Banking Becomes More Transparent, Americans with Undeclared Swiss Accounts Are Warned

  In a move that was likely celebrated by United States governmental officials, Swiss banking secrecy eroded even further on Thursday, March 6, 2014. This is the day that parliament voted to provide foreign tax authorities with identifying information on accountholders with undeclared accounts in...

• More Dominos Fall on the Data Protection Table

  As all of our readers know by now, as of October 6, the US-EU Safe Harbor Framework is no more. Safe Harbor was the mechanism on which thousands of US companies (and thousands of companies based in the European Union) legitimized their data transfers from the EU to the US....

• Littler Global Guide - Switzerland - Q3 2018

  New Whistleblower Law Proposed -
 
 Proposed Bill or Initiative -
 
 A new bill proposing a statutory framework for whistleblowers was presented to Parliament. If adopted, employees will have the duty to inform employers about irregularities coming to their knowledge (whereby...

• Simplified Authorization Procedure for Cross-Border Marketing of Swiss Securities Funds and German UCITS

  At the beginning of this year – to the (pleasant) surprise of market participants – an agreement came into force to implement a simplification in the marketing of Swiss securities funds (Effektenfonds) in Germany, and German UCITS in Switzerland. While agreement had been reached in principle in...

• The Meritas Guide To Employment Law On A Business Sale In Europe, Middle East And Africa - April 2015: Switzerland

  1. DO EMPLOYEES AUTOMATICALLY TRANSFER TO THE BUYER WHEN A BUSINESS IS SOLD?
 
 
 
 When an employer transfers their business or part of the business to a third party transferee, all rights and obligations arising out of the employment contracts are automatically transferred from...

• Swiss Tax Law Changes: Federal Act on Tax Reform and AHV Financing (TRAF)

  • Switzerland’s privileged taxation of companies is no longer in line with international standards. • In 2017, the first attempt to abolish the internationally criticized regime was clearly rejected by Swiss voters. • On 28 September 2018, the new legislative proposal, TRAF, was accepted by the...

• The Credit Suisse Case: Did the Justice Department Lose its Nerve?

  As the old adage goes, appearances can be deceiving. Sometimes when you peel back the layers on an issue, you find out that everyone, even the Justice Department, can engage in “spin.”...

• Swiss Researchers Develop Model to Assess How Nanoparticles “Flow Through the Environment”

  The Swiss National Science Foundation issued a May 12, 2016, press release announcing that researchers from the National Research Program “Opportunities and Risks of Nanomaterials” have developed a new model to track the flow of the “most important nanomaterials in the environment.” To assess how...

• Swiss Tax Law Changes: New Withholding Tax Rules

  • Under Swiss law, Swiss employers must levy an employment withholding tax on the salary received by foreign nationals who do not hold a permanent residence permit.
 
 • Only taxpayers whose salary exceeds a certain amount can file a subsequent ordinary tax return and therefore claim tax...

• Absinthe Makers Are Not Toasting In Switzerland

  Although once illegal in the United States, absinthe can now be consumed in your local bars. It was a favorite drink of writers and artists such as Ernest Hemmingway, Vincent van Gogh, Oscar Wilde and Pablo Picasso. Unfortunately, this green anise-flavored spirit did not fare so well in Swiss...