Republic and Canton of Geneva
Department of Finance
Cantonal Tax Administration
To Employees subject to
Tax at Source
Dear Taxpayer,
Please find attached to this letter the guidelines and tax scale for 2014, as well as the declaration
to be used for tax at source. These documents are also sent to your employer.
A standard form is also provided to allow you to submit any request for rectification before
31 March 2014
You can also download these documents from our website at the following address:
www.ge.ch/impots/imposes-la-source.
New scales for Tax at Source
The Federal Tax Administration has launched a project that will allow employers, starting from 1
January 2014, to transmit electronically data on tax at source to the Cantonal Tax
Administrations, through a centralised system. The technical implementation of this project has
made it necessary to harmonise the scales for Tax at Source both in their description and in the
way they are applied, at both the Federal and Cantonal levels. In this context, the Federal
Ordinance on Tax at Source (OIS) has been amended with consequences on Cantonal law.
In this connection, we draw your attention to two innovations concerning taxation:
1. married couples1 with a gainful activity (employed or self-employed) or income earned in
compensation by both spouses.
2. single parent families.
If either of these situations applies to you, please refer to the Attachment to this letter, which has
been prepared especially for this purpose. This information can also be found in the attached
guidelines.
Declaration for Tax at Source
This form has been completely revised to include the new C and H scales concerning the
situations mentioned above. It can be completed directly online (www.ge.ch/impots/imposes-lasource), before printing.
If you are married1 and your spouse is gainfully employed, please complete the section "Spouse
receives income in Switzerland or abroad".
If you are not an Internet user, please complete the attached form by hand. It must be handed in
as soon as possible to your employer, together with the usual supporting documents
concerning any changes that have taken place during the year (marriage certificate, birth
certificate, judgment of separation or divorce, etc.) to allow your employer to register your tax
code and take account of your family situation starting from January 2014.
Help is also available online with examples of common cases.
1
This includes persons in a registered partnership within the meaning of the Federal Act of 18 June 2004 on Registered Partnership between
Persons of the same Sex.
Request for rectification of Tax at Source
To facilitate procedures concerning you with the Taxation at Source Department, you can send
us your request for rectification through our website with secure access. The supporting
documents attached to your request can also be transmitted in the same way.
However, you must first register on the e-Government site of the State of Geneva (AeL):
www.ge.ch/ael. For assistance, you can contact us by calling 0840 235 235 or by writing to aelassistance@etat.ge.ch.
If you prefer not to go through our website, you should use only the French version of the request
for rectification form and send us the original document (not a photocopy). The standard form will
also enable us to automatically extract the data indicated and speed up processing.
The copy of the Tax at Source certificate (Attestation-Quittance) or salary certificate (approved by
the AFC) must be included mandatorily with your request, together with the Attachment entitled
"Information on the Taxpayer" and the necessary supporting documents.
Requests for rectification must be submitted to us no later than 31 March 2014. If, close to that
time limit, you are not in possession of the Tax at Source certificate, the salary certificate
(approved by AFC) or the necessary supporting documents, you can still submit your request
explaining that the missing documents will follow.
Deductions for actual expenses (travel, gifts, etc.)
If you prefer to deduct actual expenses, you should tick the "Deduction of actual expenses" box
on the request for rectification form referred to above and submit it before 31 March 2014. Please
note that this request can in no case be cancelled, even if the taxation result is not in your favour.
To recap, a person residing abroad who wishes to deduct actual expenses must earn more than
90% of his/her total income in Switzerland (taxpayer and spouse). Please note that no
acknowledgement of receipt will be sent to you if you opt for this procedure. The sending of the
tax declaration that you are required to complete will however also serve as acknowledgement of
receipt.
Mandatory time limit
As indicated above, the mandatory time limit within which to challenge the amount of the tax
withheld at source by your employer is 31 March 2014, if you received the Tax at Source
certificate before 28 February 2014. However, if the Tax at Source certificate is delivered to you
after that date, your challenge must be filed within 30 days from the delivery of the certificate.
This time limit applies to all requests for rectification, including requests to take account of actual
expenses. It must be respected even if our administration has to rectify your taxation
automatically, which is the case in particular if you carry on several activities during the year or if
you are married and your spouse carries on an activity (see Attachment scale C).
Notification of Tax at Source Assessment
If you register on the e-Government site (AeL) to transmit your request for rectification online
through our website, please note that you will also be able to receive your tax assessment
electronically via a secure access. E-Government has another advantage if you ask to deduct
actual expenses: using AeL, the form used to indicate your address for service or elected
domicile is no longer required.
For any additional information, please visit our website. Thank you for your cooperation.
Best regards.
Cantonal Tax Administration
Taxation at Source Department
Attachments as mentioned
REPUBLIC AND CANTON OF GENEVA
Department of Finance
Cantonal Tax Administration
ATTACHMENT
Subject:
1.
New scales for Tax at Source - Scales C and H
Scale C: Taxation of married couples or those in a registered partnership in which
both spouses are gainfully employed or receive income earned in compensation
1.1. Principle of Scale C
For married taxpayers or those in a registered partnership, the Federal Ordinance on Tax at
Source (OIS) states that the tax rate shall be set taking into account the income of the spouse,
regardless of whether he/she works in Switzerland or abroad.
Married couples or those in a registered partnership, living in the same household, where both
spouses are gainfully employed (employed or self-employed) or receive income earned in
compensation, will therefore be taxed, starting from 1 January 2014, under a new scale
entitled "Scale C".
As the employer responsible for collecting Tax at Source does not know the spouse's income,
the Federal Ordinance provides that the tax rate for Scale C shall be based on the theoretical
income of the spouse. This theoretical income corresponds to the taxpayer's income taxed at
source up to a maximum amount of CHF 65,100.-, which is set on an average statistical basis
calculated at Swiss national level.
Here are some examples:
Taxpayer's real gross annual
income
Spouse's theoretical annual
income included in Scale C in
2014 (capped at CHF)
Annual income of the couple for the
purposes of determining the tax rate
applicable in 2014
1) CHF 50,000.-
CHF 50,000.-
CHF 100,000.-
2) CHF 100,000.-
CHF 65,100.-
CHF 165,100.-
3) CHF 150,000.-
CHF 65,100.-
CHF 215,100.-
Page : 2/4
In actual fact, the spouse's real income differs from the amount of the theoretical income.
To reflect the actual income received by the couple, the Canton of Geneva has adopted a
procedure to be applied in two phases:

In 2014, the employer will withhold Tax at Source according to "Collection Scale C".

Subsequently, in 2015, the Cantonal Tax Administration (AFC) will automatically rectify
the taxes due in all cases taking into account the real income of the couple.
Here is how the procedure will be applied in detail:
In the year 2014: Collection of Tax at Source by the employer
Like every year, you must complete the form entitled "Declaration for the Collection of Tax
at Source" that will be used to determine the scale for the Tax at Source applicable to your
situation. "Collection Scale C + possible dependent(s), Code C0-C5" will apply to each
member of the couple individually starting from 1 January 2014.
(Example: a couple in which both spouses work in Geneva and have a minor child.
Their respective employers will collect the Tax at Source under Scale C1 for each taxpayer).
If you use our website to complete the interactive form entitled "Declaration for the Collection
of Tax at Source" according to Scale C, an option will allow you, if appropriate, to adjust more
precisely the tax that will be withheld by your employer in 2014 to reflect your spouse's real
income.
If you choose this option, you must indicate the gross income of the couple (before social
security deductions), estimated for the year 2014.
In this case, once you have completed the questionnaire, you will need to print two forms:

One to be given to your employer showing the adjusted Collection Scale C (e.g. C2
instead of C1).

One to be returned to the Taxation at Source Department with the details of your
calculations (your income and that of your spouse).
If you are not an Internet user, a written request for the adjustment of the tax withheld at
source by the employer should be submitted to the Taxation at Source Department, indicating
the estimated income for 2014 for the couple.
In the year 2015: Rectification of Tax at Source by the AFC
In all cases, the taxation will be rectified automatically by the Cantonal Tax Administration
(AFC) under the "Rectification Scale C + possible dependent(s), Code Cr0 to Cr5" which will
apply to all married couples or those in a registered partnership and will take into account the
actual gross income earned by both spouses (employed income, self-employed income or
income earned in compensation).
Supporting documents for the gross income (before social security deductions) of the spouse
working abroad must be provided mandatorily to the AFC, spontaneously or upon request, in
the year following collection.
Page : 3/4
1.2. What does all this involve in practice?
Couples resident in Geneva (permit B, L, etc.)

For couples where both spouses work1 in the Canton of Geneva, their incomes will be
added and taxed together, as is already the case today.

If one spouse works1 in Geneva and the other in another Canton, their incomes will be
added and taxed together, as is already the case today.

If one spouse works1 in Geneva and the other abroad, the income of the spouse
working abroad will be taken into account only to determine the tax rate (see
paragraph 1.3 below).
Couples resident abroad (cross-border workers)

For couples where both spouses work1 in Geneva, their incomes will be taxed
cumulatively, as is already the case today.

However, couples in which one spouse works1 in Geneva and the other abroad, the
income of the spouse working abroad will be considered only for the purpose of setting
the tax rate (see paragraph 1.3 below).

Lastly, for couples that live abroad, with one of the spouses working1 in Geneva and
the other in another Canton, the latter's income will also be taken into account for the
purpose of determining the tax rate (see paragraph 1.3 below).
Summing up:
Home of the
couple
Workplace of the
taxpayer
Workplace of the
spouse
Taxed income
Geneva
Geneva
Geneva
Cumulative real income of
the couple taxed together
No
Other Canton
Cumulative real income of
the couple taxed together
Yes
Abroad
Abroad
Geneva
Geneva
Other Canton
Abroad
Taxpayer's income taxed
with the spouse's income
used to determine the tax
rate
Cumulative real income of
the couple taxed together
Taxpayer's income taxed
with the spouse's income
used to determine the tax
rate
Taxpayer's income taxed
with the spouse's income
used to determine the tax
rate
Supporting
documents on the
spouse's gross
income required
2
Yes
No2
Yes
Yes
1
Or earn(s) income in compensation.
2
However, the AFC reserves the right to ask the taxpayer to state the gross income (before social
security deductions) of his/her spouse if necessary.
Page : 4/4
2.
What does "with the spouse's income used to determine the tax rate" mean?
The income of the spouse working abroad is not taxed in Switzerland, but it is added to the
taxpayer's income to determine his/her tax rate. To do this:



The income of the taxpayer and his/her spouse are considered cumulatively
This total amount is used to set the tax rate
This rate will be applied only to the income of the taxpayer working in Geneva
Example for a married couple without children





3.
Income of the taxpayer working in Geneva: CHF 80,000.Income of spouse working abroad: CHF 25,000.Total amount: CHF 105,000.Tax rate at Scale Cr0 on CHF 105,000.This tax rate will be used to calculate the tax on CHF 80,000.- (income of the taxpayer
working in Geneva)
Scale H: Taxation of single parent families
Until 31 December 2013, single-parent families will be taxed under the same Scale B that is
applied to married couples with children.
Starting from 1 January 2014, the Federal Ordinance on Tax at Source (OIS) provides that
taxpayers (single, divorced, separated de facto or legally, or widowed) who live alone or with
one or more minor dependent children will be taxed at Scale H as provided for single parents.
The calculation of Scale H is identical to that for married couples (splitting). However, the
deductions contained in the Scale have been adjusted to the situation of a taxpayer who lives
alone with his/her children.
Geneva, November 2013