A Swiss public law institution faced a complex issue related to the social insurances of an employee residing in a country of the European Union, benefiting from remote work.
The legal framework of social insurances is particularly delicate when an employee works remotely from another country. The first step was to determine which social security system should apply. Due to the various agreements to which Switzerland is a party, the distribution of working time between Switzerland and the employee’s country of residence plays a key role in this determination.
After identifying the competent state regarding social insurances, Fiducie’r handled the necessary declarations with the competent foreign authorities, as well as the follow-up of the monthly reporting obligations incumbent on the employer. We also ensured coordination with the Swiss compensation office to avoid a situation of double contributions.
The employee’s maternity added a certain complexity to this situation. Although having concluded a Swiss employment contract, the employee benefited from the social insurance conditions of her country of residence. Since the rights and obligations of the two systems did not fully overlap, Fiducie’r proposed a pragmatic solution guaranteeing both respect for the employee’s rights and the aspects related to the employment contract. We subsequently carried out the necessary procedures with the authorities of the country of residence for the payment of benefits received in case of maternity leave.
Due to the number of parties involved and the technicality of some, this case illustrates the administrative complexity of cross-border remote work that employers may face.
Heirs domiciled in different cantons, real estate also located in several cantons, and securities portfolios within multiple estates: Managing an inheritance can quickly become a fiscal and administrative challenge.
The tax consequences of an inheritance vary depending on the cantons of residence of the heirs and the location of the assets. The main issues encountered in cases of intercantonal taxation often concern the fairness of the fiscal distribution and, more prosaically, the consistency, sometimes the inconsistency, of the actions of the various tax authorities. Apart from the complexity related to multiple places of taxation, usual elements such as maintenance and renovation costs as well as rental and financial income must also be taken into account. In this case, Fiducie’r took charge of the tax compliance of one of the estates and part of the heirs. However, this responsibility also requires managing the interconnections, as an heir cannot fulfill their tax obligations before being informed of the fiscal consequences of the estate to which they belong. Sometimes in collaboration with the tax authorities, sometimes through appeals, Fiducie’r contributed to a fair analysis of the elements of the tax assessments, elements related to the different intercantonal distributions.
Another factor that Fiducie’r obviously had to manage is the handling of deadlines and delays accumulated by the tax authorities in their tax assessments, a recurring problem in some cantons. Through its intervention, Fiducie’r was thus able to coordinate the multiple taxation processes, anticipate deadlines, and undertake the necessary steps to ensure effective tax management.
As part of its commitment to a Swiss sports federation, a partner of Fiducie’r sits on the executive committee as well as on bodies responsible for the governance of this federation. These bodies play a central role in reviewing game license applications submitted by clubs, ensuring their financial viability. Thus, each applicant club must provide a detailed file including financial guarantees proving its ability to meet its commitments. When these guarantees are insufficient or nonexistent, the license may be refused. If applicable, clubs have the right to appeal, and their file is then re-examined by a commission composed of three members, including our partner. If the refusal is upheld, the club has the option to bring the case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
This is what happened with one of the federation members, who despite the club’s financial difficulties attempted to justify the granting of the license due to exceptional circumstances encountered. With the collaboration of specialized lawyers, Fiducie’r contributed to the defense of the federation by preparing the accounting and financial aspects of the technical file. In this case, the CAS rejected the club’s appeal, thereby confirming the analysis of the club’s economic capacity carried out by Fiducie’r.
As part of a corporate restructuring, Fiducie’r assisted Swiss and French shareholders in the creation of a holding company intended to consolidate their various commercial and real estate entities.
The objective was to optimize the management of holdings by structuring a holding company owning the shares of the companies as well as creating a real estate company dedicated to the purchase and management of properties in France. The complexity of the project lay in the duality of tax and legal regulations between Switzerland and France, requiring an in-depth analysis of cross-border tax implications.
