Overview of the tax law decisions of the Zurich Tax Appeal Court published in November 2017.

  • Judgment of 28 June 2017 (GR.2016.25): Real estate gains tax (revision); A replacement purchase is not considered due to lack of self-inhabitation if the premises in question have been approved as exhibition rooms according to the building permit and a further permit would be required for the conversion. Furthermore, the structural design of the premises is not in favour of intended residential use (cf. § 216 para. 3 lit. i StG/ZH). Confirmed by the decision of the Administrative Court of 20 September 2017 (SB.2017.00082). An appeal against this decision is pending before the Swiss Federal Court (2C_931/2017).
  • Judgment of 8 August 2017 (ST.2017.50): State and Municipal Taxes 2013; The tax office has rightly assessed the taxpayer's 15% participation in a company in the fiduciary sector (in which the taxpayer is also a partner) for wealth tax purposes in accordance with the relevant directive or the practitioner method. The change of ownership of the same shares among the partners used by the obligor for the valuation is in the context of the shareholders' agreement; the price paid in this case was not paid by an independent third party and does not provide a better understanding of the market value (§ 51 (1) StG/ZH); decision legally binding.
  • Judgment of 22 August 2017 (DB.2017.5, ST.2017.6): Medical Expenses; Direct Federal Tax 2014 and State and Municipal Taxes 2014; The taxpayer was unable to prove that the medical expenses for 72 sessions with a psychologist declared in the 2014 tax return were based on a medical necessity. There is no medical prescription 2014; the fact that the taxpayer had medically indicated psychotherapeutic support for 10 years after an acute phase of illness as of 2002 does not change this. With the present decision, which in particular also includes health law aspects, the pre-instance offsetting of the medical costs must therefore be confirmed (Art. 33 para. 1 lit. h DBG; § 32 lit. a StG/ZH); decision legally binding.
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