The Council of States and the National Council have settled their differences regarding the Money Laundering Act and approved the Act in the final vote on 29 September 2017.
According to the Federal Council's business (15,069), the Federal Council wants to regulate money games in Switzerland in a coherent and up-to-date manner in a single law. To this end, on 21 October 2015 it adopted a dispatch with a corresponding draft law for the attention of parliament.
Differences between the two councils existed in particular with regard to the taxation of winnings from money games. In contrast to the Federal Council and the National Council, the Council of States did not want to exempt winnings from money games from tax in general, but to stick to a model according to which such winnings must be taxed from a tax-free amount of one million Swiss francs. In the course of further parliamentary debate, the Committee for Legal Affairs of the Council of States also submitted a recommendation to the Council of States on 13 September 2017, which, with regard to the difference in question, provided for an extension of the tax-free allowance of up to CHF 1 million to include winnings from online participation in casino games (this was done in line with the proposal of a minority of the Committee for Legal Affairs of the National Council).
The Council of States subsequently maintained the taxation of profits above a tax-free amount of CHF 1 million, and in this respect there was a difference to the National Council until the very end (for a detailed overview of developments and parliamentary discussions, see our contribution of 19 September 2017).
In its session of 26 September 2017, the National Council has now decided by 108 votes to 78 with one abstention to follow the Council of States on the difference in the tax issue and thus no longer adhere to the general tax exemption of winnings. The legal wording approved by the National Council now states that, in addition to lottery winnings of CHF 1 million or more, winnings over CHF 1 million from online casinos must also be taxed (i.e. a tax-free amount of CHF 1 million applies). On this point, the difference between the two parliamentary councils could be adjusted.
However, due to a recent amendment by the National Council regarding the salary issue, the matter must nevertheless be settled on 27 September 2017 before the conciliation conference in which the National Council finally waived its last amendment and the two chambers of parliament were finally able to agree on the new Money Laundering Act (see the SDA announcements of 26 and 27 September 2017).
The deal was then accepted by both Councils in the final vote on 29 September 2017 and is thus closed. The text of the final vote on the Federal Act on Money Games (Money Games Act, BGS) of 29 September 2017 is available here.
According to an SDA report dated September 27, 2017, a referendum against the new Money Play Act has already been announced. The reason for the announced referendum is the gambling bans provided for in the law.
