This agreement, together with previous arrangements3, allows cross-border home working up to 40 percent of total annual work-days without affecting the previous income tax position. For a French tax-resident employee with a Swiss employer, the agreement provides as follows:
- For Swiss cantons under the 1983 frontier worker agreement (Bern, Solothurn, Basel, Vaud, Valais, Neuchatel, and Jura), personal taxation can continue to be levied in the country of residence, i.e., France.
- For all other Swiss cantons (such as Geneva and Zurich), work-days will be taxed in Switzerland, where the employer is based.
The definition of “home working” includes business trips undertaken by the employee at the request of the employer – either in their country of residence (i.e., France, for an inbound commuter to Switzerland) or in any other country other than Switzerland and France – as long as such trips do not exceed 10 days per year. These 10 days should be counted within the 40-percent overall limit.
An additional article4 to the double taxation treaty provides details on the reporting obligations of the employer, to include:
- Employee information (names/date of birth, postcode for his place of residence);
- Year during which the remuneration was earned;
- Number of days or percentage of home working;
- Total amount of remuneration paid.
With respect to Switzerland, this information is required from all Swiss employers with French-resident employees, regardless of the canton involved. It should be submitted, in electronic format, to the authorities in the country where the employer is based by 30 November following the year in which the remuneration is paid. The exchange of information will happen at country level thereafter.
