Overview of the 2026 budgets Savings are being made in these cantons - and taxes are being cut in these cantons
Many cantons in Switzerland will slide into the red in 2026 - but not all of them. Some cantons are responding with austerity programs, others with tax cuts. Western Switzerland and smaller cantons with rising healthcare and social spending are particularly hard hit.
24.10.2025, 11:52
24.10.2025, 14:04
SDA
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Several cantons are expecting deficits in 2026 - mainly due to rising costs in education, health and social services.
- While savings are being made in French-speaking Switzerland, Zug and Bern are planning tax cuts worth millions.
- Fribourg is withdrawing its budget due to a referendum - the canton is starting the year without an approved budget.
"The biggest chunks of cantonal expenditure are in the areas of education, social affairs and health," said Ernst Stocker, President of the Conference of Cantonal Finance Directors, when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency. In various cantons, this expenditure has grown more strongly than income.
This trend is confirmed in the 2026 budgets, Stocker continued. In some cantons, there is also a high need for investment. On the revenue side, some cantons are expecting a slowdown in economic growth after several years of a favorable economic situation.
Zug and Bern are planning tax cuts
The canton of Zug is budgeting the highest revenue surplus at CHF 370 million, although expenditure is expected to rise by over CHF 300 million. The canton is planning to reduce the tax rate from 82 to 78 percent, which would cost it around CHF 25 million.
The canton of Bern is also toying with the idea of a tax cut. It is planning to reduce taxes by around 440 million francs by 2029. It wants to achieve this with a tax revision, among other things. For 2026, the Bernese cantonal government is expecting an increase of CHF 365 million.
In contrast, the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden is planning a tax increase. Among other things, higher expenditure on hospital financing and supplementary benefits are weighing on the budget, which is expecting a deficit of CHF 13.2 million for 2026. In order to further stabilize the state budget and curb debt, the government is proposing a tax rate adjustment of 0.1 units for natural persons. The cantonal council will decide on this.
Austerity measures are the order of the day in western Switzerland
The budget of the canton of Geneva has slipped into the red. It has a deficit of 409.4 million francs. Among the measures proposed to curb the rise in costs is the suspension of the annuity (regular payment) for civil servants.
Cost-cutting measures are already included in the budget of the canton of Vaud. Nevertheless, it is expecting a deficit of 331 million francs in the coming year. The public sector staff and the health and social sectors will be the hardest hit by the cuts.
Fribourg without a budget
The Fribourg State Council withdrew its budget proposal on Wednesday. The canton will therefore start 2026 without a budget approved by the Grand Council. The SP and staff associations had previously launched a referendum against the State Council's restructuring program. According to the State Council, the announcement of the referendum will render its budget proposal for 2026 invalid.
If the referendum is successful, the electorate will vote on it on April 26, 2026. With its austerity program, the Fribourg cantonal government aims to save 405 million francs over the coming years. At the end of September and beginning of October, 3,000 and 4,000 people respectively took part in protests in the city of Fribourg against the cuts to public services as a result of the austerity program.
Neuchâtel, meanwhile, reported a relative profit of CHF 14.6 million after drawing funds from its reserves. At the same time, the State Council decided to support companies with almost 8 million francs. The amount of CHF 7.93 million is to be offset by a withdrawal from the economic reserve. This still has to be voted on together with the budget.
Parliaments have yet to confirm budgets
The two cantons with the highest revenue surplus also have the largest budget increase. The canton of Zug improved its budget by CHF 144 million compared to the previous year and the canton of Bern by CHF 119 million.
On the other hand, the canton of Geneva saw its budget deteriorate by CHF 413.7 million. The canton of Zurich is also sliding deeper into the red. Its 2026 budget shows a deficit of CHF 139 million. In the previous year, the deficit amounted to CHF 102 million.
The budgets adopted by the cantonal governments are not yet the final step in the process. "The final adoption is only made by cantonal parliaments, usually in November or December," said Stocker.
