Tax rebate for the rich in Vaud was illegal

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• According to an investigation report that has now been published, the tax rebate for the rich in the canton of Vaud between 2009 and 2021 did not comply with the law.
• Employees of the cantonal tax administration reported such problems to their superiors in 2011 and 2015, but no action was taken.
• Furthermore, according to the report, information about the irregularities was not passed on to the State Council.
• The final decision on a parliamentary commission of inquiry lies with the Grand Council.

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The tax rebate for the rich in the canton of Vaud did not comply with the law between 2009 and 2021. This is the conclusion of an investigation report published on Tuesday. The tax losses are not quantified in the report. It also remains unclear who is responsible for the irregularities.

The report by François Paychère, an independent expert, uncovered discrepancies between the legal provisions in the tax area and the way in which taxation was implemented by IT. The provisions on relief for wealthy taxpayers were introduced in the canton of Vaud in 2009 and adjusted in 2017, 2021 and 2024.

The IT used to calculate the tax cap provided "erroneous results" for certain taxpayers. Depending on the year, between 1,000 and 4,000 people were affected by the tax cap.

However, even after the report, it remained unclear how many of them benefited from the unlawful practice and how high the tax losses were. According to the expert, these were "impossible to quantify" as too many variables had to be taken into account.

Big differences between cantons

Where you pay the least tax

Information not passed on

Employees of the cantonal tax administration reported the problems to their superiors in 2011 and 2015, but no action was taken. According to the report, the information about the irregularities was not passed on to the State Council.

"This is inadmissible. Such an irregularity should not have happened," said Christelle Luisier (FDP), President of the Vaud cantonal government, to the media in Lausanne on Tuesday.

Although the General Directorate of Taxation was informed about the problems, this information did not reach the State Council, according to the report. Even former State Councillor Pascal Broulis (FDP), who was responsible for the canton's finances for many years, said that he was only informed in 2019, after which he began to revise the tax cap.

"No memory"

"The responsibilities are difficult to determine," said Luisier. In addition, the then director of the tax administration, Marinette Kellenberger, had "no recollection" of the note that drew her attention to the problems.

Kellenberger, who was also named in the Dittli affair, will retire early at the end of the year. In March, her colleagues in the government removed State Councillor Valérie Dittli (center) from responsibility for the Finance Department following an external investigation.

State Councillor does not want a PUK

In view of the facts established in the report, the State Council does not consider it necessary to set up a parliamentary commission of inquiry (PUK). However, the government is taking measures to improve the functioning of the Directorate-General for Taxation, in particular through audits. The final decision on a PUK lies with the Grand Council.