Question 1

Do I have to pay tax on Airbnb income?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with no de minimis threshold. Income from short-term letting is taxable income and is declared as income from furnished flats — with all rental income actually received, including cleaning fees passed on. There is no amount below which declaration falls away; even three weeks of holiday letting belong in the tax return. Deductible are debt interest, maintenance costs and, in many cantons, a flat rate for wear on the furnishings. With furnished letting this point weighs more heavily than with long-term renting: textiles, crockery and small appliances wear out faster under changing use. Two particularities. Anyone letting owner-occupied property temporarily may reduce the imputed rental value (Eigenmietwert) by the letting period — which presupposes evidence of the occupied days. And if the property does not lie in your canton of residence, an inter-cantonal tax apportionment may become necessary: the canton and municipality where the property lies then have a say in the taxation.

Question 2

Is there a visitor’s tax for Airbnb in Zurich?

Accepted Answer

None in law — and this is the point where many guides get it wrong. Unlike most Swiss cantons, the canton of Zurich has no accommodation levy in its legislation. What guests pay on an Airbnb booking as «city tax» is CHF 3.50 per person per night, and that rests on an agreement between Airbnb and the canton, not on a duty to pay a levy. One consequence follows that is rarely mentioned: anyone letting through a channel without such an agreement — their own website, say, or direct bookings — does not have to collect this amount. It is not a claim of the canton against the host. The visitor’s tax is to be distinguished from the guest notification duty: that is not a levy but a statutory obligation, and it exists regardless of the booking channel.

Question 3

At what point do I become liable for VAT?

Accepted Answer

There are two thresholds, and they are frequently confused. The first is at CHF 40,000: from that annual gross rental income including service charges, holiday-flat letting counts as a business in its own right for VAT purposes. The second is at CHF 100,000 of worldwide annual turnover — from then on VAT registration is compulsory. For accommodation services a special rate of 3.8 per cent applies in 2026, instead of the standard rate of 8.1 per cent. It covers the accommodation including any breakfast, even where that is invoiced separately. Important for planning: the special rate is limited until the end of 2027 and rises to 4.2 per cent from 1 January 2028. Anyone calculating over several years should allow for that.

Question 4

What is the VAT rate for accommodation?

Accepted Answer

3.8 per cent in 2026 — the special rate for accommodation services. It was raised from 3.7 to 3.8 per cent in 2024 and therefore sits distinctly below the standard rate of 8.1 per cent and above the reduced rate of 2.6 per cent. The special rate covers the accommodation together with any breakfast; other services, such as a separately sold parking space, may have to be treated differently. Two figures belong in multi-year planning: the special rate is limited until the end of 2027, and in April 2026 the Federal Council adopted a dispatch on extending it. From 1 January 2028 it is to rise to 4.2 per cent. Anyone drawing up a five-year calculation should not work with a constant rate.

Question 5

What happens to the imputed rental value if I let temporarily?

Accepted Answer

You may reduce it by the letting period — and this is the point where clean records are worth money directly. Anyone letting owner-occupied property by the day or week pays tax on the imputed rental value (Eigenmietwert) only for the period in which the rooms were available for their own use. Without evidence of the occupied days the basis for the reduction is missing, and the tax administration will then apply the full imputed rental value. In practice: keep a list of the days let, with booking records. Where letting is partial — a room alongside owner-occupied space, say — the imputed rental value has to be adjusted for the rooms let and the letting period, which presupposes an apportionment by area and time. We supply the occupancy data in a form your tax adviser can use.

Question 6

Which costs can I deduct from tax?

Accepted Answer

Debt interest, maintenance costs and, in many cantons, a flat rate for wear on the furnishings. With short-term letting the last point carries more weight than with long-term renting: bed linen, towels, crockery and small appliances wear out distinctly faster under changing use, and anyone claiming them individually as maintenance keeps a longer list than under a long-term tenancy. Cleaning costs, platform fees, management fees and insurance premiums for the let property can also be deductible. Not deductible are value-enhancing investments: they count as capital costs and take effect only on a later sale, through the property gains tax. The distinction between value-preserving maintenance and value-enhancing investment is the point at which a question to your tax adviser pays for itself — a new floor covering replacing an equivalent old one is maintenance, an air conditioning unit installed for the first time is not. Anyone with both on one invoice should have the items shown separately.

Question 7

What does guest notification cost and who files it?

Accepted Answer

You file it, and apart from your time it costs you nothing. Notification runs through the portal hotelkontrolle.zh.ch: hosts register there in advance and then file every guest notification electronically. The Zurich city police have issued a guidance note that states expressly: anyone who uses an online platform to let private flats and lets commercially for payment is also subject to the notification duty. Two points are frequently misunderstood. First: the duty does not concern foreign guests only — the Zurich system records all overnight guests. Second: registration belongs before the first booking. An omitted notification is not a formality; it can be a criminal offence. The duty rests with the host and is not transferable — we therefore do not file the notifications, not for managed properties either. What we do supply: the occupancy data with names and stay dates that you need for the notification.

Question 8

Is Airbnb income reported to the tax authority automatically?

Accepted Answer

Do not rely on it not being. The international exchange of platform data with tax authorities has expanded considerably in recent years, and the assumption that income from short-term letting goes unnoticed is out of date. Independently of that, your duty to declare stands: it does not depend on whether the authority learns of the income anyway. What counts in practice: a complete declaration with proper records is also the basis for deducting costs — anyone who declares nothing can offset nothing either. With several properties, or income in several cantons, the matter becomes complex enough that a tax adviser is cheaper than a back tax assessment. We supply the documents for it monthly, not only in January.

Question 9

What is the property transfer tax on purchase?

Accepted Answer

In the canton of Zurich it does not arise — which distinguishes it from most other cantons. Zurich has abolished the property transfer tax; on acquiring a property, notarial and land registry fees arise instead, and they are distinctly lower. What does arise: the property gains tax on sale, on the gain. In the canton of Zurich it is graduated by holding period — the longer you hold, the lower the rate. For the calculation of a short-term letting this is a point at the margin, but one with weight: anyone buying a flat to sell it again after two years pays a distinctly higher rate than with a longer holding period. For your case, the notary and the municipal tax office give binding information.

Question 10

Do I need accounts for short-term letting?

Accepted Answer

Formal accounts only if you operate as a business — for private letting a proper set of records is enough. What it has to contain follows from what you do with it: income per booking, occupied days for the imputed rental value, cleaning and laundry costs per changeover, platform fees, management fee, consumables, repairs with receipts. With these records you can complete the tax return and, more important day to day, check your own calculation. Two thresholds change the requirements. From CHF 40,000 of annual gross rental income, holiday-flat letting counts as a business in its own right for VAT purposes. From CHF 100,000 of turnover, VAT registration arises, and with it invoices showing the tax rate and quarterly returns. From that size an accounting solution is cheaper than the rework. We supply the data monthly in a form that can be processed further — not as a PDF someone has to retype.

Question 11

How does short-term letting affect my mortgage?

Accepted Answer

You should tell your bank before you start — and in writing, so that it is documented. Mortgage contracts regularly contain provisions on the use of the property, and a switch from owner occupation or long-term renting to commercial short-term letting can be a change of use within the meaning of the contract. The consequences range from a simple acknowledgement to an adjustment of terms: banks sometimes assess the risk of a commercially used property differently from an owner-occupied one, and in an affordability calculation fluctuating rental income can be weighted differently from a fixed rent. What argues against staying silent: an unreported change of use can be a breach of contract, and that typically becomes relevant precisely when something is going wrong anyway — with a claim, a refinancing or a sale. A call to your relationship manager costs nothing and settles in ten minutes whether written notification is required.

Question 12

What applies for tax if I live abroad?

Accepted Answer

The property is taxed where it lies — that is the principle in international tax law and in the Swiss double taxation agreements. Income from a flat in Zurich is therefore taxable in Switzerland, regardless of your residence. In practice this means limited tax liability in the canton of Zurich: you declare the property and the income here, while your country of residence either exempts or credits it depending on the agreement. Something further needs clarifying: the permit requirement for the acquisition of real estate by persons abroad — the Lex Koller can restrict or exclude the purchase of a flat for short-term letting. That question belongs before the purchase contract and with a specialist, not on a website.

How is Airbnb income taxed in Zurich?