* Merz Striving For Lowest Rate Of VAT In EuropeSpeaking in the national media at the weekend, Swiss Finance Minister Hans-Rudolph Merz has floated a plan to simplify and cut value added tax in Switzerland over the next three to four years.
Currently, the rate of VAT in Switzerland stands at 7.6%, although there are many variations and exemptions for individual industries and economic sectors. For example, the hotel industry pays VAT at a rate of 3.6%.
However, in an interview with the NZZ am Sontag newspaper on Sunday, Merz said that the system was becoming far too complex to administer and had become a burden for the country's small and medium-sized businesses.
"Nobody can find their way through this muddle where there will soon be 27 exceptions," he observed.
Merz went on to add that his goal was to see Switzerland have the lowest rate of VAT in Europe at somewhere between 5% and 6%. He stated that the changes could be in place by 2008, and that his proposals had the support of the hotel industry.