Thurgau Inheritance Tax Planning
Last updated: 12 Nov 2025
Thurgau Inheritance Tax — Planning
How to reduce or avoid Thurgau inheritance tax (Erbschaftssteuer) with clean documentation and defensible structures. This page covers exemptions and heir-class strategy, situs & apportionment, charitable tools, real estate and business considerations, liquidity planning, and typical pitfalls. Swiss service delivered by Sesch TaxRep GmbH, Buchs SG.
1) Use exemptions & heir-class strategy
Bequests to spouse/registered partner and (in many cases) direct descendants are commonly exempt in Thurgau. Where your dispositive wishes allow, route value first to exempt classes and use legacies/quotas to place taxable beneficiaries on smaller bases.
- Consider Vorausvermächtnis / specific legacies for exempt heirs.
- Keep relationship proof current (marriage/partnership, birth/adoption certificates).
If unrelated or distant relatives must receive, allocate fixed CHF amounts rather than large percentages, or stage transfers via options/conditions to avoid concentration in higher brackets.
2) Situs & apportionment: residents vs. nonresidents
Residents: Model the portion of the estate that Thurgau effectively focuses on (often by excluding non-Thurgau real/tangible for progression modelling). Keep evidence for out-of-canton assets to support any apportionment.
Nonresidents: Thurgau typically limits tax to Thurgau-situs assets (real/tangible; business assets by nexus). Intangibles of nonresidents are generally outside scope unless a business situs exists.
Practice varies: Some assessments use situs-only progression; others determine a rate using a broader base and apply a Thurgau fraction. Maintain a valuation pack that supports either approach.
Try scenarios with the Thurgau calculator (switch between progression modes).
3) Charitable legacies & foundations
Qualifying charitable legacies are generally exempt and reduce progression. Use specific legacies or a percentage cap to hedge valuation swings.
- Confirm the organisation’s qualifying status and keep the confirmation letter.
- Consider a testamentary foundation if you want lasting governance.
Position charitable gifts ahead of taxable shares to compress those bases. Coordinate with foreign charities where assets or heirs are abroad.
4) Real estate & usufruct planning
Splitting Nießbrauch/Usufruct and bare title among heirs can align family use with reduced taxable bases for certain beneficiaries. Obtain professional valuation for the usufruct interest.
Ensure mortgages and deductible costs are documented and tie to the situs property. Commission neutral appraisals near the date of death for defensibility.
5) Business & family company planning
For nonresidents, only the Thurgau-nexus slice should be in scope. Keep a functional analysis (employees, assets, contracts) to support allocation.
Use shareholder agreements, buy-sell options, and life insurance to manage liquidity. Consider staged transfers to family members active in the business.
6) Timing, lifetime giving & documentation
- Lifetime gifts: Coordinate with cantonal Schenkungssteuer rules; avoid creating higher brackets by concentrating gifts shortly before death without documentation.
- Paper trail: Keep invoices for debts/administration, valuations, and relationship evidence. These drive exemptions and deductions.
- Update wills regularly: Align with births, marriages/partnerships, divorces, property purchases/sales.
7) Liquidity & insurance
Assessment deadlines can be ~30 days. Maintain cash or a line of credit to avoid interest on arrears.
Consider life insurance payable to exempt heirs or trusts to cover tax/expenses; mind beneficiary designations and local coordination.
8) Cross-canton & cross-border estates
When assets are spread across cantons/countries, prepare a location & value matrix (asset × canton/country) with evidence (land registry extracts, storage addresses, brokerage statements). This supports apportionment and avoids double assessment.
Tip: Keep separate valuation folders by canton. Provide the non-Thurgau packs proactively if the assessment suggests a broader base.
9) Common pitfalls
- Missing proof for exempt relationships (partner/descendants).
- Underdocumented debts/administration costs.
- No appraisal for real estate or special assets (art, collections).
- Assuming intangibles of nonresidents are taxed in Thurgau without business situs.
- Overlooking communal multipliers and local forms.
- Late responses to notices → interest/penalties and rushed valuations.
FAQs
Are gifts during lifetime always helpful?
They can be, but coordinate with gift-tax rules and avoid stacking gifts that push a beneficiary into higher brackets shortly before death without planning.
Can I route everything to an exempt spouse and then to children later?
Often yes via marital deduction/exemption mechanics, but review succession/forced-heirship and the taxation on the second death.
Do nonresident estates pay on bank accounts in Thurgau?
Typically no—pure intangibles usually follow domicile unless a business situs exists. Thurgau focuses on Thurgau real/tangible property for nonresidents.
Need a tailored plan?
We design practical, document-ready plans (exemption routing, situs analysis, appraisal kits, liquidity). Delivered by Sesch TaxRep GmbH, Buchs SG.
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