Aargau Wealth Tax Cases
Aargau Wealth Tax: Cases & Worked Examples
Illustrative computations showing how Aargau’s stepped cantonal tariff and municipal tax rates apply in practice across common taxpayer profiles.
The following examples demonstrate how Aargau’s progressive cantonal wealth tax and communal Steuerfüsse interact at different net-worth levels and communes. They use indicative 2025 values for explanatory purposes only. For official computations, use the Aargau Wealth Tax Calculator and the cantonal tariff tables.
All numbers rounded; church tax ignored. Rates approximate for planning illustration.
Case A — Single Professional in Aarau (Capital)
- Commune: Aarau (municipal tax rate ≈ 0.96 of simple tax)
- Assets: CHF 1,200,000 (listed securities & cash)
- Liabilities: none
- Allowance: CHF 80,000 (single basic allowance, rounded)
| Net wealth | CHF 1,200,000 |
|---|---|
| Less allowance | − CHF 80,000 |
| Taxable net wealth | CHF 1,120,000 |
| Cantonal simple wealth tax | ≈ 0.19% → ≈ CHF 2,130 |
| Combined cantonal & municipal factor | ≈ ×1.50 |
| Wealth tax due | ≈ CHF 3,200 |
| Effective rate | ≈ 0.29% of net wealth |
Observation: Even in the cantonal capital with a mid-range municipal rate,
the effective wealth tax at around CHF 1.1m taxable wealth stays below 0.3% of net wealth (excluding church tax).
Case B — Married Couple with Two Children in Oberwil-Lieli (Low-Tax Commune)
- Commune: Oberwil-Lieli (municipal tax rate ≈ 0.48 of simple tax)
- Assets: CHF 3,000,000 (family home + diversified portfolios)
- Liabilities: CHF 1,000,000 mortgage
- Allowances: CHF 200,000 (married couple + children add-ons, rounded)
| Net wealth | CHF 2,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Less allowances | − CHF 200,000 |
| Taxable wealth | CHF 1,800,000 |
| Cantonal simple wealth tax | ≈ 0.17% → ≈ CHF 3,100 |
| Combined cantonal & municipal factor | ≈ ×1.55 |
| Estimated tax | ≈ CHF 4,800 |
| Effective rate | ≈ 0.25% of net wealth |
Planning angle: Two levers are working in favour of the family —
(i) the mortgage directly reduces taxable wealth and
(ii) a low-tax commune significantly lowers the municipal portion of the bill.
Case C — Entrepreneur with Private Company Shares in Hallwil (Higher-Tax Commune)
- Commune: Hallwil (municipal tax rate near the upper end of Aargau’s range)
- Unlisted shares: CHF 3,000,000 (valued under practitioner method)
- Other assets: CHF 1,000,000 (cash & listed portfolios)
- Liabilities: CHF 500,000 business loan (private liability)
- Filing status: Married, no children
| Net wealth | CHF 3,500,000 |
|---|---|
| Less allowances | − CHF 200,000 |
| Taxable wealth | CHF 3,300,000 |
| Cantonal simple wealth tax | ≈ 0.15% → ≈ CHF 5,000 |
| Combined cantonal & municipal factor | ≈ ×2.35 |
| Total wealth tax | ≈ CHF 11,800 |
| Effective rate | ≈ 0.36% of net wealth |
Assumes a stable practitioner-method valuation for the private company and no additional reliefs for business participations.
Planning angle: For business owners, the combination of higher municipal rate
and concentrated private-company wealth increases sensitivity to valuation assumptions.
Document valuation reports and underlying earnings carefully.
Case D — Nonresident Owning an Apartment in Baden
- Tax nexus: Nonresident with Aargau property only
- Property value: CHF 1,200,000 (official wealth tax value)
- Mortgage: CHF 800,000 (loan economically tied to the property)
- Commune: Baden (municipal tax rate ≈ 0.92 of simple tax)
- Other Swiss assets: none
| Swiss-situs net wealth (property – mortgage) | CHF 400,000 |
|---|---|
| Cantonal simple wealth tax | ≈ 0.13% → ≈ CHF 520 |
| Combined cantonal & municipal factor | ≈ ×2.03 |
| Estimated wealth tax | ≈ CHF 1,050 |
| Effective rate on Swiss-situs wealth | ≈ 0.26% |
Tip: For nonresidents, only the debt economically linked to the Aargau property is
deductible in the Aargau computation.
See the Nonresident Guide for allocation of global assets and liabilities.
Case E — Comparison: Oberwil-Lieli vs. Hallwil
Single taxpayer with CHF 2,000,000 taxable net wealth (after allowances and debts)
| Oberwil-Lieli (low municipal rate) | Hallwil (higher municipal rate) | |
|---|---|---|
| Cantonal simple wealth tax | ≈ 0.16% → CHF 3,100 | ≈ 0.16% → CHF 3,100 |
| Total wealth tax (excl. church) | ≈ CHF 4,900 | ≈ CHF 7,350 |
| Effective rate | ≈ 0.25% | ≈ 0.37% |
| Annual difference | ≈ CHF 2,400 per year at this wealth level | |
Note: Within Aargau, moving from a higher-tax municipality to a low-tax one can
reduce the wealth tax bill by 25–35% at the same taxable wealth — but must be weighed against
housing, commuting and personal factors.
Key Takeaways
- Aargau’s overall effective wealth tax for typical households often falls in the 0.25–0.35% range of net wealth, depending on commune and leverage.
- Municipal tax rates (Steuerfüsse) create meaningful differences between low-tax and higher-tax communes, especially at higher asset levels.
- Mortgages and other deductible debts reduce taxable net wealth directly; their impact is magnified when combined with modest cantonal rates.
- For entrepreneurs, the valuation of private companies is a key driver of the wealth tax base; consistent practitioner-method valuations and documentation are essential.
- Always reconcile wealth tax numbers with income tax and property tax data (official property values, portfolio reports, loan statements) to avoid follow-up questions from the tax office.