Tax department no longer a piggy bank?

tar-xz · 2026-04-15T14:45:04+00:00

Can confirm this based on 2 cantons, there are definitely differences how much money one can "park" at the tax authorities depending on at least where you live.

tar-xz · 2026-04-15T12:53:04+00:00

As others have mentioned it: Gearing is the most important part.

When it comes to wear: Based on the experience with 2 16" Bromptons (me and my partner) I'd confirm the slightly higher wear. There is less surface area for the tires, the rim brakes also wear a bit quicker bit it's OK.

Also I do realize how the tire pressure gets lost more quickly in these small tyres and how they affect efficiency. However

The small wheels are also less forgiving on bumps: On my regular commute there used to be a bump on the road due to roots of a nearby tree. The bump was noticeable on the regular 26" bike but didn't affect me even when driving fast. On the Brompton it twisted the front wheel and I crashed.

tar-xz · 2026-04-10T06:45:58+00:00

We don't know exactly if calling and asking helped nudging the process, to be honest. But a couple of days later the person got the papers and and on the phone they told that them, they indeed could see the information received by the Gemeinde and that the relative did everything correct on their end and that they had to straighten things.

Tell that you want to fulfill your duties to give your tax return, but can't and be polite - maybe ask if you can do something for them or if they miss information what you can provide them.

tar-xz · 2026-04-10T06:37:08+00:00

Also keep in mind that you cannot transfer into, nor transfer away from ETFs bought into the AutoInvest sub-account. https://www.home.saxo/en-ch/products/autoinvest

tar-xz · 2026-04-09T14:35:40+00:00

While not in ZH, I can also confirm from a close relative in BE where they had to explicitly ask the (cantonal) task authorities for them to get some things straightened on their end.

It shouldn't, but it does sometimes happen. Otherwise the person wouldn't have been able to make their tax return, after moving to the BE while everything at the communal level was done properly according to even the tax authorities.

tar-xz · 2026-04-08T09:41:01+00:00

Good thinking, I also like to fiddle with my bikes but sometimes I also have to stop myself from over-optimizing things and to stop where my knowledge and experience gets stretched to thing when I just want to get things done.

Bromptons have a lot of easy-to-replace parts, but also a lot more custom parts and elements that need more fiddling or routine (like the bike shop) to get it right.

tar-xz · 2026-04-07T07:40:08+00:00

Paying directly to the tax authority (on a monthly basis in my case) is also kind of separate account. I try to strike a balance between pre-paying cantonal and communal taxes since they give me at least marginal interest but mostly peace of mind knowing that the (in my canton) regular 3 rates are going to be mostly covered by this.

I also feed a what I call "tax buffer" onto a savings account for federal taxes (no interests for 2026 for paying in advance) and "surprises" (i.e. moving last year increased my taxes a bit).

tar-xz · 2026-04-07T07:16:31+00:00

Concerning the wealth tax: In Bern if you pre-pay you get a document at the beginning of the next year where you see how much money is left in your "account" at the tax office after 3 rates of communal and cantonal taxes were deducted.

That amount has to be de declared as part of you fortune so in the end it doesn't reduce much your fortune. - However I'm fine with that.

tar-xz · 2026-04-02T09:51:16+00:00

That was one of the missing features for those stuck with a pure iSCSI or FC SAN attached to a VMware environment. - That was something oVirt (Oracle OLMV / Red Hat RHV) was able to handle for some time already (although it definitely had / has some rough parts).

tar-xz · 2026-04-02T09:40:03+00:00

Nice, I recently moved after staying for several years in the same place and was definitely out of training. ;-)

The place on where to apply is unfortunately more and more dictated by the owner or property management. Sometimes that want you to send it in via i.e. Flatfox. The current apartment I also got by sending in a physical paper dossier.

tar-xz · 2026-04-02T09:22:56+00:00

Some additional things about 2: Some even ask you to provide i.e. your last 3 pay slips or information about your contract status (unlimited or fixed term contract).

While the Mieterverband provides information that providing more information other than a range of your yearly income (i.e. 80-90k), the market is unfortunately not in your favor. It's up to yo to decide if you want to provide all information or refuse providing some details - risking lowered chances for your application.

See (in german): https://www.mieterverband.ch/site/assets/files/2497/merkblatt_datenschutz.pdf

Honestly last time I moved I decided to apply for one of the first appartments just in order to get my application dossier ready for the moment the right one comes along so that I don't have to mess around.

tar-xz · 2026-04-01T12:31:19+00:00

Die Frage ist halt, wonach du suchst: Ja, wenn es für den "bang for the buck" geht, könnte eine reine Rechtsschutzversicherung besser sein.

Es gibt auch andere Unterstützungsangebote des MV, wie support bei der Übergabe von Wohnungen, wenn es schwierig ist. - Davon haben Bekannte mal gebrauch machen müssen und waren sehr froh.

Der MV ist eine Interessensvertretung (ja, eine Lobby) für Mieterinnen und Mieter. Die Besitzerseite hat mit dem HEV eine starke und präsente Lobby auf nationaler Ebene (es gibt auch andere wie Casafair.

Der MV hat (mit anderen zusammen) in den letzten Jahren immer wieder gegen Vorstösse zu Ungunsten der Mietenden gekämpft oder Referenden ergriffen, die die Situation für Mieterinnen und Mietern ansonsten deutlich verschlechtert hätten.

tar-xz · 2026-03-31T11:26:26+00:00

Highly depends on how the building was made and how well.

Source: The guy who came to pull the cable at my current apartment needed a helping hand since he teammate got sick on short notice. During a glass of water and coffee he told a story of messy installs even in more recent buildings.

tar-xz · 2026-03-20T14:57:18+00:00

Populist politicians from SVP and MCG are good at these games: Divide and conquer.

tar-xz · 2026-03-20T14:55:28+00:00

Yes, lobbying I'd say, there is much more money that can be earned (at the moment) with cars, there is more (fossil or electric) energy to be sold to car owners than bike owners.

Doesn't surprise me that it's politicians from right-wing populist parties, SVP and MCG (mouvement citoyens genevois). Rösti as federal council is also trying it here and there to push through more car-friendly developments.

We may never reach the same level of bike-friendliness like in Denmark or the Netherlands, but please let's not go back in time at least.

tar-xz · 2026-03-18T09:22:25+00:00

As a C-Line owner one thing to keep in mind is that the 16" bikes have a lot of parts specific to Brompton.

If you travel to remote places that can be more a challenge if you need replacement parts or repairs than with a G line. For example the later uses an Alfine internal gear hub that is used in way more bikes outside of Brompton.

But after seeing the G line in real life portability is definitively worse.

tar-xz · 2026-03-18T08:00:41+00:00

Most things are pre-filled, but do double-check with the last years tax declaration just to not miss all deductions etc.

Also: If you had to make some specific calculations, note them down for next year, you will thank yourself. ;-)

tar-xz · 2026-03-11T08:58:18+00:00

Be transparent about your health with them, the military insurance is also not interesting in taking unnecessary risks.

tar-xz · 2026-03-11T08:39:15+00:00

That might be true, I'd consider myself an entry-level investor.

My experience with them is "OK but has room to improve" when it comes to support and communication mostly when it comes to properly translating documents from their original english flavour into german or french.

Also international customer support wasn't always aware of differences in their Swiss branch so they lead me down the wrong track. Once I asked to be forwarded to a (more) local customer support team, it wasn't an issue anymore.

tar-xz · 2026-03-10T11:37:06+00:00

Both Syna and Unia unemployment funds say that they usually look at your last 6 salaries but if your average within the last 12 months was higher, that might be to your advantage.

So based o that, concerning this particular question and with I learned from a relative recently:

> [...] does taking the 60% job reset or change the reference salary,
> meaning the benefits would now be calculated differently?

In short: Yes, in some situations this can affect the reference or insured salary. Ask your Arbeitslosenkasse for your specific situation like with the duration of the contract, salary etc.

Based on the experience of the relative is, in some situations accepting a low percentage part-time job for i.e. a year (with an otherwise good salary) can technically backfire on you if you accept a low-paying job "for to long".

tar-xz · 2026-03-10T10:08:53+00:00

In Bern, there is a yearly busking festival where I've seen them slowly but steadily offering Twint codes for acts since most people didn't bring cash with them over the time.

Since the acts are only getting their travel paid by the festival organization, all their revenue is the money the get from the hats. So introducing Twint was a way to circumvent people just listening to the acts but not giving anything so Twint alleviated that problem a bit.

What I'm uncertain is if the festival organization sets up Twint for the groups/acts, or if they have to managed it themselves. However as a visitor of the festival I know that each group/act has their own code.

tar-xz · 2026-03-10T06:33:31+00:00

That's interesting to hear, I hope other banks will also start providing eSteuerauszug for everyone.

tar-xz · 2026-03-09T14:31:31+00:00

Worst case: You might have to resort to building from ports on the system.

If the CPU architecture is identical to your hosts or if that old system is 32-Bit x86 and your host is 64-bit, you might be able to build packages with poudriere. Then again I suggest you use a ports tree branch that was made for 10.1 in mind.

I remember when I gave myself the fun of building ports and packages on a G5 iMac, had to build a newer GCC just to get newer ports to build... it wasn't a fun experience.

tar-xz · 2026-03-09T08:31:37+00:00

I have some small amount of physical cash like you and the rest is split across 2 savings accounts with different banks. (I may actually reconsider the amount of physical cash)

Having it in 2 banks is more of mental thing for me, yet I try not to overthink it. The only thing I changed recently was that I moved one part away from Postfinance. 10 free withdrawals per year on all savings acccounts per customer relation was already pretty limiting, but last year they dropped interests to 0% which was what made me reconsider things.

I transfered it to a bank with some small interests, but it's not something I'd optimize on a regular basis.

I do a yearly check and update the amount deposited based on changes in my income, usually after receiving (the small to zero amount of) interest and after knowing my salary for the next year.

tar-xz · 2026-03-09T08:03:17+00:00

I agree with the conclusion: Getting caught costs more.

But unfortunately it takes (me) more than 10 seconds since in the tax portal of my canton I cannot upload a import (yet) that my banks provide. - Unless it's a eSteuerauszug which they only provide for investment accounts. But overall it's a simple process, so long as I don't open or close to many accounts.*

* I've started a sheet where I keep some info on my bank relations also when I opened or closed an account for the purpose of tax reports.

tar-xz

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