SWISS SMES: FROM 2023 EASIER TO TAKE OVER THE FAMILY BUSINESS

In the session of 10 June, the Federal Council adopted the message on an amendment to the Civil Code to facilitate the transfer of business by inheritance within the family, which will come into effect from 1 January 2023.

In the future, the testator will be able to freely dispose of a larger part of his succession. With the reduction of the legitimate portion there will be greater flexibility in the transfer of businesses by inheritance, making it easier to transfer a business to a new owner.

In its message, the Federal Council presented three proposals:

1)    The right to the full attribution of an enterprise within the framework of the division of the succession, if the heir has not made provisions in this regard: in the future the court may, upon request and under certain conditions, assign the entire enterprise to one single heir. This aims to avoid fragmentation or closure in particular of SMEs.

2)    The possibility for the transferee heir to obtain deferred payments from the other heirs, so as to prevent the takeover of the company from creating liquidity problems.

3)    Specific rules on the imputation value of companies among the heirs.

The Federal Council's design also provides for particular regulations to protect the heirs who receive only the legitimate, in particular excluding the possibility of attributing to them, against their will, the legitimate in the form of minority participation in a company.

Our staff is available for any clarification.