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LIVING IN SWITZERLAND

Zurich to fine American resident for throwing carton into trash

One international resident in Switzerland has recently found out that disposing of your garbage correctly in Switzerland is not just a lot of trash talk.

Published: 7 February 2024 10:29 CET
Zurich to fine American resident for throwing carton into trash
A lesson for Will: in Switzerland, this has to be recycled. Image by Steve Johnson from Pixabay

Foreigners often face quite a steep learning curve when it comes to Swiss laws, rules, and regulations.

Take Will, for instance.

As local media reported on Tuesday, “a US expat recently became acquainted with the Swiss waste disposal culture.”

This is what happened: an obviously clueless fellow threw a carton box in which his new mobile phone was packed into a trash can at a tram stop. As he received the package by mail, his name and address were still affixed to the box.

What would have been a normal action in the United States (and pretty much elsewhere as well) was an offence in Switzerland, as Will would soon find out.
 
Next thing he knew he received a ‘violation report’ from the Zurich police for not complying with waste management rules — that is, throwing cardboard into a ‘regular’ bin rather than recycling it.

“I wouldn’t have expected someone to dig through the trash,” the offender said, obviously not knowing how Switzerland works.

This is what Will should have known, but didn’t:

The Swiss are meticulous when it comes to waste disposal and, not surprisingly, they have strict regulations on how to throw away trash in an environmentally correct manner.

Between separating recyclables into separate bins, using officially sanctioned (i.e. expensive) trash bags, and putting out the garbage for collection only on designated days and in designated places, the myriad of rules can be confusing to any foreigner.

However, this is required knowledge for anyone living in Switzerland — especially if they hope to be naturalised one day.

READ ALSO: What are Switzerland’s rules for waste disposal and recycling?

Officials will rummage through your trash to ensure rule compliance

Though this may sound far-fetched to anyone not living in Switzerland, cities actually employ ‘trash inspectors’ whose unenviable job is to rummage through garbage to ensure that no ‘forbidden’ items are thrown in there.

And if there are, they search the trash for clues to the offender’s identity: envelopes with their name and address, for instance, so they can be slapped with fines.

(This is exactly how Will was caught).

READ ALSO: Why the Swiss government rummages through your garbage

What is going to happen to Will?

He learned that he must remove address labels from everything that he throws out.

In the meantime, he is waiting to receive his fine, which could be as high as 320 francs.

If it is paper form, Will has hopefully learned enough from this experience to recycle it.
 
  

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MONEY

Do adult children in Switzerland have to support their parents financially?

Usually, it is the parents’ responsibility to ensure their kids are well taken care of financially. But can Swiss authorities force the children to return the favour in times of need?

Published: 30 April 2024 15:31 CEST
Do adult children in Switzerland have to support their parents financially?

In most cases, once children are grown up and out of the house, they are (or at least should be) self-sufficient in terms of finances.

Parents too should breathe a sigh of relief that they are no longer obligated to pay for their children’s expenses, except perhaps for giving them some money here and there as a gift.

This is what happens in the best-case scenario.

But what if things don’t go according to this plan — for instance, if the parents find themselves in financial straits and can’t  afford to pay their bills?

Family obligations

Generally speaking, the truly needy people who don’t have enough income to pay for their basic living expenses will receive financial help from the government, in the very least in the form of the health insurance and housing subsidy.

READ ALSO: Can I get financial help in Switzerland if I’m struggling to pay the bills?

However, before doling out public money, authorities will see whether relatives should be made to help the struggling individuals pay their bills.

(In this context, ‘relatives’ means only those in the direct line of descent: grandparents, parents, and children.)

They will do it by checking the tax status of these relatives — how much they earn and what other financial assets they have — to determine whether, and how much, they should be paying toward their parents’ expenses.

Obviously, you will be expected to pay up only if your own financial situation allows it; you will not be forced to part with your money if you have very little of it yourself.

 ‘Favourable financial circumstaces’

Based on a Federal Court ruling, if the adult child  lives in ‘favourable financial circumstances’ they are required to help out their struggling parents.

The Court defined ‘favourable financial circumstances’ as income and assets allowing a comfortable life.

‘Comfortable life’, in turn, was defined by the Swiss Conference for Social Welfare (SKOS), as a taxable annual income of 120,000 francs for a single person, and 180,000 francs for married couples.

“If you have minors in your household, the limit is increased by 20,000 francs per child,” according to AXA insurance.

It goes on to say that you can deduct an exempt amount from your taxable assets.

“Your annual depletion of assets is deducted from the remaining amount. This means that if you are obligated to provide financial support, you are permitted to use part of your assets yourself each year; you don’t have to devote your entire assets to providing support.”

At between 18 and 30 years of age, this is 1/60th per year; from 31 to 40, 1/50th per year; 41 to 50, 1/40th per year; 51 to 60, 1/30th per year; and from the age of 61,1/20th per year. 

Are there any exemptions to these rules?

Aside from not having sufficient funds, you could be exempted from paying if, say, your parents, or parent, have not lived up to their own financial obligations toward you.

In Switzerland, parents are required to  provide financially for their children until the age of majority, and even beyond that if they are still studying or undergoing vocational training — typically, until the mid-20s.

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