The Politics of Gendered Taxation in Switzerland: The Case of Individual Taxation

Switzerland is on the brink of introducing a gender-equalizing policy: individual taxation for married couples, with a referendum scheduled for March 8, 2026. The country represents a puzzling case, as it is the last Western democracy to use fully mandatory joint taxation for married couples with both incomes being aggregated. This policy not only creates a work disincentive for secondary earners (predominantly women) but also results in higher taxes for dual-earner couples upon marriage. In contrast, individual taxation, which taxes spouses’ incomes separately, does not constrain women’s work decisions and would provide tax relief for many married couples in Switzerland. In this paper, we seek to unravel the politics of gendered taxation in Switzerland, examining why the country has continued or may continue (depending on the referendum outcome) to adhere to joint taxation. Using a mixed-methods approach, we first trace the historical discourse and development of married couples’ taxation in Switzerland. Second, we quantitatively analyze the referendum outcome using post-survey data and a text analysis of newspaper coverage on the reform. Our hypothesis is that the gender politics of taxation in Switzerland are largely shaped by both citizens’ political attitudes toward gender and marriage and the division of labor and income within households. Overall, this research makes a significant contribution to the literature on gendered politics by examining the often-overlooked area of gendered tax reforms.