Making arrangements for your estate gives you the certainty that your final wishes will be respected and that, after your death, your assets will be distributed in accordance with your wishes. This allows you to provide for the people and organisations of your choice. In this way, a will also prevents or reduces conflicts or inheritance disputes.

If you don’t have a will, your estate will be subject to statutory provisions governing succession (last revised January 2023). For example, half will go to your surviving spouse and the other half to your children. If this aligns with your wishes, you don’t need a will. However, if you don’t have any legal heirs, would like to change something, nominate other people or charitable organisations or leave certain assets to someone in particular, you need a will. If a person has no legal heirs and no will, their estate passes over to the state.

There are two main forms: a holographic will and a public (notarised) will. In addition, the law also recognises nuncupative (oral) wills. You can only write a will on your own behalf. Certain formal requirements have to be met: a holographic will must be written by hand from start to finish, include the place and date and be signed at the end.

The statutory entitlement for descendants was reduced from 50% to 25% in 2023. It remains 50% for spouses or registered partners. The statutory entitlement for parents was removed entirely. A will template generator will help you calculate both the statutory entitlements and the disposable part. It’s important to ensure that legacies do not breach statutory entitlements, in other words that they are not higher than protected statutory entitlements. This can be ensured by way of a percent rule (legacy part), for example. It’s worth having your will reviewed by an expert if your situation is a little more complex.

A legacy (also known as a bequest) enables you to leave a specific asset (a fixed amount or a percentage of the inheritance) or a valuable item to a person or organisation. Legacies are passed on before the inheritance is divided. Statutory entitlements may not be breached during this process. Legacy recipients (such as the Swiss AIDS Federation for example) are not liable for debts the deceased may have. With an inheritance, the heirs forms part of the community of heirs and inherit the whole of the estate, including all obligations such as any debts, while they also take on responsibility for administering and settling the estate.

Yes, this is possible. In this case, we would be grateful if you could contact us so that we can familiarise ourselves with your wishes regarding your estate and how it should be administered. This will help us get a clearer picture of your will in the event of any uncertainties, and also means we can clarify with you what is within our powers and where we might need alternative solutions.

Yes, estates and inheritances left to the Swiss AIDS Federation are exempt from tax.