Virtual Office & Registered Address in Basel

We are regularly contacted by cross-border self-employed individuals seeking a Swiss domiciliation address in order to register with the Commercial Register and/or with the AHV as self-employed.

In some cases, this model can be coherent. However, when the nature of the activity does not make it credible to operate the business from a mere domiciliation address, we prefer not to accept the mandate, in the client's interest.

This is notably the case when:

• the activity physically requires a workshop, an office, commercial premises, storage or staff on site;
• all operational activity remains carried out from the client's country of residence;
• no business travel, clientele or credible infrastructure exists in Switzerland;
• the domiciliation is used as the sole "proof" of a Swiss activity.

In this type of situation, the risk is twofold:

• refusal or challenge of self-employed status by the AHV;
• tax or administrative challenge linked to the absence of real economic substance in Switzerland.

Where necessary, we redirect our clients to more appropriate solutions: real office, permanent workspace, credible operational structure or other organisation compatible with the activity carried out.

Some foreign companies wish to have a Swiss address in order to strengthen their commercial image or international credibility, then publish this address on:

• their website;
• their email signatures;
• their contracts;
• their commercial documentation;
• their business cards;
• their invoices.

In some contexts, this use can create a significant legal and tax risk, particularly with regard to the risk of being reclassified as a permanent establishment ("PE") within the meaning of article 5 of the OECD Model Tax Convention, reproduced in the majority of international tax treaties concluded by Switzerland. In practice, a Swiss address presented as a genuine commercial point of presence may lead some tax authorities, business partners or banks to consider that:

• the company carries out an activity in Switzerland;
• a lasting economic presence exists;
• local substance is being claimed;
• tax, accounting or regulatory obligations could apply in Switzerland.

The risk increases further when:

• employees work from Switzerland;
• commercial decisions are taken from Switzerland;
• the Swiss address is presented as the operational headquarters;
• clients believe they are dealing with a Swiss entity.

We then prefer to decline the mandate or redirect the project towards a compliant structure that genuinely matches the activity carried out, such as the formation of a Swiss subsidiary or a branch office.

We are sometimes contacted by individuals, resident in Switzerland or abroad, who think that a simple administrative domiciliation is enough:

• to change tax canton;
• to be taxed in the canton of domiciliation;
• to transfer their tax residence to Switzerland;
• or to obtain a Swiss residence permit.

This is not the case.

For Swiss residence to be recognised, you generally need to have a genuine private place of life, for example:

• an apartment or a house;
• a furnished rental;
• an apart-hotel or hotel residence;
• or genuine accommodation with relatives.

The authorities examine in particular:

• the place of effective residence;
• the centre of personal and economic interests;
• the actual physical presence;
• the consistency between activity, housing and family situation.

A simple commercial domiciliation with a corporate services firm therefore does not allow:

• automatic cantonal taxation;
• artificial relocation of a tax residence;
• nor obtaining a Swiss residence permit.

In this type of situation, we prefer to clarify the applicable rules from the outset to spare the client unsuitable steps, administrative refusals or significant tax risks.