Swiss Zermatt City Begins Accepting Bitcoin as Tax Payment

Zermatt municipality of Switzerland has officially started accepting tax payments in Bitcoin (BTC). The municipality, where Matterhorn (a mountain of the Alps) is located, is currently the second place in Switzerland to start accepting cryptocurrencies as a mode of payment.

To facilitate Bitcoin payments, Zermatt authorities have entered into collaboration with Bitcoin Suisse, one of the country’s top crypto financial service providers.

As per an announcement by Bitcoin Suisse, Zermatt began accepting Bitcoin as a mode of payment for domestic taxes and other dealings from January 28, 2020.

By collaborating with Bitcoin Suisse, Zermatt authorities are now able to exchange taxpayers’ Bitcoin to Swiss Francs via Bitcoin Suisse which then transfers the equivalent amount in fiat currency to the bank account of Zermatt municipality.

In particular, domestic tax payers will be able to complete their tax obligations by paying in Bitcoin via a PoS (Point-of-Sale) tool set up in the Zermatt town hall or through the website for online payment.

However, in order to pay taxes with Bitcoin online, the taxpayers will have to apply directly to the Zermatt Tax Office for a crypto payment solution, the announcement notes.

Romy Biner-Hauser, the mayor of Zermatt, outlined that the new tax payment option aims to meet increased demand for Bitcoin-based tax payments:

“An innovative, pioneering spirit is one of the trademarks of Zermatt, which is why we are happy to support residents in providing them with the solutions they require.”

Back in May 2016, Zug became the first city in Switzerland to start accepting Bitcoin payments, Bitcoin Suisse pointed out. Zug, often referred as the capital of Switzerland’s “Crypto Valley” started accepting Bitcoin payments for some services offered by the city, including public utilities.

However, the payment was limited to francs 200 equivalent Bitcoin.

At a time when Switzerland is opening up to cryptocurrency by accepting tax payments in Bitcoin, some authorities in other countries have cautioned the move as too risky because of Bitcoin’s volatility.

On January 8, the legislators at the US New Hampshire state legislature withdrew a bill that would have permitted state agencies to start accepting cryptocurrency as tax payment. As per legislators, the effort was “inexpedient to legislate” as Bitcoin’s price continues to be volatile.