Tasks first, then the firm
When looking for a fiduciary firm, many people start with names and prices. It makes more sense to sort out your own tasks first: what can and should the company handle itself, and where does it need expertise, routine or simply relief? Only once this interface is clear can offers be compared meaningfully.
For many small businesses, sensible in-house work starts with day-to-day documents. Filing incoming and outgoing invoices and bank statements neatly and digitally lays the foundation for efficient bookkeeping. Payment approvals, chasing unpaid invoices and maintaining master data also often stay in-house, because that is where knowledge of customers and suppliers lies.
It is not the individual booking that takes the most time, but the corrections afterwards.
Do it yourself or outsource?
| Task | Sensible in-house | Sensible externally |
|---|---|---|
| Collecting and filing documents digitally | Yes, on an ongoing basis | Only for large volumes |
| Preparing and approving payment runs | Yes, under clear rules | For complex approvals |
| Ongoing bookkeeping | For very simple situations | Often, once routine is lacking |
| Payroll and social insurance | Rarely | Often, due to deadlines and changes |
| VAT returns | Only with experience | Often |
| Annual accounts and tax return | Rarely | As a rule |
Outside help is particularly worthwhile where a mistake has financial rather than merely administrative consequences: payroll with AHV, unemployment insurance, occupational pensions (BVG) and accident insurance; withholding tax for foreign employees; VAT, which is generally compulsory from worldwide turnover of CHF 100'000; and the annual accounts. Thresholds and rules can change, so have the current position confirmed by a specialist.
How to recognise a sound fiduciary firm
The title fiduciary is not protected in Switzerland, and apart from a few cantons such as Ticino no cantonal licence is required. That makes a close look at qualifications all the more important.
- Training: for example the federal diploma in fiduciary services, the advanced federal diploma as a fiduciary expert, or the federal diploma in finance and accounting.
- Membership of a professional body such as TREUHAND|SUISSE or EXPERTsuisse, which require professional standards and continuing education.
- Professional liability insurance with adequate cover.
- Experience with your sector, legal form and size.
- Clear deputising arrangements so deadlines are met during holidays and illness.
- Language skills if you have English-speaking staff or shareholders, which is common in Zug.
Audit is a separate matter
If your company must have its accounts audited, you need an auditor licensed by the Federal Audit Oversight Authority, and special independence rules apply if the same firm also keeps the books. Small companies with no more than ten full-time positions on annual average can opt out of the limited audit with the consent of all shareholders. Clarify your specific situation.
Setting up the collaboration properly
A good fiduciary relationship depends on clear processes. Agree in writing who delivers what, by when and in what form. Many fiduciary firms now work with cloud accounting that both sides can access. That avoids duplicate entry but requires access rights and responsibilities to be settled.
- Define the scope: ongoing bookkeeping, payroll, VAT, annual accounts, taxes, advice.
- Set deadlines: monthly or quarterly handover of documents, payroll run, VAT due dates.
- Agree on software and document storage, including retention of business records for the statutory period, generally ten years.
- Agree on a fee model: hourly rate, monthly flat fee or package, and what is charged outside it.
- Name a contact person and a deputy.
Incorporation and change of legal form
Fiduciary advice is especially valuable when founding a company or converting a sole proprietorship into a GmbH or AG. Legal form, capital, entry in the commercial register, social insurance and tax consequences are closely linked. Setting up the accounts to fit the new structure from the start avoids costly corrections later. For restructurings with tax implications, specialised tax advice is also advisable.
Early support is also worthwhile for succession planning, a sale or a liquidation. The sooner valuation, tax consequences and the owners' pension provision are considered together, the more room for manoeuvre remains.