Swiss Withholding Tax

Jeremy535897

See: https://www.gov.uk/tax-foreign-income/taxed-twice

"Apply for tax relief before you get taxed on foreign income

You have to apply for tax relief in the country your income’s from if:

• the income is exempt from foreign tax but is taxed in the UK (for example, most pensions)
• required by that country’s double-taxation agreement

Ask the foreign tax authority for a form, or apply by letter if they do not have one.

Before you apply, you must prove you’re eligible for tax relief by either:

• completing the form and sending it to HMRC - they’ll confirm whether you’re resident and send the form back to you
• including a UK certificate of residence, if you’re applying by letter

Once you’ve got proof, send the form or letter to the foreign tax authority."

The link https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-revenue-customs/contact/income-tax-enquiries-for-individuals-pensioners-and-employees#post-title just says:

"Post

Write to HMRC at this address for all Income Tax queries except complaints.

You do not need to include a street name, city name or PO box when writing to this address.

Couriers should use a different address.

Pay As You Earn and Self Assessment
HM Revenue and Customs
BX9 1AS
United Kingdom"

Delburn

Realist
I have managed to claim back the 20% part of the withholding tax in the past, but it took a lot of paperwork and over a year.
The Swiss Form is here:
https://www.estv.admin.ch/estv/en/home/verrechnungssteuer/verrechnungssteuer/dienstleistungen/ausland.html

This page has HMRC details for how to get a Certificate of Tax Residence.  HMRC may want to verify any UK taxes have been paid on the dividend.  Once you have the Certificate you can write back to HMRC at the address given on the webpage, sending copies of the Swiss Form and asking for them to be stamped.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/get-a-certificate-of-residence

Then you can send the stamped Form 86 to Switzerland with dividend statements etc.  However, if the shares are held via a non-Swiss nominee the Swiss tax authorities may say the statements are not sufficient and also want a written declaration (probably in German) from the nominee stating the withholding tax has been deducted and passed on.  Expect this part alone to take over a year even if everything is supplied correctly with the required declaration first time.

Good luck!

[Deleted User]

Jeremy535897 said:

purdyoaten2 said:

Jeremy535897 said:

The UK-Switzerland DTA provides that the Swiss tax payable by a UK resident on a Swiss dividend is limited to 15%, so therefore 20% has to be recovered from Switzerland (not straightforward as indicated above, see https://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/tax/2018/10/25/a-taxing-chore/ ). The remaining 20% is dealt with on the tax return as a credit against whatever tax you pay on those dividends, with any excess being recoverable.

irrecoverable?

No, but I meant "the remaining 15%" not "the remaining 20%". Of the 35% tax credit, 20% has to come from Switzerland, using form 86 as OP has said:
"UK resident shareholders
 Three copies of Swiss tax Form 86, duly completed and signed, must be sent to the to the tax office in the United Kingdom to whom your income tax return is made (or to the tax office for the district in which you reside, if you have not made such a return). The tax office has to certify the forms and the claimant shall subsequently send the first two copies of the claim to the Federal Tax Administration of Switzerland, Eigerstrasse 65, CH 3003 Berne, Switzerland, no later than 31 December of the third year following the calendar year in which the dividend became due. Rights to repayment arising in one calendar year must be claimed in a single claim. The relevant Form 86 can be found or ordered on the homepage of the Swiss Federal Tax Administration (http://www.estv.admin.ch)."

The remaining 15% is treated as a credit against UK tax, so if OP pays 32.5% on those dividends, the full 15% is set against that liability, but if OP only pays 7.5% UK tax, the credit simply extinguishes that liability.

Should have known that’s what you meant and you have further clarified.