Less income does not automatically mean far less tax.
The reality check
A worked example
Working life
Income CHF 100,000
Deductions CHF 29,000 (3a, buy-ins, expenses)
Taxable: CHF 71,000
Retirement
Income CHF 70,000
Deductions only CHF 5,000
Taxable: CHF 65,000
The reason
Pensions are fully taxable
100 %
AHV and pension fund pensions are fully taxable as income
The levers
Act beforehand rather than regret afterwards
1Pension buy-ins and 3a in the highest-income years
2Stagger lump-sum withdrawals over several years
3Time maintenance renovations strategically
4Domicile: a relevant factor in some cases
Good to know
Plan it as one picture
💡 From 10 years before to 5 years after retirement. That is the horizon on which your tax bill is decided – planned in a coordinated way, not with isolated steps.