Facts
According to the Zurich Law on Inheritance and Gift Tax (ESchG), inheritances are subject to inheritance tax. For descendants and parents of the decedent, an inheritance of CHF 20,000 each is tax-exempt, and for descendants who have not yet reached the age of 18 or who are in need of permanent care and custody, an additional CHF 10,000 is tax-exempt. For siblings, adopted children, fiancés, godchildren, and grandparents, only CHF 3,000 each is tax-exempt. The tax rate is graduated according to the amount of the inheritance and the degree of kinship. Children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren pay the single rate, parents and grandparents pay the double rate, siblings pay the triple rate, and adopted children and grandchildren pay the quadruple rate.
The appellant, an adopted daughter, was charged inheritance taxes of CHF 22,800 and CHF 41,472 by the Finance Directorate of the Canton of Zurich. She appealed against this assessment, requesting that the taxes be reduced to CHF 4,750 and CHF 10,148 in accordance with the rate applicable to biological children. The Administrative Court dismissed the appeal, as the higher taxation of adopted children ordered by the cantonal legislature did not violate the principle of legal equality or the derogatory force of federal law.
Considerations
The Federal Court has addressed the question of whether the cantonal legislature is permitted to treat adopted children less favorably than biological children with regard to inheritance tax on several occasions. In previous judgments, it has decided that such differential treatment does not violate the principle of legal equality, as adoption constitutes a special status of legal, but not natural, kinship, which can justify different treatment in terms of inheritance tax.
In the present case, the Federal Court sees no reason to deviate from this jurisprudence. The ratio of 4:1 between the tax rates for adopted children and biological children…