Facts
The married couple X.Y. residing in Z./ZH declared a taxable income in their 2006 tax return. The Cantonal Tax Office of Zurich made calculations based on income from the activities of C.X. as a member of the Board of Directors and advisor to various companies. C.X. had not declared these fees in his own tax return, but in that of A. AG, B./ZG, which he controls through a holding company. The Cantonal Tax Office of Zurich subsequently assessed C.X. and D.X.-Y. with a higher taxable income.
C.X. and D.X.-Y. filed objections and appeals against the assessments, which were unsuccessful. They then filed two submissions with the Federal Supreme Court and requested the annulment of the contested decisions.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court examined whether the income from C.X.'s activities as a member of the Board of Directors and advisor should be attributed to him personally or to his operating company. It concluded that the evidence for the existence of contractual relationships between the third-party companies and C.X.'s operating company was not provided. Due to the lack of written contracts and other evidence, C.X. was unable to rebut the legal presumption that the income belongs to him personally.
It is irrelevant whether it was a classic Board of Directors…