General Terms and Conditions

1. Scope of Application

These General Terms and Conditions apply to all services provided by Aconta GmbH (hereinafter “the Firm”), including the preparation and filing of tax returns, tax consulting, and all related services, unless otherwise required by mandatory law or expressly agreed otherwise in writing between the parties.

The term “client” refers to all principals who receive services from the Firm for a fee or on a pro bono basis. These GTC apply to all current and future engagements with the Firm.

2. Scope of Services

The Firm provides the services defined in the individual engagement agreement concluded with the client. All services are performed with reasonable professional care and in accordance with applicable Swiss law, regulations, and professional standards.

The Firm’s services are limited exclusively to the preparation and filing of tax returns for private individuals and expatriates residing in Switzerland, as well as tax consulting directly related to such filings.

The Firm does not provide legal advice, accounting services, payroll administration, or any other services outside the defined scope, unless expressly agreed in writing.

3. No Advisory Relationship Before Formal Engagement

Any information provided by the Firm prior to the conclusion of a formal engagement agreement — including during initial consultations, telephone calls, emails, or other pre-contractual communications — does not constitute binding tax or legal advice.

Binding advisory services are provided exclusively within the framework of a formally agreed engagement. The client may not rely on pre-engagement communications as the basis for any financial, legal, or tax decision.

4. Ancillary Actions

The Firm is authorised to take all measures on behalf of and at the cost of the client that are necessary for the proper performance of the engagement. In particular, it is authorised to obtain information from banks, tax authorities, social insurance institutions, insurance companies, debt enforcement offices, commercial registries, and similar bodies.

The Firm may also carry out analyses, research, and other work that it deems necessary in good faith and in the interest of proper mandate execution.

5. Client Cooperation and Information Obligations

The client undertakes to do everything necessary and to refrain from anything that might prevent the Firm from properly fulfilling its mandate in accordance with legal and professional standards.

In particular, the client must:

• Provide all documents and information necessary for the engagement completely, accurately, and in a timely manner, allowing the Firm adequate processing time.
• Proactively inform the Firm of all relevant circumstances, transactions, and changes that the Firm must be aware of to fulfil its mandate.
• Disclose, without being asked, who is economically entitled to any transactions involved.
• Promptly notify the Firm of any changes in personal circumstances, residency, income sources, foreign assets, or shareholding structures.

The client is solely responsible for the completeness and accuracy of all information and documents submitted to the Firm, including the full disclosure of worldwide income, assets, and liabilities.

The Firm is entitled to rely fully on the information provided by the client without independent verification unless expressly agreed otherwise.

The Firm is not obligated to verify the correctness or completeness of information provided by the client unless there are obvious indications of error. Any additional work arising from incomplete, incorrect, or late submissions constitutes an additional service and will be billed accordingly (see Section 8).

6. Place of Performance

Services are generally performed at the Firm’s registered office or remotely by authorised personnel of the Firm. Remote work may take place through secure access to the Firm’s Swiss-based IT infrastructure and servers.

Where services are performed at the client’s location by prior agreement, travel time will be billed at the applicable hourly rate.

7. Liability

To the fullest extent permitted under Swiss law, the Firm is liable only for intentional misconduct and gross negligence.

Any further liability, regardless of the legal basis on which it is claimed, is excluded to the fullest extent permitted by Swiss law.

In all cases, the total liability of the Firm is limited to the amount of fees actually paid by the client in connection with the specific engagement giving rise to the claim.

Tax assessments and decisions are made solely by the competent tax authorities. The Firm cannot guarantee that a tax authority will accept any particular interpretation, position, or filing outcome.

The Firm is not liable for:

• Decisions made by tax authorities that fall within their discretionary powers
• Penalties, interest, or additional tax assessments resulting from information that was incomplete, incorrect, or late as submitted by the client
• Changes in law, tax practice, or authority interpretation occurring after the completion of the engagement
• Consequences arising from the client’s failure to comply with their cooperation obligations under Section 5

8. Fees and Payment

8.1 Fixed-Fee Structure

Services are provided on the basis of a fixed fee agreed in advance in the individual engagement agreement. The fixed fee is based on the information provided by the client regarding the scope and complexity of the mandate at the time of engagement.

Services not expressly included in the agreed scope constitute additional services and will be billed separately.

The Firm will, where reasonably practicable, inform the client in advance of any additional services arising during the engagement.

Where prior notification is not reasonably possible due to time constraints, statutory deadlines, or the nature of the work required, the Firm remains entitled to perform such services and invoice them accordingly.

Additional services may arise from, but are not limited to:

• Subsequent changes or additions to documents already submitted
• Incomplete or late submission of required information
• Additional correspondence or enquiries with tax authorities
• Additional tax years or tax obligations not included in the original scope
• Extraordinary consulting services outside the agreed scope

8.2 Hourly Rate for Additional Services

Where no fixed fee has been agreed, or where additional services outside the agreed scope are performed, billing is based on time spent.

The current applicable hourly rate is: CHF 330 per hour

Billing is recorded in units of 0.1 hours (6 minutes).

8.3 Payment Terms and Prepayment

The Firm requires payment in full prior to commencement of work. The client has no entitlement to the start of services until full payment has been received. The Firm does not guarantee commencement of work before payment is confirmed.

Completed work, documents, and results will not be released to the client until all outstanding fees have been paid in full.

Where advance payment has not been specifically agreed, invoices are due for payment without deduction within 14 days of the invoice date.

In the event of late payment, the Firm is entitled to suspend all ongoing work until all outstanding amounts have been settled in full.

8.4 Late Payment and Collection

In the event of late payment, the following administrative charges apply from the first payment reminder:

• 1st payment reminder: CHF 40
• 2nd payment reminder: CHF 80
• Debt enforcement (Betreibung): CHF 250

Default interest is charged at 5% per annum from the date of default.

9. Electronic Communication

The client agrees that communication between the parties may take place via electronic means, including email, client portals, and messaging platforms.

The client acknowledges that electronic communication is subject to inherent security risks. The Firm accepts no liability for damages arising from the use of electronic communication unless such damages result from the Firm’s own intentional misconduct or gross negligence.

The client is responsible for ensuring that the contact details provided to the Firm are current and that they are able to receive and access electronic communications in a timely manner.

10. Commencement and Duration of Engagement

The engagement commences upon acceptance of the individual engagement agreement and concludes upon the agreed expiry, full completion of the agreed services, or termination by either party.

The Firm is entitled to terminate the engagement with immediate effect and without obligation to complete work in progress in the following circumstances:

• The client is at risk of insolvency or is overindebted
• Outstanding invoices remain unpaid for more than 90 days
• The client requests the Firm to perform any unlawful act

In all cases of termination, the Firm retains the right to invoice for all services rendered up to the date of termination, regardless of whether the work has been completed.

Upon termination, the Firm is entitled to charge a flat administrative fee of CHF 250 for file closure, archiving, and infrastructure costs. This applies regardless of which party initiates the termination.

The engagement does not terminate upon the death or incapacity of the client, or for any other reason set out in the applicable provisions of Swiss contract law, unless expressly agreed otherwise.

11. Confidentiality and Document Return

The Firm undertakes to maintain strict confidentiality with respect to all client matters that are not in the public domain. This obligation continues indefinitely after the termination of the engagement.

Upon written request by the client after termination of the engagement, the Firm will return documents provided by the client, provided no statutory retention obligations apply.

The Firm retains internal files relating to the engagement for a period of 10 years. The same applies to electronic data, provided the relevant file formats remain accessible without disproportionate effort. The client has no legal entitlement to require the Firm to retain files beyond this period.

The client remains solely responsible for fulfilling their own statutory document retention obligations.

12. Force Majeure

The Firm is not liable for delays or non-performance of services where such delays or failures are attributable to events of force majeure or other unforeseeable circumstances beyond the Firm’s reasonable control, including but not limited to natural disasters, IT outages, illness, postal disruptions, or delays caused by government authorities.

13. Notices

Notices from the Firm are deemed delivered when sent to the client’s last known address or email address as provided to the Firm. It is the client’s responsibility to keep their contact information current.

14. Amendments to these General Terms and Conditions

These General Terms and Conditions entered into force in their current version in 2026. The Firm reserves the right to amend these GTC at any time. Amendments will be communicated to existing clients by email in advance and will form part of the applicable engagement agreement upon notification.

15. Severability

Should any individual provision of these GTC be or become wholly or partially invalid or unenforceable, the validity of the remaining provisions shall not be affected. The invalid provision shall be replaced by a provision that most closely reflects the economic intent of the original.

16. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

This agreement is governed by Swiss substantive law.

The exclusive place of jurisdiction is Zug, Switzerland (6300 ZG).

The Firm additionally reserves the right to bring proceedings against the client before any court with jurisdiction by operation of law.

17. Review of Deliverables

The client is obligated to review all deliverables and completed work provided by the Firm promptly upon receipt.

Any alleged errors, omissions, or discrepancies must be notified to the Firm in writing within thirty (30) days of delivery.

If no such notification is received within this period, the deliverables shall be deemed approved and accepted by the client.

This provision does not affect any mandatory rights that cannot be limited under applicable law.