Swiss VAT: rates and special cases

VAT liability depends on turnover from supplies that are not excluded from the scope of the tax. Once the statutory threshold of CHF 100,000 per year is reached, or it is clear from the outset that it will be reached, the business must register with the Federal Tax Administration and receives a VAT number.

Below this threshold, voluntary registration remains possible. It can make sense when your customers are themselves VAT-registered and you incur costs subject to tax, less so when you mainly invoice private individuals.

The standard rate is 8.1%. The reduced rate of 2.6% applies in particular to food, medicines, newspapers and books. The special rate of 3.8% applies to accommodation services.

The vast majority of services are subject to the standard rate. If you are unsure about a specific service, the reference information is available on the Federal Tax Administration website.

Some activities are excluded from the scope of the tax, for example in healthcare, education or the rental of residential property. Others are tax-exempt, particularly exports, with different treatment of the right to deduct input tax.

The distinction matters when calculating relevant turnover: excluded supplies are not included in the calculation of the VAT registration threshold.

Under the effective method, the tax collected is declared and the input tax paid on purchases is deducted. The net tax rate method, available to small businesses that meet the conditions set by the authorities, replaces this calculation with a sector-specific flat rate applied to turnover received.

In both cases, the customer invoice always shows the statutory rate applicable to the supply, never the flat rate used for the VAT return.

Each line carries its rate. Tax amounts are then grouped by rate and added into a total in francs. The UID with the VAT designation appears on the document, usually in the header or footer.

If you are not VAT-registered, no VAT rate or amount should appear, not even zero. A VAT line showing 0.00 can suggest an exemption and cause confusion.