Selling online from Switzerland: Stripe, VAT, data law

When do you have to charge VAT in Switzerland?

From CHF 100,000 of annual turnover. Below that threshold you are exempt from liability: you don't charge VAT, you don't declare it, and you can't reclaim the VAT you pay on your purchases either. That's the situation of the vast majority of people starting out.

Voluntary registration exists, and it isn't absurd: if you invest heavily at launch — equipment, materials, services — opting in lets you reclaim the VAT on those costs. In exchange you charge it to your customers and file regularly. That's a cash-flow trade-off to make with an accountant, not an obvious call.

Three rates have coexisted since 1 January 2024: 8.1 % standard, 2.6 % reduced — covering food, books and medicines among others — and 3.8 % for accommodation. Which rate applies depends on what you sell, not on who you are. Check your exact position with the Federal Tax Administration.

• Under CHF 100,000 of annual turnover: no obligation, no reclaim.
• Above it: compulsory liability, registration with the Federal Tax Administration.
• Voluntary registration possible below the threshold, useful if your business purchases are heavy.
• Rates since 2024: 8.1 % standard, 2.6 % reduced, 3.8 % accommodation.
• The threshold is measured on turnover, not profit.

How do you display prices in Switzerland?

The rule is simple and strict: the price shown to a consumer is the one actually payable, inclusive of VAT and duties, expressed in Swiss francs. Showing a net-of-tax price to a private customer isn't compliant.

Costs that get added, such as shipping, must be stated clearly before the order is confirmed. A surprise on the final screen is both a compliance problem and the leading cause of abandoned baskets.

In a Mopsee shop the currency is the shop's — the franc by default for a Swiss maker — and the price you enter is the one displayed. Shipping is set separately, in the delivery methods, and appears to the customer before payment.

What does Swiss law say about customer data?

The Federal Act on Data Protection, revised and in force since 1 September 2023, applies as soon as you process personal data — so from the first order, since a delivery address is personal data.

Three obligations concern a small shop directly. Inform: a privacy policy stating which data you collect, why, and who it's passed to — your payment provider and your carrier are among them. Respond: anyone may ask what data you hold about them, and you must be able to say. Report: in the event of a data breach presenting a high risk, the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner must be informed.

A register of processing activities is in principle required, with relief for businesses under 250 staff whose processing isn't high risk. And if you sell to customers in the European Union, the European regulation may apply in parallel: two frameworks, not one. The Federal Commissioner publishes SME guidance — that's the right source, ahead of any template found online.

• A privacy policy reachable from every page.
• Being able to answer a customer's access request.
• Reporting a high-risk data breach to the Federal Commissioner.
• Keeping a processing register, unless the relief applies.
• Selling into the EU can add the European framework to the Swiss one.

Do you have to accept returns?

This is the most misunderstood difference, and the one that exposes you most. In Switzerland there is no statutory right of withdrawal for an online purchase: the right of revocation in the Code of Obligations covers doorstep and telephone sales, not distance selling over the internet. A customer invoking "the 14 days" is quoting European law.

That doesn't mean you have no obligations: the statutory warranty for defects still applies, and unfair-competition law sanctions abusive terms. But a Swiss shop's returns policy is a commercial decision, not a legal constraint.

Because it's your decision, it has to be written down. A clear policy — window, condition of the goods, who pays the return, refund or credit — reassures at purchase and avoids disputes. Many Swiss makers voluntarily grant a returns window: it's a selling point, as long as it's announced as a gesture rather than endured as a rule.

Watch out, though, if you sell to consumers in the European Union: their fourteen-day right of withdrawal does apply, and doesn't depend on your terms.

How do you ship from Switzerland?

Domestically, the Post covers most of a small seller's needs: letter post for flat, light items — a piece of jewellery, a print, a card — with a choice between priority and economy delivery; parcels for everything else, with the same speed-versus-price trade-off. Compare current rates and accepted formats directly with the carrier, they change every year.

Three decisions are worth making once and for all, before the first order. Charge shipping at cost or fold it into the price: free shipping lifts conversion but eats the margin on small baskets. Offer in-person pickup or not, which removes the item entirely for local customers — often half a maker's orders. And set an announced dispatch time you can hold in a busy period, rather than a flattering one you meet half the time.

Pack for transport, not for the photo. A broken piece of pottery costs the product, the postage, the refund, and the review.

• Flat, light items: letter post, priority or economy.
• Everything else: parcel, with the same speed-versus-price trade-off.
• In-person pickup: worth offering if you have local customers.
• Announced lead time: the one you hold in a busy period.
• Shipping costs: at cost or folded into the price, but stated before payment.

Can you sell into the European Union from Switzerland?

Yes, and it's common. You simply have to factor in that every parcel crosses a customs border. On the Swiss side, an export delivery is VAT-exempt, with proof of export. On the European side, the destination country's VAT is due on entry, and since July 2021 there is no longer a small-value exemption: it applies from the first euro.

In practice, two scenarios. With no particular arrangement, your customer pays the VAT and the carrier's customs handling fee on delivery — an unexpected bill that turns a good sale into a bad memory. With the Import One-Stop Shop, designed for consignments up to 150 euros, VAT is collected at payment and the customer receives nothing further to pay.

Non-tax obligations come with it: European consumers' fourteen-day right of withdrawal, and pre-contractual information rules. If the EU is a significant share of your sales, have the arrangement validated by an accountant — the saving on customs handling fees pays for the consultation many times over.