{"id":13664,"date":"2026-09-11T23:12:56","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T21:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/consultoriaehero.com\/?p=13664"},"modified":"2026-09-11T23:25:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T21:25:37","slug":"vat-in-switzerland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/consultoriaehero.com\/en\/vat-in-switzerland\/","title":{"rendered":"VAT in Switzerland in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Switzerland, VAT is called Mehrwertsteuer<\/em> (MWST) in German, taxe sur la valeur ajout\u00e9e<\/em> (TVA) in French, and imposta sul valore aggiunto<\/em> (IVA) in Italian. It has a standard rate of 8.1%<\/strong>, a reduced rate of 2.6%<\/strong>, and a special rate of 3.8%<\/strong> for accommodation, in force since January 1, 2024. These are set by Article 25 of the federal VAT law (Mehrwertsteuergesetz<\/em>, MWSTG). And since Switzerland is not in the European Union, selling there from Spain is not an intra-EU distance sale: it is an export.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Rate<\/th>\nPercentage<\/th>\nApplies to<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Standard (Normalsatz \/ taux normal)<\/span><\/td>\n8.1%<\/strong><\/td>\nEverything not included in the reduced or special lists: clothing, footwear, electronics, cosmetics, alcoholic beverages, and food served in restaurants<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Reduced (reduzierter Satz \/ taux r\u00e9duit)<\/span><\/td>\n2.6%<\/strong><\/td>\nFood (except alcoholic beverages), medicines, books, newspapers and magazines without advertising content \u2014 including digital \u2014 menstrual hygiene products since 2025, plants, cut flowers and seeds, animal feed and fertilizers, and water supplied through the mains<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Special (Sondersatz \/ taux sp\u00e9cial)<\/span><\/td>\n3.8%<\/strong><\/td>\nAccommodation, with breakfast included even if billed separately<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n

Rates verified on September 11, 2026 against the Swiss Federal Tax Administration (ESTV) page \u00abSchweizer Mehrwertsteuers\u00e4tze\u00bb (estv.admin.ch<\/a>).<\/em><\/p>\n

What\u2019s coming: the 8.5% vote in November<\/h2>\n

In 2026, no rate changes. What is in progress is the increase: on June 19, 2026<\/strong> Parliament approved raising the standard rate from 8.1% to 8.5%<\/strong> and the accommodation rate from 3.8% to 4%<\/strong> starting in 2028, to partly fund the thirteenth old-age pension payment (AHV). The reduced rate stays at 2.6%. Since the Constitution must be amended, the increase needs approval from the people and the cantons in the vote on November 29, 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The territory has a twist too. Liechtenstein<\/strong> and the German municipality of B\u00fcsingen are part of the Swiss VAT territory, with the same rates. By contrast, the Samnaun and Sampuoir valleys are outside the Swiss customs territory: for goods deliveries they count as foreign.<\/p>\n

And if you sell through a marketplace that completes the sale on its platform, since January 1, 2025<\/strong> Swiss law considers the platform to be the seller to the Swiss customer: you sell to the platform.<\/p>\n

What happens with VAT when you sell from Spain to Switzerland<\/h2>\n

Switzerland is not in the European Union, so there is no one-stop shop or \u20ac10,000 threshold here. When you sell from Spain \u2014 or from any other EU country \u2014 to a customer in Switzerland or Liechtenstein, which shares the VAT territory with Switzerland, the sale is an export<\/strong>: it goes without VAT<\/strong> from your country, as long as you can prove the goods left the EU. Keep the invoice, the transport document, and the document proving export.<\/p>\n

Swiss VAT is charged at the border as import VAT<\/strong>: 8.1%, or 2.6% for reduced-rate products, on the price plus transport and insurance to the destination and customs duties. For parcels, the Swiss postal operator or courier submits the customs declaration and usually charges the recipient that VAT together with its clearance fees. If the tax does not exceed CHF 5<\/strong> per clearance \u2014 about CHF 62 of taxable base at 8.1% or CHF 193 at 2.6% \u2014 it is not charged.<\/p>\n

You must register in Switzerland under the mail-order sales rule<\/strong> (Article 7.3.b of the Swiss VAT law). Count your small shipments<\/strong>, the ones that do not pay import VAT because it does not exceed CHF 5: when they generate CHF 100,000 in sales in a year<\/strong>, from the following month all your deliveries to Switzerland become Swiss domestic sales. From that moment:<\/p>\n