Tax rates

Tax rates

The following tax rates will apply from January 1, 2024:

The applicable tax rate is determined neither by the date of invoicing nor the date of payment, but by the time or period in which the service is provided.

Reduced tax rate

The tax is levied at the reduced rate:

1.on the turnover (and importation) of the following goods:

• Water in pipes;
• Foodstuffs in accordance with the Swiss Foodstuffs Act, with the exception of alcoholic beverages;
• Livestock, poultry, fish;
• Cereals;
• Seeds, seed tubers and bulbs, live plants, cuttings, grafts and cut flowers and branches, also processed into arrangements, bouquets, wreaths and the like;
• Animal feed, silage acids, animal bedding;
• Fertilizers, plant protection products, mulch and other plant covering materials;
• Medicines;
• Newspapers, magazines, books and other printed matter of a non-advertising nature of a kind to be determined by the government;
• electronic newspapers, magazines and books of a non-advertising nature of types to be determined by the government;
• Products for monthly hygiene;

2.on the services of radio and television companies, with the exception of services of a commercial nature;

3.on services in accordance with Art. 21 Para. 2 Nos. 14 to 16 of the VAT Act, provided that an option has been made for their taxation;

4.on services in the Agriculture sector that consist of working the land or working products of primary production that are directly related to primary production.

Special rate for accommodation

This applies to accommodation services (bed and breakfast) in the hotel industry (hotels and spas) and in the para-hotel industry.

Standard rate

This applies to sales (and imports) of all other goods and all other services subject to tax.

Net tax rates

The application of net tax rates significantly simplifies administrative work with regard to bookkeeping and tax accounting, as the input tax that can be offset against the tax on turnover no longer needs to be determined.

The net tax rates are not the tax rates that are to be stated in the invoices to taxable persons, but merely aids that are intended to simplify the tax calculation in the statement.

The net tax rates were determined in such a way that they are to be used as multipliers in the tax calculation. In the tax statement, the total taxable turnover including tax must therefore be declared and multiplied by the net tax rate.

Who can use net tax rates?

• Taxpayers who fulfill both of the following conditions cumulatively and whose corresponding application has been approved can use net tax rates for semi-annual settlements:
• The taxable annual turnover (incl. tax) must not exceed CHF 5,024,000.
• The tax payment burden must not exceed CHF 108,000 per year. It is calculated by multiplying the total taxable turnover by the net tax rate applicable to the sector in question.