Switzerland Vat

Switzerland VAT Return Skill (MWST Abrechnung) v2.0

General reference only. This skill is general tax/accounting reference material for AI-assisted workflows. It has not been reviewed for any specific person's facts, documents, elections, deadlines, residency, filing status, or local procedures. Do not rely on it to file, pay, amend, or take a tax position without review by a qualified professional in the relevant jurisdiction.

Section 1 — Quick reference

Read this whole section before classifying anything. The workflow runbook is in vat-workflow-base Section 1 — follow that runbook with this skill providing the country-specific content. Do NOT load eu-vat-directive — Switzerland is not in the EU.

CRITICAL: Switzerland is NOT in the EU.

• There are NO intra-community acquisitions. ALL goods from ALL countries (including EU) are IMPORTS subject to import MWST at the border, collected by BAZG/OFDF.
• Bezugsteuer (acquisition tax / reverse charge) applies to services received from abroad under Art. 45 MWSTG — from any country, not just EU.
• Liechtenstein is in a customs union with Switzerland and treated as domestic territory.
• The EU VAT Directive does not apply. Do not load eu-vat-directive.

Key MWST-Abrechnung Ziffern (boxes):

Conservative defaults — Switzerland-specific:

Red flag thresholds:

Section 2 — Required inputs and refusal catalogue

Required inputs

Minimum viable — bank statement for the quarter in CSV, PDF, or pasted text. Acceptable from: UBS, Credit Suisse (now UBS), ZKB (Zürcher Kantonalbank), PostFinance, Raiffeisen, BCGE, BCV, Migros Bank, Revolut Business, Wise Business, or any other.

Recommended — sales invoices (especially for exports and foreign services), purchase invoices for input tax claims above CHF 300, MWST-Nummer (UID), customs declarations (Veranlagungsverfügungen) for imports.

Ideal — complete invoice register, prior period MWST-Abrechnung, customs declaration register, Bezugsteuer journal.

Refusal policy if minimum is missing — SOFT WARN. If no bank statement → hard stop. If bank statement only → reviewer brief warning.

Switzerland-specific refusal catalogue

R-CH-1 — Saldosteuersatz (flat-rate method). Trigger: client uses the Saldosteuersatz (Art. 37 MWSTG) — turnover < CHF 5,005,000 and tax < CHF 103,000. Message: "Saldosteuersatz uses a simplified flat-rate calculation. This skill covers the effektive Abrechnungsmethode only. Please use a tax adviser for Saldosteuersatz."

R-CH-2 — Pauschalsteuersatz. Trigger: client uses Pauschalsteuersatz (local authorities, associations). Message: "Pauschalsteuersatz is a simplified method for specific entities. Out of scope."

R-CH-3 — Gruppenbesteuerung (group taxation). Trigger: client is part of a MWST group under Art. 13 MWSTG. Message: "Group taxation requires consolidation. Out of scope."

R-CH-4 — Partial use / mixed-use apportionment. Trigger: client uses assets for both business and non-business purposes, or makes both taxable and exempt supplies, with non-de-minimis exempt proportion. Message: "Mixed-use apportionment under Art. 30-33 MWSTG requires annual adjustment calculations. Please use a tax adviser."

R-CH-5 — Margenbesteuerung (margin scheme). Trigger: second-hand goods, art, antiques under margin scheme (Art. 24a MWSTG). Message: "Margin scheme requires transaction-level margin computation. Out of scope."

R-CH-6 — Real estate option to tax (Option). Trigger: commercial property where the owner opted to charge MWST. Message: "Real estate option to tax has complex entry/exit rules. Please use a tax adviser."

R-CH-7 — Income tax instead of MWST. Trigger: user asks about income tax. Message: "This skill handles MWST only."

R-CH-8 — Below registration threshold. Trigger: client has turnover below CHF 100,000 and is not voluntarily registered. Message: "Businesses with turnover below CHF 100,000 are not required to register for MWST unless they voluntarily opt in. If you are not registered, no MWST return is required."

Section 3 — Supplier pattern library (the lookup table)

Match by case-insensitive substring. If none match, fall through to Tier 1 rules in Section 5.

3.1 Swiss banks (fees exempt — exclude)

3.2 Swiss government and statutory bodies (exclude entirely)

3.3 Swiss utilities

3.4 Insurance (exempt — exclude)

3.5 Post and logistics

3.6 Transport (Switzerland domestic)

Note on Swiss transport: Unlike the EU, Switzerland does NOT have a reduced rate for passenger transport. All domestic transport is at 8.1%.

3.7 Food retail and entertainment

Note on Swiss entertainment: Switzerland allows input tax deduction on business entertainment if properly documented with business purpose (Geschäftliche Bewirtung). There is no hard block. However, excessive or personal entertainment is not deductible. Default: block. [T2] flag if documented.

3.8 SaaS — foreign suppliers (ALL are Bezugsteuer — Art. 45 MWSTG)

In Switzerland, ALL foreign services (EU and non-EU alike) trigger Bezugsteuer. There is no EU/non-EU distinction for the Abrechnung. All go to Ziffer 381.

IMPORTANT: Bezugsteuer threshold. Art. 45 Abs. 2 MWSTG: Bezugsteuer is only due if the total value of services received from abroad exceeds CHF 10,000 per year. Below this threshold, no Bezugsteuer obligation. Default: assume threshold is exceeded if any Bezugsteuer items are present.

3.9 SaaS — Swiss suppliers (domestic)

3.10 Payment processors

3.11 Professional services (Switzerland)

3.12 Payroll and social security (exclude entirely)

3.13 Property and rent

3.14 Internal transfers and exclusions

Section 4 — Worked examples

Six fully worked classifications from a hypothetical Swiss self-employed IT consultant.

Example 1 — Foreign SaaS, Bezugsteuer (Notion)

Input line: 03.04.2026 ; NOTION LABS INC ; DEBIT ; Monthly subscription ; USD 16.00 ; CHF 13.92

Reasoning: US entity. Foreign service → Bezugsteuer under Art. 45 MWSTG. Report 8.1% on CHF 13.92 = CHF 1.13 in Ziffer 381 (tax due). Same CHF 1.13 as input tax in Ziffer 400. Net effect zero for fully taxable business. Note: same treatment whether supplier is EU or non-EU — Switzerland does not distinguish.

Output:

Example 2 — Foreign SaaS, EU entity (Google — still Bezugsteuer)

Input line: 10.04.2026 ; GOOGLE IRELAND LIMITED ; DEBIT ; Google Ads April ; -850.00 ; CHF

Reasoning: Google Ireland is an IE entity — but Switzerland is NOT in the EU. This is a foreign service. Bezugsteuer applies exactly the same as for a US entity. CHF 850 in Ziffer 381, 8.1% = CHF 68.85. Input tax CHF 68.85 in Ziffer 400.

Output:

Example 3 — Business entertainment, default block

Input line: 15.04.2026 ; RESTAURANT KRONENHALLE ; DEBIT ; Client dinner ; -420.00 ; CHF

Reasoning: Restaurant. Swiss law allows Vorsteuer deduction on genuine business entertainment (Geschäftliche Bewirtung), unlike Malta's hard block. But documentation required (attendees, business purpose). Default: block. [T2] flag.

Output:

Example 4 — Domestic purchase at standard rate

Input line: 18.04.2026 ; DIGITEC GALAXUS ; DEBIT ; Laptop Dell XPS 15 ; -1,595.00 ; CHF

Reasoning: Swiss electronics retailer. CHF 1,595 incl. 8.1% MWST. Net = CHF 1,595 / 1.081 = CHF 1,475.49. MWST = CHF 119.51. Input tax in Ziffer 405 (investment/other operating cost) if capital item, or Ziffer 400 if overhead. For a laptop, likely Ziffer 405.

Output:

Example 5 — Export service sale (B2B foreign client)

Input line: 22.04.2026 ; STUDIO KREBS GMBH ; CREDIT ; Invoice CH-2026-018 IT consultancy March ; +3,500.00 ; CHF

Reasoning: Incoming from German company. IT consulting services to a foreign client. Place of supply: recipient's domicile (Germany) under Art. 8 Abs. 1 MWSTG — service is NOT subject to Swiss MWST. Report in Ziffer 230 (Leistungen im Ausland). No output tax. The invoice must state "Leistung nicht der schweizerischen MWST unterliegend" or equivalent.

Output:

Example 6 — Import of goods (customs)

Input line: 28.04.2026 ; BAZG/OFDF ; DEBIT ; Import MWST Veranlagungsverfügung 2026-1234 ; -162.00 ; CHF

Reasoning: Import MWST paid at customs. This is a payment to BAZG (Federal Customs). The Veranlagungsverfügung (customs assessment) shows the MWST amount. CHF 162 is the import MWST paid. This can be claimed as input tax in Ziffer 405 (if it's a business purchase). The underlying goods value is on the customs declaration.

Output:

Section 5 — Tier 1 classification rules (compressed)

5.1 Standard rate 8.1% (Art. 25 Abs. 1 MWSTG)

Default rate. Sales → Ziffer 300 (tax amount), included in Ziffer 200/299. Purchases → Ziffer 400 (materials/services) or 405 (investments/other operating costs).

5.2 Reduced rate 2.6% (Art. 25 Abs. 2 MWSTG, Art. 25 Abs. 2bis)

Food and non-alcoholic beverages (NOT restaurant meals — those are 8.1%), books, newspapers, periodicals, electronic publications (from 2018), medicines, seeds, plants, animal feed, fertilisers, water supply. Sales → Ziffer 310.

5.3 Special rate 3.8% (Art. 25 Abs. 4 MWSTG)

Hotel accommodation (Beherbergungsleistungen) ONLY. Includes room + breakfast if included in room rate. Meals served separately are at 8.1%. Sales → Ziffer 340.

5.4 Exempt with credit (Art. 23 MWSTG)

Exports of goods (Art. 23 Abs. 2 Ziff. 1 — requires customs export declaration). Services to foreign recipients where place of supply is abroad (Art. 8 Abs. 1 — recipient principle for services). International transport (Art. 23 Abs. 2 Ziff. 8). → Ziffer 220 or 230. Input tax remains deductible.

5.5 Exempt without credit (Art. 21 MWSTG)

Medical/dental, social care, education, cultural/sporting events (certain), financial services, insurance, real estate (residential rent, sale), gambling, postal universal service (<50g letters). If significant → R-CH-4 fires.

5.6 Bezugsteuer — services from abroad (Art. 45 MWSTG)

ALL services received from foreign suppliers (EU and non-EU alike): compute MWST at applicable rate (usually 8.1%) on the service value. Report in Ziffer 381 (tax due). Deduct same amount in Ziffer 400 (input tax) if purchase is for taxable business activity. Net effect zero for fully taxable business. Threshold: CHF 10,000/year aggregate — below this, no Bezugsteuer obligation.

5.7 Import of goods

ALL goods from ALL countries are imports. Import MWST is assessed by BAZG at the border. Rates: 8.1% (standard), 2.6% (reduced for food etc.). The Veranlagungsverfügung is the deduction document. Input tax → Ziffer 405.

5.8 Blocked / restricted input tax

• Private use: fully blocked (eigenverbrauch adjustment via Ziffer 415/420)
• Entertainment: deductible if genuinely business-related, but documentation required. No hard block. Default: block.
• Motor vehicles: no hard block in Switzerland. Business use proportion deductible. Private portion must be adjusted via Ziffer 415/420 (ESTV uses lump-sum private share of 0.9% of vehicle purchase price per month, or 9.6% per year).
• Tobacco, alcohol: no specific statutory block for input tax (unlike Malta/Germany). But if for personal consumption, blocked as private use.
• Gifts to staff and business partners: deductible up to CHF 500 per person per year.
• Real estate for residential use: blocked (exempt supply).

5.9 Input tax split — Ziffer 400 vs 405

Ziffer 400: input tax on Materialaufwand und Dienstleistungen (cost of materials and services — operational expenses). Ziffer 405: input tax on Investitionen und übriger Betriebsaufwand (investments and other operating costs — capital/fixed assets, rent, utilities). The distinction matters for ESTV statistics but both are fully deductible.

5.10 Eigenverbrauch (own use / deemed supply — Art. 31 MWSTG)

Withdrawal of goods or services for non-business purposes triggers deemed supply. Must be accounted at market value. Report as output tax. For motor vehicles, ESTV applies the 0.9%/month lump sum.

5.11 Sales — domestic

Charge 8.1%, 2.6%, or 3.8% as applicable. Report in Ziffer 200 (total turnover) and 300/310/340 (tax).

5.12 Sales — foreign (services)

If place of supply is abroad (recipient principle, Art. 8 Abs. 1): no Swiss MWST. Report in Ziffer 230. Input tax remains deductible.

Section 6 — Tier 2 catalogue (compressed)

6.1 Fuel and vehicle costs

Pattern: Migrol, BP Schweiz, Shell CH, SOCAR, Avia. Default: 0% if vehicle use unclear. Question: "Business vehicle or personal? What business-use proportion? (ESTV lump-sum: 0.9%/month of purchase price for private share.)"

6.2 Entertainment

Default: block. Question: "Documented business purpose with attendees?"

6.3 Ambiguous foreign SaaS

Default: Bezugsteuer Ziffer 381/400. Question: "Confirm foreign entity. If Swiss entity, domestic 8.1%."

6.4 Round-number owner transfers

Default: exclude. Question: "Customer payment, capital, or loan?"

6.5 Incoming from individuals

Default: domestic 8.1%, Ziffer 200/300. Question: "Sale? What was supplied?"

6.6 Foreign counterparty incoming

Default: check if service is supplied abroad (Ziffer 230) or domestic. Question: "Where is the customer located? What service was provided?"

6.7 Large one-off purchases

Default: Ziffer 405. Question: "Confirm invoice amount."

6.8 Mixed-use phone/internet

Default: 0% if mixed. Question: "Dedicated business line? Business percentage?"

6.9 Outgoing to individuals

Default: exclude as drawings. Question: "Contractor, wages, refund, or personal?"

6.10 Cash withdrawals

Default: exclude. Question: "What was cash used for?"

6.11 Rent payments

Default: no MWST (residential). Question: "Commercial with MWST (Option nach Art. 22)?"

6.12 Foreign hotel

Default: exclude from input tax (foreign VAT not recoverable). Question: "Business trip?"

6.13 Bezugsteuer threshold check

Pattern: multiple small foreign services. Default: assume threshold exceeded. Question: "Total foreign services for the year — above or below CHF 10,000?"

6.14 Import vs Bezugsteuer classification

Pattern: foreign purchase that could be goods (import MWST via BAZG) or services (Bezugsteuer). Default: Bezugsteuer (services). Question: "Was this a physical good imported through customs, or a service?"

Section 7 — Excel working paper template (Switzerland-specific)

The base specification is in vat-workflow-base Section 3. This section provides the Switzerland-specific overlay.

Sheet "Transactions"

Columns A–L per the base. Column H ("Ziffer") accepts valid Ziffer codes from Section 1.

Sheet "Box Summary"

Turnover:
| 200 | Total turnover | =SUM of all sales |
| 220 | Exempt with credit (exports) | =SUMIFS(...) |
| 230 | Supplies abroad | =SUMIFS(...) |
| 289 | Net taxable turnover | =C[200]-C[205]-C[220]-C[225]-C[230]-C[235]-C[280] |

Tax on supplies:
| 300 | Tax at 8.1% | =taxable base at 8.1% * 0.081 |
| 310 | Tax at 2.6% | =taxable base at 2.6% * 0.026 |
| 340 | Tax at 3.8% | =taxable base at 3.8% * 0.038 |
| 380 | Total tax on supplies | =C[300]+C[310]+C[340] |
| 381 | Bezugsteuer | =SUM of Bezugsteuer items * 0.081 |
| 399 | Total tax due | =C[380]+C[381] |

Input tax:
| 400 | Input tax on materials/services | =SUMIFS(...) |
| 405 | Input tax on investments/operating | =SUMIFS(...) |
| 479 | Total deductible input tax | =C[400]+C[405]+C[410]-C[415]-C[420] |

Bottom line:
| 500 | Amount owed | =IF(C[399]>C[479], C[399]-C[479], 0) |
| 510 | Credit balance | =IF(C[479]>C[399], C[479]-C[399], 0) |

Mandatory recalc step

python /mnt/skills/public/xlsx/scripts/recalc.py /mnt/user-data/outputs/switzerland-vat-<period>-working-paper.xlsx

Section 8 — Switzerland bank statement reading guide

CSV format conventions. UBS exports use semicolons with DD.MM.YYYY dates. PostFinance uses tab-separated. ZKB uses semicolons. Common columns: Datum/Date, Buchungstext/Text, Betrag/Montant, Saldo/Solde.

Multilingual descriptions. Switzerland has four languages. Common variants: Miete/Loyer/Affitto (rent), Lohn/Salaire/Salario (salary), Zins/Intérêt/Interesse (interest), Überweisung/Virement/Bonifico (transfer). Treat as English equivalents.

Internal transfers. Labelled "Umbuchung", "Eigenkonto", "Intern". Always exclude.

Owner draws. Einzelunternehmen (sole trader) transfers to personal account are Privatbezüge — exclude.

Refunds. Identify by "Gutschrift", "Rückerstattung", "Stornierung". Book as negative.

Currency. Most transactions in CHF. EUR transactions are common for international suppliers. Convert at the transaction date rate from SNB (Swiss National Bank) or the bank statement rate. For Bezugsteuer valuation, use the rate on the invoice date.

IBAN prefix. CH = Switzerland. LI = Liechtenstein (domestic). DE, FR, IT, AT = EU (foreign for Swiss purposes). US, GB = non-EU.

Import MWST. BAZG Veranlagungsverfügungen are the deduction document for import MWST. Match customs declarations to bank debits from BAZG. The MWST amount on the Veranlagungsverfügung is the deductible input tax, NOT the bank debit (which includes duties).

Section 9 — Onboarding fallback (only when inference fails)

9.1 Entity type

Inference rule: Einzelunternehmen vs GmbH vs AG vs Kollektivgesellschaft. Fallback: "Are you Einzelunternehmen (sole trader), GmbH, AG, or other?"

9.2 MWST registration and method

Inference rule: if asking for Abrechnung, they are registered. Fallback: "Effektive Methode or Saldosteuersatz?" If Saldosteuersatz → R-CH-1 fires.

9.3 UID (MWST-Nummer)

Fallback: "What is your UID / MWST-Nummer? (CHE-xxx.xxx.xxx MWST)"

9.4 Filing period

Fallback: "Quarterly, half-yearly, or monthly? Which period?"

9.5 Industry

Fallback: "What does the business do?"

9.6 Employees

Inference rule: AHV, Lohn outgoing. Fallback: "Do you have employees?"

9.7 Exempt supplies

Fallback: "Do you make MWST-exempt sales?" If yes → R-CH-4 may fire.

9.8 Foreign services aggregate

Fallback: "Do your total foreign service purchases exceed CHF 10,000/year? (Bezugsteuer threshold)"

9.9 Foreign customers

Fallback: "Do you provide services to customers abroad?"

9.10 Vehicle

Fallback: "Business vehicle? What private-use proportion?"

Section 10 — Reference material

Validation status

v2.0, rewritten April 2026. Awaiting validation by Swiss licensed tax adviser.

Sources

1. MWSTG (SR 641.20) — https://www.admin.ch/opc/de/classified-compilation/20081110/
2. MWSTV (SR 641.201) — implementing ordinance
3. ESTV Praxisfestlegungen — https://www.estv.admin.ch
4. ESTV MWST-Info publications (especially MWST-Info 08 — Bezugsteuer)
5. BAZG customs/import documentation
6. SNB exchange rates — https://www.snb.ch

Known gaps

1. Saldosteuersatz is entirely excluded — covers a large number of Swiss small businesses.
2. Bezugsteuer CHF 10,000 threshold is annual aggregate — mid-year it may not be clear whether threshold will be reached. Default: assume exceeded.
3. Vehicle private-use lump sum (0.9%/month) may be updated by ESTV — verify annually.
4. The distinction between Ziffer 400 and 405 is not always clear-cut — the skill provides guidance but the allocation is ultimately an accounting judgement.
5. Import MWST via BAZG requires matching customs declarations to bank debits, which cannot always be done from bank data alone.
6. Liechtenstein is treated as domestic but suppliers there may have different UID formats.

Change log

• v2.0 (April 2026): Full rewrite to three-tier Accora architecture (without eu-vat-directive, as Switzerland is not in the EU).
• v1.0 (April 2026): Initial draft. Standalone document.

Self-check (v2.0)

1. Quick reference with Ziffer table and conservative defaults: yes (Section 1).
2. Supplier library with Swiss patterns (including multilingual): yes (Section 3, 14 sub-tables).
3. Worked examples: yes (Section 4, 6 examples).
4. Tier 1 rules compressed: yes (Section 5, 12 rules).
5. Tier 2 catalogue: yes (Section 6, 14 items).
6. Excel template with recalc: yes (Section 7).
7. Onboarding as fallback: yes (Section 9, 10 items).
8. All 8 Switzerland-specific refusals: yes (R-CH-1 through R-CH-8).
9. Reference material at bottom: yes (Section 10).
10. NOT-EU status emphasized: yes (Section 1, throughout).
11. Three rates (8.1%/2.6%/3.8%) correctly mapped: yes.
12. Bezugsteuer applies to ALL foreign services (EU and non-EU): yes (Section 3.8, Examples 1-2, Section 5.6).
13. Bezugsteuer CHF 10,000 threshold documented: yes (Section 3.8, Section 5.6).
14. Import MWST via BAZG documented: yes (Section 5.7, Example 6).
15. No zero rate — exempt with credit instead: yes (Section 1).

Disclaimer

This skill and its outputs are provided for informational and computational purposes only and do not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Open Accountants and its contributors accept no liability for any errors, omissions, or outcomes arising from the use of this skill. All outputs must be reviewed and signed off by a qualified professional (such as a CPA, EA, tax attorney, or equivalent licensed practitioner in your jurisdiction) before filing or acting upon.

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Source: OpenAccountants — open tax Guides for AI, reviewed by named CPAs/CAs/EAs. Quality: source-cited draft. For always-current figures and named-accountant backing, connect the OpenAccountants MCP server (openaccountants-mcp).