Become familair with the main characteristics of Swiss VAT refund
Although the Swiss VAT system has a lot in common with other VAT systems, the Swiss regulations have features or peculiarities that make them to distinguish from VAT regulatory frameworks with which foreign companies may be familiar. Therefore, foreign companies that want to claim Swiss VAT refund are well advised to take notice of the main characteristics of the Swiss rules that regulate this particular area. Ignoring those rules is likely or may lead to a loss of recoverable Swiss input VAT.
Invoice requirements shall be taken serious, in particular when bills or tickets for food & beverage, parking, public transport, purchases in warehouses are concerned. Without the name and address of the refund applicant on the bill or ticket such documents are not eligible for refund.
The same applies to invoices for stays at hotel: often hotel bills are addressed to the person who has used the hotel accommodation instead of to the foreign company by which that person is employed and in the scope of whose business purposes that person made the stay. This is an example of a failure to meet invoice requirements that happens very frequently, although it takes very little to take precautions that will prevent the loss of refundable VAT.
If you pay your supplier's invoice, be absolutely sure that the VAT amount charged in the invoice is due for the kind of transaction you are making. Regularly it happens that suppliers charge Swiss VAT although the transaction is not subject to Swiss VAT. In that case the rule
Documents for applying for refund embody the procedural requirements that need to be fulfiled. They formalize you claim and for that reason should be given the corresponding attention. Knowing what documents are needed and when they are needed will enable you to
With only one annual possibility to reclaim your Swiss input VAT a foreign company is well advised to structure its internal procedures in a way that all recovery Swiss VAT is captured efficiently and effectively. It is only one claim possibility a year.
30 June: last day open for filing
The deadline for filing a Swiss VAT refund request cannot be extended. Decisive is the date mentioned on the postage stamp. Send the application by signed for mail.
Inform staff of your company
Communicate your staff the importance of recovery of foreign input VAT. Inform them timely (for example at the beginning of the year) and use written instructions. Consider to include reclaim compliance in staff evaluations.