Swiss VAT payers need to get prepared

In July 2018 the Swiss Federal Tax Administration (“SFTA”) informed VAT payers that the electronic VAT return will become the new standard and that Swiss VAT registered businesses will no longer have the possibility to file VAT returns on paper. The SFTA has not yet published any information with regards to when electronic filing will become mandatory. In a VAT specialist convention, however, they recently indicated that the 4th quarter 2019 VAT return should be the last return being accepted in paper format.

E-filing will not only be an obligation, but will also simplify compliance processes for VAT payers with the main advantages being:

• Full electronic submission of VAT returns - 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
• Time and cost savings by eliminating postal services.
• Traceability of filing status at any time based on the declaration history.
• Increase of flexibility as user rights can easily be assigned to appropriate persons.
• Less paper consumption and thus a better conservation of natural resources.

Given the above, all Swiss VAT payers need to align with the new requirements and have to set-up an account in the “ESTV SuisseTax” portal in time.

Deloitte’s VAT specialists would certainly be pleased to guide Swiss VAT payers through the registration process and assist them with any related questions.

If you would like to discuss more on this topic, please do reach out to one of the key contacts below:

Key Contacts

Tim Reck - Director, Indirect Tax

Tim is an Indirect Tax Director based in the Deloitte Zürich office. With over 18 years' experience, Tim is one of the most experienced technical experts known for his work on advising international VAT across the 28 Members of the EU and Switzerland. Tim oversees VAT planning and execution of Swiss based principals trading internationally, from the initial conception of the company through to designing the efficient supply chain, the associated compliance, and ERP implementation.  Tim is a Certified German Tax Accountant. The International Tax Review has listed Tim as an Indirect Tax Leader 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 for Switzerland.

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Tanja Blättler - Senior Manager, Indirect Tax

Tanja is a Senior Manager and VAT expert within Deloitte in Switzerland. She has 14 years of experience in VAT consulting and compliance management across all industries, with a focus on the real estate sector. She is a certified German tax expert and holds a Master in Swiss indirect taxes from the Swiss Advanced Technical College in Zurich.

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