Taxation of mail order platforms
Provisions for foreign mail order platforms with registration obligation in Switzerland
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From 1 January 2025, all mail order platforms that enable their customers to order a delivery of goods will now be subject to VAT in Switzerland. Services are not affected, only objects. The new legal regulations apply to all consignments, whether they are duty-free or subject to tax in Switzerland. Mail order platforms are also subject to taxation for C2C services.
The key points at a glance:
- Register with the Federal Tax Administration (FTA)Target not accessible
- Open your own ZAZTarget not accessible with the Federal Tax Administration (FTA)
- Open a “Swiss Post Customer Login”
- Register for a “Post CH Ltd customer invoice”
- Complete the registration processes prior to shipping
- Label your consignments correctly
FAQs
Foreign mail order platforms that have registered with the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) as a result of the taxation of mail order platforms and send international postal consignments to Switzerland must also register with Swiss Post.
Registration with Swiss Post is required for mail order platforms to ensure correct customs clearance and invoicing of consignments. You can also download the electronic tax assessment decisions (eVV) for your consignments to Switzerland if you do not have your own ZAZ.
In the absence of registration, import tax may be incorrectly charged to the recipient or the consignment may be returned.
Registration with Swiss Post as part of the taxation of mail order platforms takes place in three steps:
- Register for a “Swiss Post Customer Login”
Register at www.swisspost.ch under “Login” as a foreign
mail order company with Swiss Post. Your contact data will be verified following registration. - Register for a “Post CH Ltd customer invoice”
- As a foreign mail order company (Mail Order Regulation 2019)Mail Order Platform, complete the online form “Swiss Post customer invoice” in full and send us the details you have provided. You will need to provide a guarantee deposit after registration.

To ensure your consignments cleared through customs and invoiced, consignments must be labelled in accordance with certain specifications. If the labelling is incorrect, import tax may be wrongly charged to the recipient or the consignment may be returned.
This means you must attach the following documents and labels next to the address label on each parcel:
1.1 CN22/23 declaration according to UPU specifications (value of the goods excl. Swiss VAT)
1.2 VAT-compliant invoice with indication of domestic tax or a proforma invoice.
This must include the VAT number (UID no.) of the mail order platform listed on the VAT register and must always be attached in a document pouch on the outside of the consignment.
1.3 Label for identifying the sender: this only contains the name of the foreign mail order company and its VAT number (UID no.).
It may not contain any address data. This label should not be less than 5 cm in length and 2 cm in height.
Swiss Post cannot detect collective items and is not logistically able to collectively process individual packaged items from a consignment. For this reason, please provide the documents and labels described above for each individual parcel.
1.4 VAT no. data: With the ITMATT data, the CH VAT company ID no. must be entered in the data file as a reference (data element “sender.identification.reference”) with the details of the importer.
In addition, the address of the mail order platform with which it has registered with the Federal VAT Authority (FTA) and which is listed in the Swiss VAT register must be provided to the importer as address information.

The process for the Swiss Mail Order Regulation is as follows:
- The consignment is prepared abroad by you, with the following documents and labels being attached:
1.1. CN22/23 declaration
1.2. Invoice or pro forma invoice (including VAT number (UID no.) of the mail order platform listed on the VAT register
1.3. Label for identifying the sender: this only contains the name of the foreign mail order platform and its VAT number (UID number).
1.4. VAT number must be provided with the ITMATT data

2. Shipping as a postal item to Switzerland
3. The consignment is received and cleared through customs in Switzerland by Swiss Post
4. The consignment is delivered and service fees and state levies are invoiced.
4.1. The service fee for customs clearance and any duties are collected from the recipient of the consignment.
4.2. The import tax will be invoiced to you as a foreign mail order platform.
It is recommended that foreign mail order trading platforms apply for a ZAZ account with the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS) for automated invoicing of import tax.
If you have a ZAZ account, you must state this on the online form when registering with “Post CH Ltd customer invoice”. In this case, the Swiss import tax is charged directly to your ZAZ account by the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security. If you have your own ZAZ account, you must obtain the tax assessment decisions from the Federal Customs Administration.
If your ZAZ account has been blocked for Swiss customs clearance by the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security, customs clearance is carried out using Swiss Post’s ZAZ account. If you do not have a ZAZ account, the import tax will be invoiced by Swiss Post. A fee of 2% of the import tax amount or a minimum of CHF 10 per consignment is charged for the submission of the import tax.
The physical invoicing of the import tax is done every two weeks and the payment deadline is 10 days. Electronic invoicing is generally possible. If this is required, contact our Finance Service Center by e-mail:debiscf@post.ch
The tax assessment decisions can be downloaded from www.swisspost.ch/eccdTarget not accessible (instructions can be found on the invoice). If you have your own ZAZ account, you must collect the “bordereau” with the duties and the tax assessment decisions from the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security.