Key points at a glance
- You file the return online in the FTA portal using the "VAT return pro" service (MWST-Abrechnung pro). From October 31, 2026, you can only log in there with AGOV.
- You must file and pay within 60 days after the end of the reporting period (Art. 71 and Art. 86 of the Value Added Tax Act (VATA)).
- Effective method: revenue in box 200, tax for each rate in boxes 303, 313 and 343, input tax in boxes 400 and 405. Net tax rate method: tax in box 323, no input tax.
- You correct errors with a correction statement; after the year-end closing, you reconcile all returns (Art. 72 VATA).
Step 1: access the FTA portal
You file through the FTA portal using the "VAT return pro" service. The FTA has shut down the former "VAT return easy" service; if you used it, you have to switch - the FTA explains how on its page Filing VAT (in German). To log in, you need an AGOV account, the new government login: it becomes mandatory on October 31, 2026, replacing the old CH-Login.
Step 2: the right period
- Effective method: usually quarterly.
- Net tax rate method: semi-annually.
- Annually: possible on request since 2025 if your revenue is no more than CHF 5'005'000; you then make installment payments during the year (Art. 35 para. 1bis VATA).
What determines the period is the invoice date if you account on the basis of agreed consideration (invoiced basis), and the date payment is received if you account on the basis of received consideration (cash basis).
Step 3: the boxes for the effective method
This is how the form is structured - the official FTA sample form shows all fields:
| Box | Content |
|---|---|
| 200 | Total consideration (worldwide revenue) - either excluding or including VAT |
| 220 / 221 | exempt supplies such as exports, and supplies abroad |
| 225 | transfers under the notification procedure |
| 230 | supplies excluded from tax, for example renting out apartments |
| 235 | reductions in consideration such as cash discounts and rebates |
| 280 → 289 → 299 | miscellaneous, total deductions and total taxable revenue |
| 303 / 313 / 343 | supplies and tax at the standard rate (8.1%), reduced rate (2.6%) and accommodation rate (3.8%) |
| 383 | acquisition tax (Bezugsteuer), for example on services from abroad |
| 399 | total tax due |
| 400 / 405 | input tax on materials and services, and on investments and other operating expenses |
| 410 / 415 / 420 → 479 | deferred input tax deduction (Einlageentsteuerung), input tax corrections, input tax reductions (for example due to subsidies) |
| 500 / 510 | amount payable, or your credit |
| 900 / 910 | other cash flows such as subsidies or donations |
Boxes 302, 312 and 342 still exist - but only for revenue at the old rates until the end of 2023. For the current rates, use 303, 313 and 343 (VAT rates of the FTA).
Example: carpentry business, one quarter
In the quarter, Marco issued invoices totaling CHF 60'000 excluding VAT, all at the standard rate. He enters CHF 60'000 in boxes 200 and 303; the tax is CHF 4'860. He paid CHF 1'900 in input tax on wood and materials (box 400) and CHF 400 on a new circular saw (box 405). The amount payable is CHF 2'560 (box 500) - due within 60 days after the end of the quarter.
Net tax rate method: simpler, but different
With the net tax rate (rates page in German), you declare your revenue including VAT in box 200 and calculate the tax in box 323 using the rate the FTA has approved for you. You don't deduct any input tax - it is already factored into the rate. The FTA sample form for the net tax rate method shows the shorter form.
Step 4: deadline, payment and extension
- File and pay within 60 days after the end of the period. If you pay late, default interest is due without any reminder (Art. 87 VATA).
- More time: you can extend the filing deadline online in the FTA portal free of charge, and extend the payment deadline there by up to three months (FTA: paying VAT). Note: a longer payment deadline protects you from reminders and debt enforcement (Betreibung), but default interest may still accrue from the end of the regular 60-day deadline.
- Credits are paid out by the FTA within 60 days of receiving the return; after that, it owes remuneration interest (Art. 88 VATA).
Step 5: correction and annual reconciliation
If you notice an error in a return you have already filed during the tax period, you file a correction statement. After the year-end closing, you reconcile all returns with your books and correct any errors no later than in the return for the period in which the 180th day after the end of the financial year falls (Art. 72 VATA) - if your financial year is the calendar year, that is the return for the second quarter, due by August 31. If you don't file a correction, the FTA treats your returns as complete.
Typical mistakes
- Mixing up net and gross: with the effective method, you choose at the top of the form whether you enter your revenue including or excluding VAT.
- Old boxes: 302, 312 and 342 are only for revenue up to 2023.
- Input tax without a receipt: you can only deduct what you can prove with invoices.
- Foreign currencies: conversion must follow FTA rules - daily rate, monthly average rate or group rate, with one method for the entire tax period (Art. 45 of the VAT Ordinance (VATO), FTA foreign currency rates).
- Missed deadline: extend the filing deadline online in good time and pay within 60 days if possible - otherwise default interest accrues.
How it works in Easly
Easly calculates VAT from your invoices and receipts and shows the figures alongside the box numbers of the FTA form - you copy them into the portal box by box:
- Effective method: boxes 200 and 299, supplies and tax for each rate in boxes 303, 313 and 343 (shipping costs at the applicable rate), 399, the input tax from your receipts split into box 400 (materials and services) and box 405 (investments and other operating expenses), plus box 500 or 510. Easly calculates net amounts - in the form, choose "Net (excl. VAT)". Issued invoices are counted by invoice date.
- Net tax rate method: gross revenue in boxes 200, 299 and 323, tax at your net tax rate and the amount payable.
- Your reporting period: quarterly, semi-annually or - if the FTA has approved it - annually. The dashboard reminds you of the deadline, and you mark filed periods as done.
- Foreign currencies: Easly converts them at the FTA's daily VAT exchange rate, as provided for in Art. 45 VATO.
What Easly doesn't do for you
Anything Easly cannot know - exports and excluded supplies (boxes 220 to 280), acquisition tax (383) or input tax corrections (410 to 420) - is flagged in the return as "not recorded – check". Easly shows revenue without VAT as a single total under 220/230; you split it up yourself. The return is not filed from Easly - you file it yourself in the FTA portal.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still file the VAT return on paper?
No. You file the return online in the FTA portal using the "VAT return pro" service. From October 31, 2026, you need an AGOV account to log in.
Which box is for the standard rate of 8.1%?
Box 303. Box 302 now only applies to revenue at the old rate of 7.7% until the end of 2023. The reduced rate of 2.6% goes in box 313, the accommodation rate of 3.8% in box 343.
What happens if I pay late?
Default interest is then due without any reminder (Art. 87 VATA). You can extend the filing deadline online, and the payment deadline by up to three months - but default interest may still accrue from the end of the regular deadline.
Does Easly file the return directly with the FTA?
No. Easly calculates the figures and provides them as PDF and Excel. You enter them in the FTA portal and then mark the period as filed in Easly.
Information as of: see above. Sources: Value Added Tax Act (Art. 35, 71, 72, 86 and 87 VATA), VAT Ordinance (Art. 45 VATO), FTA sample returns and the FTA pages on filing and payment. This article is not a substitute for tax or accounting advice.