How much can you bring back to Switzerland?

The real rule

Why the Swiss laugh, and what it means if you're new here.

For shopping across the border, the rules changed in 2025: the VAT-free limit was halved from CHF 300 to CHF 150 per person per day. Above that, VAT is due on everything, not only on the part above the limit, and meat, with 1 kg per person, has its own limit. As a newcomer, ignore the old number your colleague remembers, and check the total before the border.

The Swiss tax system for expats

The rule, explained

The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security, FOCBS (in German BAZG), explains it: since 1 January 2025, the VAT tax-free value limit is CHF 150 per person per day. Before that it was CHF 300. If your goods are worth more, VAT is due on the total value. Meat has its own rule, according to FOCBS Info Zoll 01/2025: 1 kg per person is duty-free; above that, the duty is CHF 17 per kg, for amounts up to 10 kg. Goods can be declared before the border with QuickZoll, the official app. So the colleague's 300 francs is an old number, and Ueli's kitchen scale is not as strange as it looks.

Sources: FOCBS (BAZG), Value-added tax: CHF 150 tax-free limit; FOCBS, Info Zoll 01/2025

Questions people ask

Is the Swiss VAT-free limit CHF 300 or CHF 150?

CHF 150 per person per day since 1 January 2025; before that it was CHF 300 (FOCBS).

How much meat can you bring into Switzerland duty-free?

1 kg per person; above that, CHF 17 per kg for amounts up to 10 kg (FOCBS, Info Zoll 01/2025).

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