Art. 21 VAT from 2024
Art. 21 Supplies exempt from the tax without credit
1 A supply that is exempt from the tax without credit and for which taxation under Article 22 is not opted for is not taxable.
2 Exempt from the tax without credit are:1. the transport of goods that is included in the reserved services under Article 3 of the Postal Services Act of 30 April 1997 (1) ;2. hospital treatment and medical treatment in human medicine hospitals, including closely related supplies made by hospitals and medical treatment and diagnostic centres. The dispensing of self-manufactured or bought-in artificial limbs and orthopaedic equipment is deemed to be a taxable supply of goods;3. human medical treatment provided by doctors, dentists, psychotherapists, chiropractors, physiotherapists, naturopaths, midwives, nursing professionals or members of similar medical and nursing professions, provided the suppliers possess a licence to practise their profession: the Federal Council regulates the details. The dispensing of self-manufactured or bought-in artificial limbs and orthopaedic equipment is deemed to be a taxable supply of goods;4. the nursing care services supplied by nursing staff, nursing organisations and home aid (Spitex) or in homes, provided they are prescribed by a doctor;5. the supply of human organs by recognised medical institutions and hospitals and of human whole blood by persons possessing the necessary licence;6. the services of communities whose members are members of the professions listed in number 3, provided the services are supplied proportionately at cost price to the members for direct performance of their activities;7. the transport of sick or injured persons or persons with disabilities in vehicles specially adapted for the purpose;8. (2) supplies provided by social assistance and social security institutions, supplies by charitable nursing and home aid (Spitex) organisations and by retirement, residential and nursing homes;9. supplies related to child and youth care provided by institutions specially fitted for the purpose;10. supplies closely related to cultural and educational development of young people provided by charitable youth exchange organisations; young people within the meaning of this provision are persons up to the age of 25;11. the following supplies in the field of education and training: (2) a. supplies in the field of the education of children and young people, of instruction, of training, of further education and of professional re-training, including instruction given by private teachers or at private schools,b. courses, lectures, and other events of a scientific or educational nature; lecturing activity is exempt from the tax without credit, irrespective of whether the fee is paid to the instructing person or his employer,c. examinations carried out in the area of education,d. organisational services (including related ancillary services) provided by members of an institution that makes supplies exempt from the tax without credit under letters a–c, for this institution,e. organisational services (including related ancillary services) for agencies of the Confederation, cantons and communes that make supplies exempt from the tax without credit under letters a–c with or without consideration;12. the provision of staff by religious or philosophical non-profit institutions for purposes of treating the sick, of social assistance and of social security, of child and youth care, of education and training and for religious and charitable purposes and for the common good;13. supplies that non-profit institutions with political, trade union, economic, religious, patriotic, philosophical, philanthropic, ecological, sporting, cultural or civic objects provide to their members against a contribution laid down in statutes or regulations;14. cultural services of the types listed below supplied directly to, or, if not supplied directly, immediately perceivable by the public: (2) a. theatrical, musical and choreographic performances and film shows,b. (2) performances by actors, musicians, dancers and other performing artists, supplies from persons that make an artistic contribution to such performances, and supplies by fairground operators, including games of skill offered by the latter,c. visits to museums, galleries, monuments, historical sites and botanical and zoological gardens,d. services of libraries, archives and places for storing documents, in particular the permitting of inspection of text, sound and image carriers on their premises; however, the supply of goods (including lending for use) by such institutions is taxable;15. considerations demanded for sporting events, including considerations for participation in such events (e.g. starting money), together with the ancillary services included;16. (2) cultural services and the supply of cultural works by their creators, such as authors, composers, film makers, painters, sculptors, and services supplied by publishers and collecting societies in order to circulate these works; the foregoing also applies to derivative works under Article 3 of the Copyright Act of 9 October 1992 (7) that are of a cultural nature;17. (2) supplies made at events such as bazaars, flea markets and raffles held by organisations that perform activities that are exempt from the tax without credit in the field of non-profit-making sports and cultural creativity, in the field of health care, social assistance and social security, and child and youth care, and by charitable nursing and home care (Spitex) organisations and by retirement, residential and nursing homes, provided the events serve the purpose of supporting these organisations financially and are held exclusively for their benefit; supplies provided by social assistance and social security organisations through second hand shops when the turnover thus generated is used exclusively for their benefit;18. (2) in the insurance industry: a. insurance and reinsurance supplies,b. social insurance supplies,c. the following supplies in relation to social insurance and prevention campaigns:– supplies made by social insurance schemes to each other– supplies made by executive bodies as part of their statutory duty to run prevention campaigns– supplies related to basic and continuing professional education and training,d. supplies within the scope of the activity as insurance agents or insurance brokers;19. the following turnovers in the field of money and capital transactions:a. the granting and brokerage of credits and the management of credits by the lenders,b. the brokerage and assumption of liabilities, sureties and other securities and guarantees and the management of collateral by the lenders,c. turnovers, including those for brokerage, in deposits and current account transactions, in payment and transfer transactions, in business with money claims, cheques and other negotiable papers; however, the collection of debts on behalf of the creditor (debt collection business) is taxable,d. turnovers, including brokerage, relating to legal tender (domestic and foreign legal tender, such as currency, bank notes, coins); taxable, however, are collectors’ lis (bank notes and coins) that are normally not used as legal tender,e. turnovers (spot and forward transactions), including brokerage, of securities, rights and derivatives and of interests in companies and other forms of association; however, the safe-keeping and the management of securities, rights and derivatives and of interests (especially security deposits) including fiduciary investments are taxable,f. (10) offering units in collective investment schemes in accordance with the Collective Investment Schemes Act of 23 June 2006 (11) (CISA) and the management of collective investment schemes in accordance with CISA by persons who manage such schemes or are responsible for the safekeeping of the assets held in them, fund management companies, custodian banks and their agents; agents are regarded as any natural persons or legal entities that may be delegated tasks by collective capital investment schemes in accordance with the CISA or the Financial Institutions Act of 15 June 2018 (12) ; the offering of units and the management of investment companies with fixed capital in accordance with Article 110 CISA is governed by letter e;20. the transfer and the creation of rights in rem in immovable property and the supplies of communities of condominium owners to the condominium owners, to the extent the supplies consist of the provision of the communal property for use, its maintenance, its repair and other management and the supply of heating and similar goods;21. the provision of immovable property and parts of immovable property for use or exploitation; taxable, however, are:a. the renting of residential and sleeping accommodation for guests and the renting of halls and rooms in hotels and restaurants,b. the renting of camping sites,c. the renting or leasing of non-public places for parking motor vehicles, unless it is a non-independent service ancillary to another property rental exempt from the tax without credit,d. the renting and leasing of immovable equipment and machines belonging to an operating facility, but not to a sports facility,e. the renting of safe deposit boxes,f. the renting of exhibition stands and individual rooms in exhibition and congress buildings;22. the supply of postal stamps valid on Swiss territory and other official stamps up to their printed value;23. (13) turnovers from gambling, to the extent that the gross gaming income is subject to the casino tax under Article 119 of the Gambling Act of 29 September 2017 (14) or the net profit achieved thereby is used in full for charitable purposes within the meaning of Article 125 of the said Act;24. the supply of used movable goods, which were used exclusively for the provision of supplies exempt by this article from the tax without credit;25. (15) …26. the sale of agricultural, forestry and market garden products cultivated in their own business by farmers, foresters or gardeners, the sale of cattle by cattle dealers, and the sale of milk by milk collection points to milk processing plants;27. publicity services, which charitable organisations provide for the benefit of third parties or third parties for the benefit of charitable organisations;28. (16) supplies:a. between organisational units within the same public authority, b. between private or public law companies owned wholly by public authorities and the public authorities that own them or their organisational units,c. between institutions or foundations that were founded exclusively by public authorities and the public authorities that founded them or their organisational units;28bis. (17) the provision of staff by public authorities to other public authorities;29. the exercise of arbitration functions;30. (17) supplies between education and research institutions that are involved in education and research cooperation, provided those supplies are made as part of the cooperation, irrespective of whether the education and research cooperation is liable to value added tax.
3 Whether a supply mentioned in paragraph 2 is exempt from the tax without credit is determined, subject to paragraph 4, exclusively by its nature and regardless of who makes or receives the supply.
4 If a supply in paragraph 2 is exempt from the tax without credit based on the attributes either of the supplier or of the recipient of the supply, the exception applies only for supplies that are provided or received by a person with these attributes.
5 The Federal Council shall specify in more detail the supplies exempt from the tax without credit; in doing so it shall observe the principle of competitive neutrality.
6 Organisational units of a public authority under paragraph 2 number 28 are its agencies, its private and public companies, provided no other public authority or other third parties participate therein, and its institutions and foundations, provided the public authority founded them without the participation of other public authorities or other third parties. (17)
7 The Federal Council shall determine which institutions are deemed to be education and research institutions under paragraph 2 number 30. (17)
(1) [[AS 1997 2452], [2000 2355 ]Annex No 23, [2003 4297], [2006 2197 ]Annex No 85, [2007 5645]. [AS 2012 4993 ]Annex No I]. See now: Art. 18 of the Postal Services Act of 17 Dec. 2010 ([SR 783.0]).
(2) (3)
(3) (4)
(4) (5)
(5) (6)
(6) (8)
(7) [SR 231.1]
(8) (9)
(9) Amended by No I of the FA of 30 Sept. 2016, in force since 1 Jan. 2018 ([AS 2017 3575]; [BBl 2015 2615]).
(10) Amended by Annex No II 8 of the Financial Institutions Act of 15 June 2018, in force since 1 Jan. 2020 ([AS 2018 5247], [2019 4631]; [BBl 2015 8901]).
(11) [SR 951.31]
(12) [SR 954.1]
(13) Amended by Annex No II 4 of the Gambling Act of 29 Sept. 2017, in force since 1 Jan. 2019 ([AS 2018 5103]; [BBl 2015 8387]).
(14) [SR 935.51]
(15) Repealed by No I of the FA of 30 Sept. 2016, with effect from 1 Jan. 2018 ([AS 2017 3575]; [BBl 2015 2615]).
(16) Amended by No I of the FA of 30 Sept. 2016, in force since 1 Jan. 2018 ([AS 2017 3575]; [BBl 2015 2615]). The correction of 31 Aug. 2017 relates to the French text only ([AS 2017 4857]).
(17) (18)
(18) (19)
(19) (20)
(20) Inserted by No I of the FA of 30 Sept. 2016, in force since 1 Jan. 2018 ([AS 2017 3575]; [BBl 2015 2615]).
Es besteht kein Anspruch auf Aktualität und Vollständigkeit/Richtigkeit.
