Temu and Shein charge Swiss VAT (8.1%) directly at checkout and clear customs under their own registration. Your parcel therefore normally arrives with no VAT bill and no clearance fee. Customs duty is zero anyway — Switzerland abolished it for industrial goods in 2024. The only thing to check: a VAT line on your order receipt.
What changed on 1 January 2025
Switzerland's revised VAT Act made large online platforms the deemed seller of everything sold through them. Platforms above CHF 100'000 of small-consignment turnover must register for Swiss VAT, charge it on every sale — from the first franc — and handle the import themselves. Temu, Shein, and AliExpress all comply.
For you as the buyer this is mostly good news: the price you see at checkout is genuinely final. No surprise invoice, no yellow Swiss Post fee slip, no waiting at customs while value is clarified.
The old CHF 62 trick no longer applies here
Before 2025, small parcels under about CHF 62 slipped beneath the CHF 5 VAT-collection minimum and arrived genuinely tax-free — one reason ultra-cheap marketplaces boomed. On platform orders that advantage is gone: VAT is charged in the basket regardless of order size. The CHF 62 / CHF 193 thresholds still matter, but only for shops that don't charge Swiss VAT at checkout.
How to verify on your receipt
- Open the order confirmation or the in-app order details.
- Look for a line such as “VAT”, “MwSt”, “TVA”, or “tax” of roughly 8.1% of the order value.
- Keep that receipt until the parcel has arrived — it's your proof if anything is billed twice.
The exceptions: when you might still be billed
- Processing errors. Occasionally a consignment is declared outside the platform's registration and the carrier bills 8.1% VAT plus a clearance fee at the door. Pay if you want the parcel, then claim a refund from the platform with both receipts — this is routine for their support teams.
- Restricted or special goods. Food supplements, cosmetics in bulk, electronics without proper marking can trigger inspection or extra charges regardless of VAT.
- Genuinely non-platform sellers. Ordering from an independent foreign web shop (not through a platform)? The normal rules apply — estimate them in the calculator.
The platform rule also killed the "split into many small parcels" strategy for Temu-style orders — VAT is charged on the sale, not the parcel. Splitting only ever mattered for the border process, and platform parcels don't go through it.
Frequently asked — Temu & Shein
Do I pay customs fees on Temu orders in Switzerland?
Normally no — VAT is charged at checkout and the platform clears customs. Duty on industrial goods is zero since 2024.
Does the same apply to Shein?
Yes, identical mechanics: VAT in the basket, platform clears the import, nothing at the door.
What if I'm charged again at delivery?
Keep the carrier invoice plus your order receipt showing VAT, and claim the refund from platform support. It's a known, routine process.
Was Temu tax-free before 2025?
Small orders under ~CHF 62 effectively were. The platform rule ended that — VAT now applies from the first franc, collected at sale.