Exporting wine to Switzerland. There's a quota, and the licence kicks in at 17 bottles.
In Switzerland, wine enters within a tariff quota, and the importer needs a licence from the Federal Office for Agriculture. From 20 kg gross upwards, or roughly 17 bottles.
Wine has a tariff quota. The Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG) sets quotas 23, 24 and 25 for white, red and rosé wine: 1,700,000 hectolitres in total per calendar year at the in-quota duty rate, allocated at the border in the order customs accepts the declarations.
From 20 kg gross you need the general import licence (GIL). That's about 17 bottles of 0.75 litres. The GIL is free and doesn't expire, and the importer applies for it through the eKontingente application after registering with the Swiss Wine Trade Control (SWK).
Wine pays VAT at 8.1%. Alcoholic beverages are excluded from the reduced rate of 2.6% that applies to other foods.
This page is part of exporting wine: the documents, who issues them and when you need them, and covers the Swiss market. Duty on gross weight, the import declaration and proof of origin, which apply to every food, are in exporting food to Switzerland.
How to export wine to Switzerland: quota, GIL, VAT
Exporting wine to Switzerland takes an importer registered with the Swiss Wine Trade Control and holding the general import licence (GIL), the wine entering within the tariff quota, and the Swiss VAT calculation at 8.1%. Duty is calculated on gross weight, as for any food.
| Step | Who does it | Source |
|---|---|---|
| SWK registration and GIL | The Swiss importer, once only. | FOAG |
| Tariff quota | Allocated at the border, with each declaration. | FOAG, quotas 23, 24 and 25 |
| Duty on gross weight | Paid by the importer, depending on the Incoterm. | Swiss customs tariff |
| VAT at 8.1% | Paid by the importer. | FTA |
The tariff quota for wine: 1.7 million hectolitres
Wine imported into Switzerland comes in under tariff quotas 23, 24 and 25: one for white, one for red and one for rosé. Together they cover 1,700,000 hectolitres per calendar year, imported at the in-quota duty rate. The Federal Office for Agriculture sets this out.
“Die Zollkontingente Nr. 23, 24 und 25 für Wein (Weisswein, Rotwein und Rosé) umfassen Total 1’700’000 Hektoliter pro Kalenderjahr, die zum Kontingentszollansatz eingeführt werden können.” (Federal Office for Agriculture, importing wine)
The quota isn't divided among importers in advance. It's allocated at the border in the order customs accepts the declarations, which the FOAG calls “first come, first served”. The condition for entering at the in-quota rate is the importer's GIL.
The GIL: from 20 kg gross, about 17 bottles
To import wine into Switzerland from 20 kg gross upwards you need the general import licence, the GIL, issued by the Federal Office for Agriculture. The FOAG puts the threshold at about 17 bottles of 0.75 litres, so a commercial shipment almost always exceeds it, however small. For olive oil the body and threshold are different, as explained in exporting olive oil to Switzerland.
The GIL is free and has no expiry date. The importer applies for it through the eKontingente application, after registering with the Swiss Wine Trade Control, the SWK. For the Italian winery there's only one question to ask straight away: does the importer already have a GIL, and what's its number?
Gross weight includes the glass, cork, capsule and carton, not just the wine. The downloadable sheet adds up the weight of the full bottles and cartons and tells you whether the shipment reaches 20 kg. It's a useful sum for samples too, as explained on the page about sending food samples abroad.
Swiss VAT on wine: 8.1%
Wine pays Swiss import VAT at the standard rate of 8.1%. The reduced rate of 2.6%, which applies to foodstuffs and additives, excludes alcoholic beverages. The taxable amount includes the value of the goods, transport to destination and duty, and the importer pays it.
Who pays duty and VAT depends on the term written in the offer, as explained in Incoterms: who pays for what. Swiss duty is calculated in francs per 100 kg gross weight, at the rate for your tariff code as shown in the Swiss electronic customs tariff.
The template, to download
One file, two sheets. The first is the checklist, with the source next to each line and a drop-down status to fill in. The second works out the shipment's gross weight and tells you whether a GIL is needed, then estimates the taxable amount and the VAT at 8.1% from the value, transport and duty.
| File | Contents | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Wine to SwitzerlandExcel, two sheets | Ten checklist lines with their sources, the GIL threshold check and VAT at 8.1%. |
The files are free. There's no form in the way, we don't ask for an email address, and we don't get notified when anyone downloads them. The duty rate for your tariff code isn't in the sheet: you look it up in the Swiss tariff.
Questions and answers
What do you need to export wine to Switzerland?
A Swiss importer registered with the Swiss Wine Trade Control (SWK) and holding the general import licence (GIL, in German GEB) from the Federal Office for Agriculture, required from 20 kg gross upwards. Wine enters under tariff quotas 23, 24 and 25.
Duty is calculated on gross weight, and Swiss VAT on wine is 8.1%.
What is the tariff quota for wine in Switzerland?
It's the amount of wine Switzerland lets in at the in-quota duty rate: 1,700,000 hectolitres per calendar year, under quotas 23, 24 and 25 for white, red and rosé wine, according to the Federal Office for Agriculture.
It's allocated at the border in the order customs accepts the declarations, first come first served, and the condition is the importer's GIL.
When is a GIL needed to import wine into Switzerland?
From 20 kg gross upwards, or about 17 bottles of 0.75 litres, as the Federal Office for Agriculture points out. Gross weight includes the glass, cork, capsule and carton.
The GIL is free and has no expiry date, and the importer applies for it through the eKontingente application after registering with the SWK.
What VAT does imported wine pay in Switzerland?
The standard rate of 8.1%. The reduced rate of 2.6%, which applies to foodstuffs and additives, excludes alcoholic beverages.
The taxable amount includes the value of the goods, transport to destination and duty, and the importer pays the VAT.
Who applies for the GIL, the Italian winery or the Swiss importer?
The Swiss importer. The Federal Office for Agriculture issues the GIL to the importer, after registration with the Swiss Wine Trade Control.
The question for the winery to ask straight away is whether the importer already holds a GIL, and what its number is.
Notes on sources
- Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG/BLW), importing wine and grapes for winemaking (in German), published on 6 January 2025: quotas 23, 24 and 25, allocation at the border, the GIL from 20 kg gross, about 17 bottles, the fact that it's free, SWK registration and eKontingente. The quotation is word for word.
- Federal Tax Administration (FTA): VAT rates in force from 1 January 2024, 8.1% standard and 2.6% reduced with alcoholic beverages excluded, as reported and cited in exporting food to Switzerland.
- The sources were read on 25 September 2026. The duty rate for wine isn't given here: you look it up in the Swiss electronic customs tariff, using your tariff code.
In Switzerland, the first question is the importer's GIL number.
If they have one, the rest is weight and rates. If they don't, the shipment doesn't leave. At Itria we start from the outside and build tailored digital systems for exporters. For you, that means more enquiries, fewer losses and less manual work. Drop us a line about what's slowing you down. We'll make the first move: we'll look at what a buyer sees when they search for you, and tell you what we found. Even if we never end up working together.