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LIVING IN SWITZERLAND

Verdict: How much should you tip in Switzerland and should you tip at all?

Whether you're visiting Switzerland or you've been living here for years, working out the tipping rules can be difficult. We asked our readers to give us the lowdown on tipping culture in Switzerland.

Do you tip in Switzerland? Photo by Sam Dan Truong on Unsplash
Do you tip in Switzerland? Photo by Sam Dan Truong on Unsplash

Tipping culture in Switzerland can be difficult to work out. 

That’s certainly the case for tourists, but even residents have told us it is difficult to determine exactly when to tip – and when not to. 

To get a better idea, we reached out to our readers to ask for their feelings on the necessity of tipping and how to navigate the complex web of cultural rules surrounding tipping culture. 

The survey, launched in July, saw a good response, with 39 people getting back to us to have their say. 

Here’s their top tips on tipping in Switzerland. 

But first, what do the officials say?

Switzerland Tourism officially says that visitors shouldn’t worry about tipping, but should only do so if they want to. 

In their advice on tipping, they write “You never have to worry about tipping in Switzerland, as tips are included in the price. You can, however, add a smile to the face of someone who has provided good service by rounding up to the nearest franc or round figure.”

Swiss news outlet 20 Minutes reports that ‘rounding up’ to the closest franc or five francs is the best approach. 

Four out of five tip regularly 

To get an idea of how widespread tipping truly is, we asked our readers to tell us if they’ve tipped someone in the past week. 

Four in five respondents – 79.5 percent – told us they did so, showing that tipping regularly is by far and away the done thing in the Alpine Republic. 

People from each major Swiss linguistic region told us they tipped regularly, showing that there is at least some consistency in Switzerland when it comes to tipping. 

Of the responses we received however there was a wide variety of opinions – even among those who tip (and of course those who do not). 

‘I always tip’

The majority of respondents told us they tip for good service, showing that tips are not a foregone conclusion in Switzerland (unlike in the United States). 

Shelly, who lives in Luzern, said the Swiss did not tip enough and that she tipped both “as a matter of principle and (for) good service”.

While we didn’t ask everyone for their nationality, Americans and Canadians seemed the most willing to tip – a reflection of those countries’ strong tipping culture. 

American Sofia says she tips regularly, although slightly less than what she would in the US. 

“I often tip at restaurants, especially if it’s a place I go to often, as a way of saying thanks. It’s often a smaller tip than what I give at home in the USA, though, given higher wages here.”

American Amanda said she prefers the Swiss system. 

“I think it’s good to recognise good service but not to feel obliged. The American culture is awful and makes you feel harassed and resentful. I like to leave 10 per cent”

‘I tip – but it’s not so clear to me’

While many said they are happy to tip, the exact amount they should tip wasn’t clear to them. 

One reader from Vaud said she feels tipping is more expected in the present day. 

Unfortunately, we can’t give you concrete advice on tipping in Switzerland, other than it will be appreciated but not expected in the most cases. 

Generally speaking, service charges can be included into your bill. In that case, tipping isn’t necessary unless you really want to highlight how pleased you are. 

Giving a tip of around ten percent seems to be the norm in Switzerland for restaurants and in some cases for bars and barbers. 

Martin said even the Swiss aren’t exactly sure when to tip. 

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“In a restaurant or bar with a waitress I do tip as a thank you for not ignoring me and being polite during providing these services.”

“But to be honest I’m very confused from how much is a good amount and whether I should tip at all as everyone is telling me something else (even Swiss born).

Many in Switzerland – particularly in the French-speaking part of the country – ‘round up’ with their tips, meaning if a coffee costs CHF3.70, they’ll pay 4 and so on. 

Of course this gets difficult the more you pay – saying to a waiter to round a bill of CHF123.70 up to CHF124 is pretty cheeky – but you can roughly use a five percent figure to round up. 

So if the bill costs CHF15.40, rounding up to CHF16 will be slightly more than five percent, for instance. 

Alexey, in Zurich, said he rounds up “around five to ten percent in restaurants almost all the time”. 

Another reader from Basel supported the idea of rounding up, as did Aaron in Bern. 

‘I never tip’

One reader, from Basel who perhaps unsurprisingly declined to give his or her name, said he or she didn’t tip because it supports an “unwritten tipping culture”. 

KT, from Bern, says tipping is less necessary in Switzerland than the US as Swiss workers are paid more.

“In the US I know waiters are paid poorly and depend on tips for their survival so I tip a minimum of 15% and up to 25% for excellent service.”

“Here, I know waiters are paid a living wage and benefits, and so I tip up to 5% for service.” 

Daniel, from Zurich, said not only did he not like to tip but he objected to a service fee being charged automatically as it didn’t give him the right too withdraw his tip if the service wasn’t good. 

“I find it weird when they charge a “service fee”. The price of the meal in a restaurant factors in the service. Charging this fee instead of the tip takes away my freedom to reward excellent service.”

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MONEY

What you can be fined for in Switzerland if you don’t follow everyday rules

If you are a new arrival in Switzerland, or even if you have been living here for a while but are not familiar with local laws, these are the rules you need to follow to avoid being slapped with a fine.

What you can be fined for in Switzerland if you don't follow everyday rules

Switzerland has numerous rules and regulations in place for a variety of infractions.

The good news (if you can call it that) is that you can be fined only for not complying with official laws. If you break one of many unwritten rules, you may get hostile looks and comments, but no legal repercussions.

Some of the offences are obvious — not speeding or being drunk while driving; not causing a disturbance in public; and not instigating or participating in criminal activities, among other infractions — everything that you shouldn’t do anywhere, not just in Switzerland.

Others, on the other hand, like the ones mentioned below, are more related to Switzerland’s own, and often quirkily unique, regulations.

These are some of the rules you may inadvertently break and the fines that could be handed to you for non-compliance.

Not registering your address at your commune

When you rent an apartment or buy a property in Switzerland, you will have to announce your arrival at your local municipality. 

The ‘address registration’ rules may come as somewhat of a shock to people from some other places, like the United States, where you can move from one location to another and stay pretty much under the radar.

Not so in Switzerland because Swiss authorities want to know who is living in their country and where.

When you settle in a new home, you have 14 days to announce your arrival in your new commune of residence, though in some places the deadline may be longer.

This is how to go about this process.

(The entire process will have to be repeated when you move to another home, even if you remain in the same commune. You will have to de-register your old address and register the new one.)

What happens if you don’t do this?

Local authorities will find you anyway sooner or later — probably sooner — and impose a hefty fine on you, the amount of which will depend on the reason why you didn’t register in the first place.

Not having a health insurance

Health insurance is compulsory in Switzerland for all legal permanent residents.

Anyone who moves here must get health coverage within three months of their arrival. 

If you fail to do so, your local authority will choose a plan on your behalf and you will have to pay the premiums.

If you don’t (and have no valid reason for being exempted from this obligation), two things will happen.

Firstly, you could be denied medical care other than in case of emergencies.

Secondly, your unpaid bills will add up, and you could be subject to debt proceedings. This, in turn, could be held against you if you ever decide to apply for naturalisation.

READ ALSO: Could personal debt stop you from becoming Swiss? 

Driving without a vignette

If you use Swiss motorways, even if it’s only for a short stretch, you must purchase a 40-franc sticker to affix to the inside of your window shield.

Unlike many other countries, Switzerland has no tolls on their highways, so the vignette compensates for the cost of maintaining the roads.

Vignettes are valid for one year, from January 1st to December 31st, and can be purchased at petrol stations, post offices or online.

If you drive on the motorway without a vignette or if it is not stuck on correctly, you risk getting a 200-franc fine.

READ ALSO: What you need to know about Switzerland’s motorway charge sticker

Trash disposal and recycling

In nearly all Swiss towns and villages, trash must be segregated and placed in special bags or in bags that have a special sticker on them, and placed in a designated collection point on assigned days.

Not segregating your trash — for instance, throwing out PET bottles with tin cans or paper, or not putting it out on correct days — can result in heavy fines, the amount of which is determined by each individual commune.

Municipal workers have the right to go through trash bags to identify garbage offenders — and they do.

Just to give you an idea of the amount you could be expected to pay, a woman in the Lausanne area was fined 190 francs after she allegedly put out her garbage on a Wednesday, rather than on Monday, which was a designated trash collectin day on her street.

Another offender, a US citizen living in Zurich, threw a carton box with his name and address into a ‘regular’ trash can, instead of recycling it.

At the time of this incident, the offender had not yet received his fine, but it was expected to be as high as 320 francs. 

This article will help you avoid such penalties. 

Being loud on Sunday

Under the law, Sunday is a day of rest in Switzerland, so you should do nothing to disturb your neighbours, either sonorically or visually.

This means no loud noises like lawn mowing, vacuuming, or recycling bottles. Also, you cannot hang your laundry out to dry, as the sight of your undies may be offensive to your neighbours on a Sunday.

This is what  a 35-year-old German woman should have known, but clearly didn’t: she committed a faux-pas of recycling glass on Sunday.

Her reaction after being slapped with a 250-franc fine: “I can understand that people don’t want to be disturbed, but going to the police over a few bottles seems a bit much”.

Not in Switzerland, apparently.

If someone complains and, even worse, reports you to police, you can expect a warning at best (if this is your first offence), or monetary penalties which depend on the noise ordinance in your community.

Just as an example, fines for excessive noise in Geneva could be as high 150 francs.

READ ALSO: Six things you shouldn’t do on a Sunday in Switzerland 

Buying your train ticket too late

If you purchase your ticket on your Swiss railway app just as the train is pulling out of the station, you commit an offence

This may be taking the notion of punctuality to new heights, but one of Swiss trains’ (SBB’s) regulations states that a ticket is not valid if it is purchased after the departure of the train, even if by a split second.

Anyone who does this, for whatever reason, is considered a fare dodger.

If you do this, you could be slapped with a 90-franc fine which, depending on the distance you are travelling, may be much more than you actually paid for your ticket.

That is the amount for first-time offenders.

For the second and subsequent infractions, the fine increases to 130 and 160 francs, respectively.

But that’s not all,: you could also be fined for putting your luggage on an empty seat of a crowded train, thus preventing another passenger from sitting down.

“The general rule is that one person only can occupy one seat,” said SBB spokesperson Jeannine Egi.

In theory, passengers can be asked to buy a ticket for their luggage. However,  this measure is rarely used in practice.”

“The train staff can enforce the ‘house rules’ on trains using their own judgement,” Egi said.

READ ALSO: Why putting your luggage on the seat on a Swiss train could cost you 

These are just some of the rules you may accidentally break while in Switzerland.

But there are others as well:

READ ALSO: Six ways you can be fined in Switzerland 

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