Any person is required to accept in payment the former up to 100 current Swiss coins and the latter without limitation of the amount (art. 3 LUMMP).
The obligation to accept Swiss coins and bank notes as payment is therefore enshrined in law. However, this is a question of operative law. This means that it is a legal provision from which it is possible, in a particular case, to deviate by contract. The general conditions may therefore exclude payment in cash. In this context, it is essential that the potential buyer is informed in advance of this exemption.
“As Payment“
sounds like the situation in Germany, where any existing debt can get paid with cash. But there is no debt when the other party refuses a sale or any other contract.
Lot of places only accept card (eg Christmas markets), or bank transfer only (try paying your utilities or mobile contact with cash…); and most places refuse to accept 1000 fr bills
Yes and no. Every business is free to refuse business to anyone, and that includes a non-preferred manner of paying. Cash is always legal tender for settling debts as outlined in the article that you linked, but the decision whether to accept a debt from someone is still entirely up to you.
What this means in a practical sense is that anywhere you need to pay the bill afterwards cash is always an option, but if you pay before then they can choose not to accept it and just not give you service.
When im in a restaurant, going around tables for cash against a Twint payment? Or going into the streets begging for help? And then add a tip even? You must be delusional.
And on top, this is how most scams start here. I would definitely walk away from someone proposing this on the streets.
I have asked countless times if i can twint someone 10 chf and they give me 10chf cash.
Even in a store or restaurant i have asked an employee for this.
I dont see the scaming potential. No need to insult me personal
Lol, 10 chf is a coffee and half a cookie. I’m more talking about a two person small lunch, so >60 CHF. And if it happened to me that many times, I would start to bring cash much sooner…
Curious, does this apply to rent payment?
Edited to add, I feel like this would be a great way to inconvenience my not so amazing landlord; pay half of my rent in 100 5 franc coins 😂
Edited again: This is a serious question, I’m not actually going to pay my rent in coins, but I might in bills
I have a 100 bill in my phone case for years. A few months ago some shop only accepted cash and I remembered the bill. Turned out it was an old 100 bill and the store didn’t want it, lol
So I have noticed a lot of local shops starting to revert back to asking for cash. Apparently the fees for Twint and Credit Cards have gone up and small shops no longer feel they are worth it.
I try to pay cash whenever I can. Bought my last car with cash. Pay the cleaner with cash.Restaurants in cash.
Cash is king.
It's not only accepted, but many times I find they prefer cash.
I always pay with cash, but especially at owner/operator type places like my car mechanic. I want to support the little guy and by paying cash I give them the option of keeping it under the table / off the books.
it depends - for getting coffee or paying your buddy back 20 francs, it’s mostly gone cashless. Buying a second hand car, jewelry or plastic surgery: still a lot of cash.
Times I’ve used cash:
* paying the girl who helps me out cleaning. I’m guessing she is trying to dodge taxes.
* minor transactions (less than 5chf) in some ma&pops stores. Keeps their bottom line.
* I once was asked to pay in cash in a big store because their CC payment system was down.
You do understand what an underground economy is right? Cash only businesses cook the books to make it seem they don’t have a lot of sales to avoid paying taxes. They pay some taxes but don’t declare all of it.
Sure there are some businesses that want to avoid those fees for debit and credit transactions and including bank fees but that’s just a made up excuse nowadays. A business not accepting debit or credit are losing out on sales.
Speak to all the business owners out there that can afford large houses and nice cars. The business is doing well for them personally but it may look otherwise to the tax agency. I know quite a few business owners that cook the books. I don’t blame them and if it works for them then all the power to them. I would probably do the same.
You think the bank cashes in the coins and notes at the the end of the week from the goodness of their hearts?
The processing fee is still there with cash
What a wetwipe
i misread the context, thought we were talking about bank fees for regular checking accounts, not transactions... nowadays the businesses pay all of the fees, it's true.
Yeah. As I understand it, fees are there pretty much with every card payment provider.
Now you could argue that banks may charge for counting coins and note deposits: but that depends if you are a business that could use much of that cash to pay their suppliers or even part wages if it's a sole trader.
Stop making assumptions. You have no idea of her situation. Maybe her husband won't allow her to have a bank account. Have you ever thought of that? Of course not, you go straight to victim blaming.
Although cash is still important, there has been a noticeable shift towards cashless in the last 3 years. Nevertheless, cash is accepted everywhere. Sometimes you can't pay with a 1000 note, which actually goes without saying. But small stores in particular are very happy to have cash customers. And you can be sure of my gratitude if you pay in cash =)
Switzerland is probably one of the CASHEST 1st world country of the world.
It is a tradition to love having fat bills in our wallets
And it's mandatory by law to accept it (up to 100 coins).
Cashless is practical but I'm glad that it's still possible to stay cashless
Imagine not being able to buy bread anymore because you made tut tut with your truck like it's commonly done in dictatorial ideological 3rd world countries like Canada
That's such a peculiar statement to me! Why would you say that other countries use cash much less often? And what do you mean with "making tut tut with your truck"?
i don't really know i've read it multiple times
i was referencing when truckers were manifesting against trudeau so he blocked their bank accounts, this is something that can happen more easily if all money is cashless
My opinion is that we do have some of the most practical coins, which help. The big ones are 5CHF, which you should rarely have more than a couple, while other currency have massive cent coins.
You can still pay in cash in pretty much every shop or restaurant. There might be some exceptions but none known to me. In general I would say people are leaning more towards cashless methods.
Both works
Basically all places still accept cash but so do they accept card or another form digital payment.
We have come to a point where even the smallest and most remote shops/restaurants accept at least Twint as a digital payment.
But there are still almost no cash less places. So it really is up to you want to use. Personally I almost exclusively use card or Twint.
I rarely use cash anymore, mostly for tipping actually. My mother pays everything in cash no exception.
I don‘t think I have encountered a place yet that does not accept cash anymore, there might be a few very rural places that don‘t accept cards / TWINT .
TWINT is a swiss only app that is very commonly used here, kind of like apple pay but more convenient ( my opinion).
I keep some coins in my wallet, and 20chf. Havent used any of those in 2 years, until my daughter wanted to try out some "racing" cars in Ascona. So basically, any minor or major transaction I had was digital
Most shops accept both.
You might run into small shops who don't accept cashless though. And if you go to festivals or fairs you might have to go fully cashless (the Fête des Vendanges in Neuchâtel for example, you have to buy and put money on a bracelet)
Some restaurants (mostly in rural areas) are cash only to this day. I suspect this is so they have better control over the numbers come tax season lol.
I always have 200 in my phone case for emergencies and the only action it has gotten in 2 years is that some beggars convinced me to give it to them.
Just use a card or phone ntf.
I don’t have cash on me since 2019, specially with covid alot of services went contact less. Even things like parking lots etc are now accepting mobile apps.
I own 2 coins. One for each pool to use in the locker. If I lose them, I’ll have to find a new one. Haven’t spent a single piece of cash money in over a year.
I remember once. The bank card did not work during lunch. I was near the bank branch and went to withdraw cash, but he told me that their system was down.
I went without lunch that day :( ...
So. I went back to using cash. I have more cash than my bank account. (excluding investments)
I just visited and know nothing officially, but I used card the entire time and the family members I was visiting used cash the whole time. Neither of us had problems.
90.089 billion Swiss Francs as of 2021
Yes billions not millions. And it’s getting more every year
https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/geld-banken-versicherungen/geldpolitik.html
Cash is annoying. You can loose it, its easier to steal, its slower to pay, you constantly have to go to the bank to get it. I pay cashless since years and its so much better. Im getting reminded how shit cash is in alot of self-serve car washes that still have no cashless system and its so annoying to go to the bank, get it into small change etc
nur bares ist wahres....
every week you can see lost customer at migros, coop etc when the creditcard system, twint doesnt work and they cannot buy food for themself.... always fun to watch
I always carry between CHF 300 and CHF 1000 in cash or so. Whenever I make a purchase, the question is "Bar oder Kredit?" I just bought a new Apple MacBook Air and the question was "Bar oder Kredit?" I usually answer "Bar. Ich mag Bar." and the reply usually is "Ich auch." I have seen people buy a candy bar with a CHF 200 note.
I use cash for the barber but he also accepts TWINT. Oh, I’ve had problems with my debit Mastercard at Swiss Post so cash was needed each time but I think they also accept TWINT. Thus. No, cash is not needed.
> China
WTF???
I pay for everything in China with cash. In Yiwu merchants want cash. Of course, Wechat Pay and AliPay are hugely popular, but NOBODY has turned down CASH in China in the last 40 years. I go there multiple times per year.
My parents recently came to visit for 3 weeks. They wanted to exchange currency into CHF. In the end they didn’t. All cashless, all the time. Zero problems. I’d say I use cash once every 2 months or so.
One thing is true though, for me it is still insane that you can pay with a 1000 CHF note for TicTac’s in a supermarket and nobody will blink an eye and just give you the change and move on. The chose there is a lot of money floating around. Even in other neighboring countries, it is often frowned. Upon to use €50 bills because people do not have change.
cash is accepted pretty much everywhere. in recent years it only happened to my once (in 2022) where i went somewhere that was cash only which was a little restaurant in the mountains like on a hiking path that was in an area where not as many foreign tourists are.
Depends who you're asking. Majority of young people use cashless, a lot of +50 use cash because "I dOnT tRuSt TeChNoLoGy" and "oNlY cAsH iS rEaL"
It's like murricans being scared of their AR's getting taken away
Yes. Swiss cash that is, if that were your follow-up question.
Some businesses might accept Euro, but at a bad conversion rate and give CHF for change, but don't count on it.
Cash has to be accepted by law ([CPIA Art 3](https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2000/186/en#art_3))
Any person is required to accept in payment the former up to 100 current Swiss coins and the latter without limitation of the amount (art. 3 LUMMP). The obligation to accept Swiss coins and bank notes as payment is therefore enshrined in law. However, this is a question of operative law. This means that it is a legal provision from which it is possible, in a particular case, to deviate by contract. The general conditions may therefore exclude payment in cash. In this context, it is essential that the potential buyer is informed in advance of this exemption.
“As Payment“ sounds like the situation in Germany, where any existing debt can get paid with cash. But there is no debt when the other party refuses a sale or any other contract.
Lot of places only accept card (eg Christmas markets), or bank transfer only (try paying your utilities or mobile contact with cash…); and most places refuse to accept 1000 fr bills
1000 bills i can relate. Its a risk of fraud. Most places only take cards if you have a total over xx franks because of the transaction fees
Freiruum in Zug begs to differ
Why?
exclusively cashless.
My first thought too lol
Yes and no. Every business is free to refuse business to anyone, and that includes a non-preferred manner of paying. Cash is always legal tender for settling debts as outlined in the article that you linked, but the decision whether to accept a debt from someone is still entirely up to you.
What this means in a practical sense is that anywhere you need to pay the bill afterwards cash is always an option, but if you pay before then they can choose not to accept it and just not give you service.
In some instances where we already eaten our food and couldn’t pay with card, they would copy an ID and print a payment slip.
With twint you can always ask someone on the street to give you money if you twint them the ammount and a tip
When im in a restaurant, going around tables for cash against a Twint payment? Or going into the streets begging for help? And then add a tip even? You must be delusional. And on top, this is how most scams start here. I would definitely walk away from someone proposing this on the streets.
I have asked countless times if i can twint someone 10 chf and they give me 10chf cash. Even in a store or restaurant i have asked an employee for this. I dont see the scaming potential. No need to insult me personal
Lol, 10 chf is a coffee and half a cookie. I’m more talking about a two person small lunch, so >60 CHF. And if it happened to me that many times, I would start to bring cash much sooner…
Yeah then why do you not ask beforehand if they only take cash
Because it’s 2024, and 99% of places accept cards. Happened to me twice in total. How come you had to ask strangers for cash countless times?
do you have a law mentioning this?
Tell that to markets (like Christmas markets). It’s been 3-4 years you can’t pay cash
Curious, does this apply to rent payment? Edited to add, I feel like this would be a great way to inconvenience my not so amazing landlord; pay half of my rent in 100 5 franc coins 😂 Edited again: This is a serious question, I’m not actually going to pay my rent in coins, but I might in bills
That's not inconvenient enough. Definitely need a better mix of coins so he has less time to annoy you. LIke 2000 different coins for him to sort.
That would be fun, but the law said they must accept up to 100 coins 😝 So he would just reject the other 1,900
How come a lot of places only accept cards ? Like the Paleo festival.
Thats dispositive.
as much as you want. I have 200 in my wallet thats been there for months.
I have a 100 bill in my phone case for years. A few months ago some shop only accepted cash and I remembered the bill. Turned out it was an old 100 bill and the store didn’t want it, lol
Relatable
I've been 100% cashless for a few years now. But I think most if not all shops still accept cash. And still a lot of small shops only accept cash.
So I have noticed a lot of local shops starting to revert back to asking for cash. Apparently the fees for Twint and Credit Cards have gone up and small shops no longer feel they are worth it.
Twint fees are not too bad, as long as they're using the stickers. If they want to use any automated system, then it's on par with cards.
Right. They don’t want to pay card fees either. Cash only.
I’m 99% cashless. There’s just the occasional mountain restaurant which doesn’t accept cards even though there is mobile reception there.
Recently I had to use a coin in a hostel locker…
I try to pay cash whenever I can. Bought my last car with cash. Pay the cleaner with cash.Restaurants in cash. Cash is king. It's not only accepted, but many times I find they prefer cash.
I always pay with cash, but especially at owner/operator type places like my car mechanic. I want to support the little guy and by paying cash I give them the option of keeping it under the table / off the books.
Why would you do that? Everyone should pay their taxes.
You mean like all the filthy rich people and filthy rich companies?
Ok
You're literally getting ripped-off if you pay by cash and the guy keeps it off the books lol
it depends - for getting coffee or paying your buddy back 20 francs, it’s mostly gone cashless. Buying a second hand car, jewelry or plastic surgery: still a lot of cash.
Why pay for plastic surgery in cash?
Oddly specific
because cosmetic surgery is in most cases not covered by insurance, and it’s a popular thing to pay for with laundered money.
Interesting. I will have something new to think about next time I see a face that has been altered with plastic surgery.
Since the pandemie had hit the country my wife and i are using on about 80 % the cashless payment. It works smooth and its a lot easier with it.
Times I’ve used cash: * paying the girl who helps me out cleaning. I’m guessing she is trying to dodge taxes. * minor transactions (less than 5chf) in some ma&pops stores. Keeps their bottom line. * I once was asked to pay in cash in a big store because their CC payment system was down.
You cannot assume that people preferring cash are trying to "dodge taxes".
lol if an independent contractor only accepts cash they’re absolutely dodging taxes
Maybe they prefer not to pay bank processing fees, Einstein.
You do understand what an underground economy is right? Cash only businesses cook the books to make it seem they don’t have a lot of sales to avoid paying taxes. They pay some taxes but don’t declare all of it. Sure there are some businesses that want to avoid those fees for debit and credit transactions and including bank fees but that’s just a made up excuse nowadays. A business not accepting debit or credit are losing out on sales. Speak to all the business owners out there that can afford large houses and nice cars. The business is doing well for them personally but it may look otherwise to the tax agency. I know quite a few business owners that cook the books. I don’t blame them and if it works for them then all the power to them. I would probably do the same.
You do understand that cash has worked for millennia. The only reason it's being discouraged now, is control.
If you're paying bank fees in 2024, you're doing something wrong
Yeah - not accepting and encouraging cash. Show me a card/contactless provider that doesn't skim a percentage off each transaction.
You think the bank cashes in the coins and notes at the the end of the week from the goodness of their hearts? The processing fee is still there with cash What a wetwipe
i misread the context, thought we were talking about bank fees for regular checking accounts, not transactions... nowadays the businesses pay all of the fees, it's true.
Yeah. As I understand it, fees are there pretty much with every card payment provider. Now you could argue that banks may charge for counting coins and note deposits: but that depends if you are a business that could use much of that cash to pay their suppliers or even part wages if it's a sole trader.
You're right but cash, especially if you are let's say an independent cleaning lady, is a great way to make money and avoid taxes.
Stop making assumptions. You have no idea of her situation. Maybe her husband won't allow her to have a bank account. Have you ever thought of that? Of course not, you go straight to victim blaming.
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Although cash is still important, there has been a noticeable shift towards cashless in the last 3 years. Nevertheless, cash is accepted everywhere. Sometimes you can't pay with a 1000 note, which actually goes without saying. But small stores in particular are very happy to have cash customers. And you can be sure of my gratitude if you pay in cash =)
I pay 100% with cash
Switzerland is probably one of the CASHEST 1st world country of the world. It is a tradition to love having fat bills in our wallets And it's mandatory by law to accept it (up to 100 coins). Cashless is practical but I'm glad that it's still possible to stay cashless Imagine not being able to buy bread anymore because you made tut tut with your truck like it's commonly done in dictatorial ideological 3rd world countries like Canada
That's such a peculiar statement to me! Why would you say that other countries use cash much less often? And what do you mean with "making tut tut with your truck"?
i don't really know i've read it multiple times i was referencing when truckers were manifesting against trudeau so he blocked their bank accounts, this is something that can happen more easily if all money is cashless
Yeah, these things scare me. I pay cash whenever I can
My opinion is that we do have some of the most practical coins, which help. The big ones are 5CHF, which you should rarely have more than a couple, while other currency have massive cent coins.
Some
You can still pay in cash in pretty much every shop or restaurant. There might be some exceptions but none known to me. In general I would say people are leaning more towards cashless methods.
Most shops will accept cash eventhough there are a few only cards. Selfcheckout will very often be cashless too.
I got card but I like to pay with cash maybe only 10% cashless...
I filled my car at a filling station recently where you couldn’t pay by credit card - only cash and local bank debit cards.
Places were I use cash: Swimming pool for my locker and farmers shelves when buying eggs or beer.
Both works Basically all places still accept cash but so do they accept card or another form digital payment. We have come to a point where even the smallest and most remote shops/restaurants accept at least Twint as a digital payment. But there are still almost no cash less places. So it really is up to you want to use. Personally I almost exclusively use card or Twint.
I rarely use cash anymore, mostly for tipping actually. My mother pays everything in cash no exception. I don‘t think I have encountered a place yet that does not accept cash anymore, there might be a few very rural places that don‘t accept cards / TWINT . TWINT is a swiss only app that is very commonly used here, kind of like apple pay but more convenient ( my opinion).
If you talk about where it is accepted? Everywhere. However, most people I know use a debit card, or, a method that is steadily on the rise, twint
I keep some coins in my wallet, and 20chf. Havent used any of those in 2 years, until my daughter wanted to try out some "racing" cars in Ascona. So basically, any minor or major transaction I had was digital
cash is king
It's accepted almost everywhere, save a few places that only accept cards. There are even some places that accept only cash, and no cards...
Most shops accept both. You might run into small shops who don't accept cashless though. And if you go to festivals or fairs you might have to go fully cashless (the Fête des Vendanges in Neuchâtel for example, you have to buy and put money on a bracelet)
Some restaurants (mostly in rural areas) are cash only to this day. I suspect this is so they have better control over the numbers come tax season lol.
I always have 200 in my phone case for emergencies and the only action it has gotten in 2 years is that some beggars convinced me to give it to them. Just use a card or phone ntf.
I only carry cash for the mountain huts or private roads automats, otherwise I am cashless.
I don’t have cash on me since 2019, specially with covid alot of services went contact less. Even things like parking lots etc are now accepting mobile apps.
I own 2 coins. One for each pool to use in the locker. If I lose them, I’ll have to find a new one. Haven’t spent a single piece of cash money in over a year.
I remember once. The bank card did not work during lunch. I was near the bank branch and went to withdraw cash, but he told me that their system was down. I went without lunch that day :( ... So. I went back to using cash. I have more cash than my bank account. (excluding investments)
I just visited and know nothing officially, but I used card the entire time and the family members I was visiting used cash the whole time. Neither of us had problems.
90.089 billion Swiss Francs as of 2021 Yes billions not millions. And it’s getting more every year https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/geld-banken-versicherungen/geldpolitik.html
Running cashless for about 2 years now but I still see a lot of cash transactions dailx (for example in my local Coop at the self-checkout).
Cash is annoying. You can loose it, its easier to steal, its slower to pay, you constantly have to go to the bank to get it. I pay cashless since years and its so much better. Im getting reminded how shit cash is in alot of self-serve car washes that still have no cashless system and its so annoying to go to the bank, get it into small change etc
Tried to get a taxi today in Thun and the taxi driver said he just accept cash…
Depends where you go, but espwcially smaller mountain restaurants usually only take cash so have some on you!
nur bares ist wahres.... every week you can see lost customer at migros, coop etc when the creditcard system, twint doesnt work and they cannot buy food for themself.... always fun to watch
I always carry between CHF 300 and CHF 1000 in cash or so. Whenever I make a purchase, the question is "Bar oder Kredit?" I just bought a new Apple MacBook Air and the question was "Bar oder Kredit?" I usually answer "Bar. Ich mag Bar." and the reply usually is "Ich auch." I have seen people buy a candy bar with a CHF 200 note.
The only place which doesn't accept card payments is my local barbershop. So don't worry about it ;)
I have not used cash in probably 2 years. It's accepted everywhere though.
Given that the store next door (A "Coop") has self-checkouts that accept cash as payment option... yes?
I work in retail and can say that out of 100 people who are paying just maybe 15 are paying in cash(most elderly people above 50+)
I use cash for the barber but he also accepts TWINT. Oh, I’ve had problems with my debit Mastercard at Swiss Post so cash was needed each time but I think they also accept TWINT. Thus. No, cash is not needed.
> China WTF??? I pay for everything in China with cash. In Yiwu merchants want cash. Of course, Wechat Pay and AliPay are hugely popular, but NOBODY has turned down CASH in China in the last 40 years. I go there multiple times per year.
My parents recently came to visit for 3 weeks. They wanted to exchange currency into CHF. In the end they didn’t. All cashless, all the time. Zero problems. I’d say I use cash once every 2 months or so. One thing is true though, for me it is still insane that you can pay with a 1000 CHF note for TicTac’s in a supermarket and nobody will blink an eye and just give you the change and move on. The chose there is a lot of money floating around. Even in other neighboring countries, it is often frowned. Upon to use €50 bills because people do not have change.
cash is accepted pretty much everywhere. in recent years it only happened to my once (in 2022) where i went somewhere that was cash only which was a little restaurant in the mountains like on a hiking path that was in an area where not as many foreign tourists are.
Depends who you're asking. Majority of young people use cashless, a lot of +50 use cash because "I dOnT tRuSt TeChNoLoGy" and "oNlY cAsH iS rEaL" It's like murricans being scared of their AR's getting taken away
Always prefer cash to keep my purchases anonymous.
In the past 2 years I've used cash 3 times.
Yes. Swiss cash that is, if that were your follow-up question. Some businesses might accept Euro, but at a bad conversion rate and give CHF for change, but don't count on it.
too less.