Legal
General terms and conditions
This translation is provided for information; the French version is legally binding.
- Provider
- Scheidegger Webpublishing, sole proprietorship entered in the commercial register of the Canton of Bern, IDE CHE-148.858.068, VAT CHE-148.858.068 TVA, Mülinenstrasse 13, 3006 Bern
- Brand
- Swiss Market Desk (swissmarketdesk.ch)
- Contact
- Mülinenstrasse 13, 3006 Bern · contact@swissmarketdesk.ch
- Version
- v1.0, first edition
- Effective date
- 15.10.2026
Preamble
The Provider assists foreign companies that intend to do business in Switzerland, to set up an entity there or to employ staff there. It prepares a written Roadmap (Market Entry Assessment), then, depending on the product ordered, carries out the steps the Roadmap identifies, and offers ongoing support to companies operating in Switzerland.
Status. The Provider is not a law firm, nor a notary's office, nor an authorised fiduciary. It does not represent its clients in court. Acts that the law reserves to attorneys, notaries or authorised fiduciaries (in particular the notarisation of the deed of incorporation) are performed by Authorised Professionals engaged directly by the Client, under separate mandates and separate fees. The Provider does not itself act as tax representative, as a domiciled person authorised to represent a company, or as a domiciliary agent; it coordinates the involvement of an authorised domiciliation or tax representation provider, whom the Client selects and engages directly.
Title I applies to every order. Title II governs the Market Entry Assessment, Title III the implementation products (Market Entry, Swiss Company Setup, Swiss Employer Setup) and Title IV the Swiss Legal Support subscription.
The service is intended exclusively for professional clients: companies and self-employed persons acting in the course of their business. It is not an offer directed at consumers.
TITLE I Common provisions
Article 1. Parties, subject matter and scope
1.1 Identification. The Provider is identified at the head of these terms. The Client is identified in the order confirmation or the proposal that the Client accepts.
1.2 Order of precedence. In the event of a conflict: (1) the accepted proposal or order confirmation, including the priced Roadmap; (2) these terms; (3) the descriptions published on the website on the date of the order. Any general terms and conditions of the Client do not apply, unless expressly accepted in writing by the Provider.
1.3 Professional clients. The Client declares that it contracts for the purposes of its business. The provisions protecting consumers do not apply.
Article 2. Conclusion of the contract
2.1 Questionnaire. Submitting the website questionnaire does not bind the Client and gives rise to no invoicing.
2.2 Formation. The contract is concluded when the Client accepts in writing the Provider's order confirmation or proposal, which states the product, its price and the version of these terms. An explicit confirmation email suffices. The price of the Market Entry Assessment is firm; the other published rates are indicative until this written confirmation.
2.3 Refusal. The Provider may refuse an order without stating reasons.
Article 3. Definitions
Roadmap: the written document delivered at the end of the Market Entry Assessment, classifying the steps as green (possible), orange (steps required) and red (potential obstacles), with their sequence, the competent authorities and the documents required.
Fees and Charges: the official fees and third-party costs, in particular those of the notary, the commercial register, the bank and the authorities.
Authorised Professionals: the attorneys, notaries, authorised fiduciaries, tax representatives and other professionals engaged by the Client for the acts reserved to them.
Article 4. Obligations of the Client
4.1 Information. The Client provides complete and accurate information and the documents requested, in good time. The Provider does not verify their accuracy, unless expressly mandated to do so.
4.2 Own acts. The Client signs the documents and declarations that the law reserves to it, in particular before the notary, the bank and the commercial register, and remains responsible for continued compliance with its obligations in Switzerland.
4.3 Payment. The Client pays the amounts due on the agreed due dates.
Article 5. Prices, invoicing and payment
5.1 Price. The Market Entry Assessment is a flat fee at the firm price of CHF 490 excluding VAT. The implementation products are flat fees priced in the Roadmap. Swiss Legal Support is a monthly subscription whose price is set in the proposal.
5.2 Deduction. The price of the Market Entry Assessment is deducted from a Market Entry or Swiss Company Setup mandate ordered within three (3) months of delivery of the Roadmap.
5.3 Invoicing. The Market Entry Assessment is invoiced when the Provider confirms that the questionnaire is complete; no amount is invoiced beforehand. Implementation flat fees are invoiced according to the payment schedule in the proposal; failing that, fifty percent (50%) upon order and the balance upon completion. The subscription is invoiced monthly in advance. Invoices are payable within thirty (30) days by bank transfer.
5.4 Fees and Charges. The Fees and Charges and the fees of the Authorised Professionals are not included. Where the Provider advances them, it re-invoices them at cost, without mark-up.
5.5 VAT. Prices are stated in Swiss francs, excluding VAT. For a Client established abroad, the service is deemed to be provided at the place where the Client is established (art. 8 para. 1 of the Federal Act on Value Added Tax (VAT Act)) and is invoiced without Swiss VAT; for a Client established in Switzerland, Swiss VAT is added at the statutory rate (8.1% as of the date of these terms).
5.6 Late payment. In the event of late payment, the Client is in default without further notice upon the due date (art. 102 para. 2 of the Code of Obligations (CO)). The Provider may claim default interest of 5% per annum (art. 104 CO) and, after a written reminder that has remained without effect for ten (10) days, suspend its work.
Article 6. Nature of the obligations
6.1 Obligation of means. The Provider performs its services with due care. It does not guarantee any decision by an authority, a bank or a register, any processing time by third parties, or any commercial result.
6.2 State of the law. The Roadmap and the advice reflect the law and practice known on the date of their delivery.
6.3 General information. The guides and content published on the website are general information and do not constitute advice on the Client's situation.
Article 7. Intellectual property
The Roadmap and the documents delivered are intended for the internal use of the Client and its advisers. The Provider's method, templates and internal tools remain its exclusive property and constitute business secrets within the meaning of art. 6 of the Federal Act against Unfair Competition (UCA). The contract templates delivered may be used by the Client for its own purposes.
Article 8. Data protection
8.1 Legal framework. Each party complies with the Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) and, to the extent of its scope of application, the GDPR. The data protection statement published on the website forms an integral part of these terms.
8.2 Hosting. The website and the data are hosted in Switzerland (Infomaniak, Geneva). Messages received are processed using a messaging infrastructure shared by the Provider's brands. Disclosure abroad takes place only to a State ensuring an adequate level of protection or subject to the safeguards provided for in art. 16 FADP.
8.3 Transfer to other brands. Where a question falls within another brand of the Provider (in particular Lexper, Swiss Recognition or Swiss Work Permit Partners), the file is transferred to it only with the Client's consent. Each brand invoices its own product; the transfer is not invoiced.
8.4 Retention. Accounting records are retained for ten (10) years (art. 958f CO). Other data is retained for the duration of the mandate and deleted twelve (12) months after its end, unless the law requires otherwise.
Article 9. Liability
9.1 Limitation. The Provider's liability is limited to direct damage and capped at the amount invoiced for the service concerned during the twelve (12) months preceding the triggering event. The Provider is not liable for indirect or consequential damage, nor for the acts of Authorised Professionals, banks and other third parties engaged by the Client, even on its recommendation.
9.2 Mandatory reservations. Liability for gross negligence or intentional misconduct remains reserved (art. 100 para. 1 CO). Liability for auxiliaries is excluded to the extent permitted by art. 101 paras. 2 and 3 CO.
Article 10. End of the mandate
10.1 Termination. Each party may revoke or terminate the mandate at any time (art. 404 CO); the party doing so at an inopportune time must compensate the resulting damage. Services performed and expenses incurred remain due; a flat fee is due pro rata to the work accomplished.
10.2 Handover. At the end of the mandate, the Provider hands over to the Client its documents and the completed deliverables within ten (10) business days, subject to payment of the sums due.
TITLE II Market Entry Assessment
Article 11. Subject matter and time limit
11.1 Content. The Market Entry Assessment comprises the analysis of the structured questionnaire, the written Roadmap and a thirty (30) minute meeting.
11.2 Language. The Roadmap is drafted in French, English or German, at the Client's choice.
11.3 Time limit. The Roadmap is generally delivered within five (5) business days of the confirmation that the questionnaire is complete. This time limit is indicative.
11.4 Price earned. Once the Roadmap has been delivered, the price remains due, even if no other product is ordered.
TITLE III Implementation products
Article 12. Scope
12.1 Flat fee. The scope and price of each product are those set out in the Roadmap or the accepted proposal. Any additional step is subject to a quotation.
12.2 Market Entry. The Provider carries out the identified steps: filing of posted-worker notifications, preparation of the VAT registration and coordination with an authorised tax representation provider, applications for sector-specific authorisations and permit files for posted staff. It files the notifications and applications in the Client's name, on written instruction and, where the authority requires it, under a power of attorney.
12.3 Swiss Company Setup. The Provider recommends a structure, prepares the draft articles of association and deed of incorporation submitted to the notary, coordinates the bank and the notary, and prepares the filing with the commercial register. The deed of incorporation is notarised by the notary engaged by the Client.
12.4 Swiss Employer Setup. The Provider prepares the affiliation with the compensation fund, occupational pension provision and accident insurance, and delivers employment contract templates compliant with Swiss law. Permit applications for foreign recruits are coordinated with the Swiss Work Permit Partners brand, under its own terms.
12.5 Exclusions. The following are excluded: representation in court and appeals; bookkeeping and tax returns; the function of tax representative, of domiciled person authorised to represent the company or of domiciliary agent, which fall to authorised providers engaged directly by the Client.
TITLE IV Swiss Legal Support
Article 13. Subject matter
The subscription comprises, within the monthly volume of questions set in the proposal, answers to the Client's routine legal and administrative questions, the review of contracts governed by Swiss law, correspondence with the administrative authorities and an annual compliance calendar. Questions exceeding the monthly volume, or whose handling exceeds a routine review, are subject to a quotation. Questions requiring an attorney are flagged to the Client.
Article 14. Duration and termination
The subscription is concluded for an indefinite period, with no minimum term unless the proposal states otherwise. Each party may terminate it in writing effective at the end of a month, subject to thirty (30) days' notice. Unused question volume is neither carried over nor refunded. Article 10.1 remains reserved.
TITLE V Final provisions
Article 15. Confidentiality
Each party treats the other's non-public information as confidential and uses it only for the performance of the contract. This obligation survives for two (2) years after the end of the contract. Information whose disclosure is required by law or by an authority is excepted.
Article 16. Force majeure
Neither party is liable for a failure caused by an event beyond its reasonable control, in particular catastrophe, major infrastructure outage, failure of a third-party supplier, official measure or cyberattack.
Article 17. Assignment and subcontracting
The Client may not assign the contract without the Provider's written consent. The Provider may use subcontractors bound by the same confidentiality, remaining responsible for their performance within the limits of Article 9.
Article 18. Miscellaneous
18.1 Amendments. Any amendment to the contract requires written form. The Provider may adapt these terms for future contracts.
18.2 Partial invalidity. If a clause is void or unenforceable, the others remain valid.
18.3 Notices. Communications are validly made by email.
18.4 Language versions. English and German versions may be made available; in the event of a discrepancy, the French version prevails.
Article 19. Governing law and jurisdiction
This contract is governed by Swiss law, to the exclusion of its conflict-of-laws rules and of the Vienna Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. The exclusive place of jurisdiction for any dispute is the Provider's registered seat, namely Bern, Switzerland. The parties agree in writing to this choice of forum within the meaning of art. 23 of the Lugano Convention.
Scheidegger Webpublishing. Swiss Market Desk General Terms and Conditions v1.0 of 15.10.2026.