How to create a Swiss QR bill invoice as a freelancer

What is the Swiss QR bill?

Since 30 September 2022 the old orange and red payment slips have been discontinued in Switzerland. The Swiss QR bill has replaced them (see the notice of the Swiss SME portal). It is a payment part at the bottom of an invoice (or on a separate page) with a QR code, a receipt, the account, the amount and, if used, a reference.

Your client opens the banking app, scans the code, and the payment details fill in automatically. That saves your client from typing an IBAN and saves you from payments that do not match an invoice. For a freelancer this is the main reason to use it: invoices get paid with fewer questions.

The details a QR bill needs

Have these ready before you start:

• Payee (you): your name or company exactly as your bank holds it, plus street, postcode and city. The name must match the account holder.
• Account: a Swiss or Liechtenstein IBAN (starting with CH or LI), or a QR-IBAN. Not every account has a QR-IBAN; look in your e-banking or ask your bank.
• Reference: optional with a normal IBAN. Choose «No reference» or a Creditor Reference (ISO 11649, starts with RF). With a QR-IBAN you use a 27-digit QR reference, which the generator builds from your invoice number. For CHF invoices this is the usual setup.
• Amount and currency: CHF or EUR. Your account must be able to receive the currency.
• Payer (your client): name and address. This is optional. Without it the payer fills in the «Payable by» box by hand.

IBAN or QR-IBAN: which one do I have?

If your bank gave you only one IBAN, it is almost certainly a normal one, and that is fine. Use «No reference» or a Creditor Reference. A QR-IBAN is a special IBAN with an institution number between 30000 and 31999 (characters 5 to 9). More on the options in the QR-bill explainer.

How to create a QR bill in 5 steps

The free Swiss QR bill generator runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded to us.

1. Check your account. Find your IBAN in your e-banking. It must start with CH or LI. If you want to use a QR reference, ask your bank for your QR-IBAN. If you are unsure, take the normal IBAN with «No reference».
2. Enter your details. Your name, address and IBAN (or QR-IBAN). Choose the payment reference that fits your account. The name must match the account holder.
3. Enter your client and the invoice. Client name and address, invoice number, date, payment terms, currency and your items. Leave VAT at 0 unless you are VAT-registered.
4. Check the preview. Read the amount, the IBAN and the names once more. The tool checks the IBAN check digits and warns you about characters that are not allowed in the Swiss QR code.
5. Print or save as PDF, then test. In the print dialog choose A4, scale 100% («Actual size»), headers and footers off. Before the first invoice goes out, scan the QR code with your own e-banking app and compare amount, account and reference.

Open the free generator

Foreign company or client abroad

You are a foreign company or live abroad

According to the SIX FAQ, a QR bill needs an account in Switzerland or Liechtenstein. If you only have a foreign account, you cannot issue a Swiss QR bill. Send a normal invoice with your IBAN, BIC/SWIFT and the invoice number as the payment reference instead. Whether you can or should open a Swiss account is a question for your bank and your adviser.

Your client lives abroad

Enter the postcode, city and the two-letter country code (for example DE, GB or US). SIX states that it cannot influence whether foreign banks support the QR bill, so a foreign client may not be able to scan the code. SIX recommends a QR bill with a Creditor Reference and a normal IBAN for such payments. A bank transfer with your IBAN and the invoice number as the reference is then the safe way. You can add your IBAN and BIC/SWIFT in the invoice note.

Invoicing in euros

The QR bill can be issued in CHF or EUR. SIX has published version 2.4 of its implementation guidelines, valid from 14 November 2026. SIX states that version 2.4 brings no technical changes for CHF invoices. For EUR, the reference rules are narrower: as far as we can tell from SIX's current guidance, only a normal IBAN with a Creditor Reference or an unstructured message is allowed, not the 27-digit QR reference. Read the SIX guidelines and ask your bank before you issue EUR invoices. The explainer on the generator page explains the options.

What goes on the invoice itself

The QR payment part is only the bottom of the page. The invoice above it should show:

• invoice number and date,
• service date or period (it is good practice to state when the work was done),
• your items and the total,
• payment terms, for example «Please pay within 30 days».

Show VAT and your VAT number only if you are VAT-registered. Whether you must register is a question for your fiduciary or the Federal Tax Administration; this guide does not give tax advice.

Example text for your invoice e-mail

Copy this, change the brackets and attach the PDF:

Tip: save a copy of every invoice and write the invoice number in the file name.

Templates for invoice, quote and payment reminders

Questions

This guide, the generator and the templates are practical aids, not tax or legal advice. Your bank has the final say on what it accepts. The generator calculates everything in your browser; we do not receive your invoice data.

Sources (status 6 November 2026)

• SIX: QR-bill FAQ (QR-IBAN institution numbers 30000–31999, QR reference and Creditor Reference, currencies CHF and EUR, accounts in Switzerland or Liechtenstein, foreign banks, payer address).
• SIX: Swiss Implementation Guidelines QR-bill, version 2.4 (valid from 14 November 2026; version 2.3 stays valid for a transition period until November 2027).
• Swiss SME portal (kmu.admin.ch): Replacement of payment slips on 30 September 2022.