Hotel nights, conference fees, transport, equipment, meals. The amounts are usually substantial. The work is rarely done.
None of these are companies that consider themselves "big enough" for VAT recovery. All of them have it, all of them are entitled to recover, most of them never do. Three illustrative cases across the range we see.
Two reasons. The deadlines are absolute — typically 30 June of the year following the expense — and they pass quietly. The documentation is exacting — invoices must show VAT separately and carry the company's name, which most travel bookings do not by default. By the time finance teams notice, the window has closed.
Hotels, conference fees, transport, meals incurred abroad — your best estimate. Only count expenses outside your country of registration.
* Other jurisdictions may also be recoverable in specific cases. Ask us about your situation.
Send the foreign business expenses you would like reviewed — receipts, invoices, expense summaries, in any format. We return a written report covering: what is recoverable as it stands, what becomes recoverable with reissued documentation, and what falls outside the rules.
The assessment is free and carries no obligation. We reply within five business days.
Send documents for reviewMost foreign VAT recovery is buried inside accountancy firms, available only to clients on full mandates. Swiss Ledger has run recovery for its own clients for years.
BUSINESS TRAVEL VAT lifts that work out and offers it on its own — to any company entitled to recover, with no broader engagement required.
swissledgergroup.ch →You send the expenses, by whichever method works best for you.
We assess eligibility, identify which jurisdictions apply, produce a written report on what's recoverable and under what conditions.
Where you choose to proceed, we prepare and file the recovery applications, follow through to payment, transfer the recovered amounts to you.
You pay only on success — 33 to 35 percent of the amount recovered. No recovery, no fee.
No recovery, no fee.
Swiss companies recovering VAT in the European Union, the EEA, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates.
Foreign companies recovering Swiss VAT — including but not limited to companies based in the EU, the UK, and the UAE.
Combinations between third countries where reciprocity rules permit. A UK company recovering UAE VAT, a German company recovering Norwegian VAT, and similar.
Each case depends on the specific rules between the two jurisdictions. The free assessment establishes which apply.
Documentation that satisfies the receiving authority. The invoice must show VAT separately, name the company correctly, identify the supplier with their VAT number, and fall within the recovery period.
Most companies do not recover because their travel documents do not meet this standard. Hotels print generic receipts, conference organisers send confirmations rather than invoices, online bookings show totals without VAT broken out.
Where this happens, the documentation can usually be reissued — and where it can be reissued, we do the work of obtaining it. Contacting hotels, conference organisers, suppliers and booking platforms in the language of the country, asking for reissued or corrected invoices, following up until they reply.
Once a case is filed, you see exactly where it sits — submitted, under review, approved, paid. Every recovered amount, every jurisdiction, every status, in one view.
| Case | Jurisdiction | Amount | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 2026 — Munich, Berlin | Germany | CHF 8'420 | Paid |
| Q1 2026 — London, Edinburgh | United Kingdom | CHF 4'180 | Approved |
| Q1 2026 — Dubai | UAE | CHF 2'640 | Filed |
| Q4 2025 — Milan, Rome | Italy | CHF 6'120 | Paid |
| Q1 2026 — Geneva, Zurich | Switzerland | CHF 12'840 | Approved |
| Q4 2025 — Paris, Lyon | France | CHF 3'960 | Under review |