Yes, you need a vignette to use the Swiss motorways and expressways, and it costs CHF 40. The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS, in German BAZG) sells it as a sticker or as an e-vignette linked to your number plate. The 2026 vignette is valid from 1 December 2025 to 31 January 2027, and there is no shorter one: a single trip needs the same annual vignette. Driving without one costs CHF 200. Prices and rules are as the FOCBS pages gave them on 16 October 2026.
Who needs a vignette
The FOCBS says use of the Swiss motorways and expressways is subject to a charge for all motor vehicles and trailers that are not under the heavy vehicle charge, which it says generally means all motor vehicles and trailers up to 3.5 tonnes. Its FAQ adds three details:
- Caravans and trailers need their own vignette. Trailers pulled by motorbikes are exempt.
- Motorhomes up to 3.5 tonnes of permissible total weight need one; above that the lump-sum heavy vehicle charge applies.
- Classic cars need one too.
The FOCBS says you cannot drive to the first exit without one, with three exceptions at customs offices: Basel/St Louis motorway, Rheinfelden motorway and Kreuzlingen motorway, provided you leave the motorway at the first exit. Under article 5 of the National Roads Charge Act (Nationalstrassenabgabegesetz, NSAG) the person liable is the driver and, secondarily, the keeper. GOV.UK says a UK photocard licence is enough to drive in Switzerland, so no international driving permit is needed; the permit guide covers the exceptions.
Price and validity
Article 6 of the NSAG sets the charge at CHF 40, and the FOCBS gives the same price for the sticker and the e-vignette. Both are valid for 14 months, from 1 December of the previous year to 31 January of the following year; ch.ch gives the dates of the 2026 vignette as 1 December 2025 to 31 January 2027. The FOCBS says the law does not provide for short-term vignettes, and that the charge is levied for the calendar year.
What you pay in pounds is not fixed: for the e-vignette bought outside Switzerland, the FOCBS says the actual price depends on the exchange rate and any fee charged by your card provider. Article 8 of the NSAG says the charge is not refunded; the FOCBS FAQ names one exception for the e-vignette, a proven double purchase for the same plate or a payment taken twice.
E-vignette or sticker
The FOCBS calls them two products and one system.
| E-vignette | Sticker | |
|---|---|---|
| Tied to | The number plate | The vehicle (windscreen) |
| Where | Official web shop, e-vignette.ch | In Switzerland: post offices, most petrol stations and garages, TCS outlets, vehicle licensing offices; abroad: motoring clubs; in exceptional cases certain customs offices |
| Valid | Immediately after payment | When stuck on correctly |
| You enter | Vehicle category, country of registration, plate | Nothing |
| Two cars, one swappable plate | One e-vignette | One sticker per car |
Slovenia sells only a plate-linked e-vignette: the Slovenia vignette.
Buying the e-vignette
The FOCBS says the shop is the Via Portal, reached at e-vignette.ch or via.admin.ch/shop. It asks for the vehicle category, the country of registration and the plate. A few rules from its FAQ and portal page:
- The FOCBS charges exactly CHF 40 and no fee. It says third parties may add a surcharge, and recommends the official shop because of fraud risk.
- Its portal page warns of fake websites and of emails that ask you to re-enter payment details. It says the FOCBS never asks you by email to confirm payment information.
- The e-vignette is valid at once and cannot be withdrawn. It does not renew itself; an optional account with your email address gives you a reminder.
- You do not have to carry a receipt. If you enter your email address you get proof of payment within a few minutes.
- A typing error in a foreign plate can be corrected once, in the ticket, within 24 hours of purchase.
- If you tick "publicly viewable", you or anyone who shares the car can check whether the plate already has a valid e-vignette. The FOCBS mentions a rental vehicle as a case where this helps before you buy a second one.
Buying the sticker from the UK
The FOCBS page lists the motoring clubs that sell the sticker abroad, in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. On 16 October 2026 the United Kingdom was not in that list. Its table of the price of the sticker in other currencies does have a United Kingdom column, at GBP 38.00; the euro price shown is 44.00. For the sticker in foreign currency, the FOCBS says other surcharges on top of the official price are not permitted and you do not have to accept them. The sticker goes on the inside of the windscreen where it can be seen from outside; the FOCBS says a peeled-off sticker is invalid and tape or film must not be used. The e-vignette, the FOCBS says, can be bought at any time and from anywhere.
The fine without a vignette
Article 14 of the NSAG sets a fine of CHF 200 for anyone who uses a national road without paying the charge, intentionally or through negligence, or who uses the sticker against the rules. Directive 15-01 of the FOCBS (1 March 2025) adds that besides the fine you must buy a vignette or register the plate at once, that the fine is charged twice when neither the car nor its caravan has a valid vignette, and that a driver not resident in Switzerland who disputes the charge, or does not pay the fine and the charge on the spot, must deposit the amounts or give other security. If the vehicle is not stopped or the driver cannot be identified, the fine goes to the keeper. For tolls elsewhere, how tolls work compares the systems, and driving abroad lists every guide.
BlitzBuddy in Switzerland
In Switzerland BlitzBuddy gives no speed camera warnings, no average speed checks and no camera reports. Article 98a of the Swiss Road Traffic Act punishes with a fine anyone who publicly warns of official traffic controls, who offers a paid service that warns of them, or who uses for that purpose a device not primarily intended for such warnings, and the FOCBS states that radar warning devices are banned. Your speed, your trips and reports from other drivers still work. Camera warnings switch on by themselves when you arrive in one of the five countries where BlitzBuddy gives them; where speed camera warnings are allowed lists them. Speed limits, fines and other Swiss road rules are in driving in Switzerland. BlitzBuddy is free, with no ads and no subscription. It is available for iPhone; the Android version is coming soon.
Sources
- E-vignette and adhesive vignette, Federal Office for Customs and Border Security
- FAQ Vignette, Federal Office for Customs and Border Security
- E-vignette via Via Portal, Federal Office for Customs and Border Security
- Nationalstrassenabgabegesetz (NSAG), SR 741.71, Fedlex (in German)
- Richtlinie 15-01 Nationalstrassenabgabe, Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (pdf, in German, 1 March 2025)
- Vignette autoroutière, ch.ch (in French)
- Strassenverkehrsgesetz (SVG), SR 741.01, article 98a, Fedlex (in German, Stand 1 July 2026)
- Radarwarngeräte, Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (in German)
- Driving abroad, GOV.UK
Sources read on 16 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a vignette to drive through Switzerland?
Yes, for the motorways and expressways. The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS) says all motor vehicles and trailers up to 3.5 tonnes need one, and that Switzerland has no short-stay vignette, so a single trip needs the annual one.
How much is the Swiss vignette?
CHF 40, for the sticker and for the e-vignette. The 2026 vignette is valid from 1 December 2025 to 31 January 2027. What CHF 40 costs in pounds depends on the exchange rate and any card fee.
Where do I buy the e-vignette?
In the official FOCBS web shop at e-vignette.ch (via.admin.ch/shop). The FOCBS charges exactly CHF 40 and warns about fake sites and emails; third parties may add fees.
Is the e-vignette valid straight away?
Yes. The FOCBS says it is valid immediately after purchase, that Swiss law gives no right of withdrawal for online purchases, and that you do not need to carry a receipt.
What is the fine for driving in Switzerland without a vignette?
CHF 200 under article 14 of the National Roads Charge Act (NSAG). The FOCBS adds that you must also buy a vignette or register your plate at once, and that a car with a caravan is fined twice when neither has a valid vignette.
