Offering early payment discounts (Skonto) in Switzerland: getting the clause right

Skonto – an early payment discount – is the classic lever for getting paid faster: clients who pay within a short window receive a small price reduction. Attractive for clients, effective for your liquidity – but only if the clause is worded cleanly and booked correctly. Here is how.

What exactly is Skonto?

Skonto is a payment-term discount: you grant the client a percentage price reduction if they settle the invoice early. Typically 2–3 % for payment within 10 days, while the regular term stays at 30 days.

Example: invoice of CHF 2,000, clause "2 % Skonto within 10 days, payable within 30 days".

• Client pays on day 8: CHF 1,960 – you receive CHF 40 less, but 20 days earlier.
• Client pays on day 30: CHF 2,000 – no discount.

Arithmetically, Skonto is interest: 2 % over 20 days corresponds to roughly 36 % per annum. That is why Skonto is almost always cheaper than an overdraft – and it disciplines debtors at the same time.

Wording the clause correctly

To avoid interpretation disputes, three items belong on the invoice:

1. Percentage: e.g. 2 %
2. Discount deadline: a concrete date, e.g. "for payment by 25 August 2026"
3. Regular payment term: the concrete date of the normal deadline

Sample wording:

"2 % Skonto for payment by 25.08.2026, otherwise payable within 30 days by 14.09.2026."

Combined with the QR bill the effect is strongest: the client scans, pays within seconds and secures the discount. With the free generator you place the clause in the additional text field; our article on payment terms covers deadline management.

How VAT and Skonto interact

VAT is measured on the consideration actually owed (Art. 28 VAT Act). If the client takes the Skonto, the taxable base drops accordingly – VAT is calculated on the reduced amount, not on the original total.

Example with 8.1 % VAT:

	Without Skonto	With Skonto (2 %)
Net	CHF 1,850.46	CHF 1,813.45
VAT 8.1 %	CHF 149.54	CHF 146.55
Total	CHF 2,000.00	CHF 1,960.00

In your VAT return you declare the consideration actually collected. Software handles this automatically; in manual bookkeeping the discount is booked as an expense (discount expense) and the VAT adjusted accordingly. The basics are explained (in German) on buchhaltung-für-selbständige.ch: VAT for the self-employed in Switzerland.

When Skonto pays off – and when not

Sensible if:

• you regularly face slow payers and liquidity is tight,
• your margin absorbs a 2–3 % reduction,
• your clients are businesses that systematically take discounts.

Caution:

• Very thin margins: at 5 % margin, a 2 % Skonto eats almost the entire profit.
• Private customers: they take discounts less often; the effect is smaller than with business clients.
• A simply short payment term (10 days instead of 30, no discount) is an alternative worth testing.

Introducing Skonto in practice

1. Standardise the clause, identical in quote and invoice.
2. Monitor the discount deadline actively – only payment received within the window counts.
3. Adjust your bookkeeping: a separate discount expense account simplifies the annual review.
4. After three months: are clients taking the discount? Is the collection period measurably improving?

For the entire invoicing process – from template to software – see the comparison of the best invoicing programs or the software rankings (in German) on gründer-schweiz.ch.

Note: this article is not tax advice.