Serafe (radio / TV household fee)
To verify This page has 1 item that could not be confirmed on an official page. Check it yourself before relying on it:
Switzerland’s household radio and television fee for newcomers near EPFL / Vaud. Orientation only, not fee or legal advice. Confirm amounts and options on the official pages before you pay.
What Serafe is
Serafe AG collects the federal radio and television fee from Swiss households. The fee funds public and regional broadcasting (SRG SSR and local providers). Businesses pay a separate revenue-based fee to the Federal Tax Administration (FTA); this page is about the household fee only.
You do not register yourself with Serafe. Billing uses data from the commune residents’ registers after you register with your commune.
Who pays
| Situation | What official pages say |
|---|---|
| Private household (flat, studio, shared apartment) | One fee per household. All adult members are listed and are jointly liable. |
| Collective household (student hostel / boarding school, care home, etc.) | The institution pays the collective fee. Residents should not receive a personal bill for that address. |
| Secondary / holiday home | Fee paid for the main residence also covers a secondary residence in Switzerland (exception if your main residence is abroad). |
| Weekly resident | Fee only for the main residence; living part of the week elsewhere does not create a second household fee. |
Sources: OFCOM, Who pays? · OFCOM FAQ · Serafe EN
Students in recognised halls: OFCOM lists student hostels among collective households. The body responsible for the household pays CHF 670 per year. You normally should not get a personal Serafe invoice. If you do, contact Serafe and your housing office with your address and residence type.
Shared private flat: one household, one fee. All adult names may appear on the invoice.
Amounts
| Household type | Annual fee (official) |
|---|---|
| Private household | CHF 335 |
| Collective household | CHF 670 (paid by the institution) |
- The Federal Council sets the amount. Serafe and OFCOM both publish these figures.
- From 1 January 2027, Serafe publishes a lower private-household fee: CHF 312 per year (first step of a reduction ordered by the Federal Council; live on serafe.ch/en and serafe.ch/de). Confirm the live Serafe amount on your invoice year.
- EPFL’s study-cost table also lists radio/TV as CHF 335 / year (CHF 30 / month budget line).
Sources: Serafe EN · OFCOM FAQ · EPFL, Financement des études
Re-check before paying. Fee pages can change; trust the live Serafe / OFCOM amount on your invoice year.
Opt-out ended (no reception device)
The fee does not depend on owning a TV, radio, or internet device.
Since 1 January 2024, opting out because the household has no means of receiving radio or television is no longer possible (OFCOM FAQ; Serafe exemption page).
Source: Serafe, Households with no means of receiving radio or television · OFCOM FAQ, Opting out
Narrow exemptions still exist on the OFCOM FAQ (for example annual AHV/IV supplementary benefits; certain FDFA identity cards; deafblind households under stated conditions). Social assistance alone is not an exemption. Check OFCOM before assuming you qualify.
How billing works
- Register with your commune (Contrôle des habitants / population office).
- Serafe receives household data from the residents’ registers.
- Households receive an annual invoice by default.
- You can switch to quarterly invoicing (QR code on the invoice, contact form, or settings described by Serafe).
Quarterly paper surcharge: OFCOM states that if quarterly bills are provided on paper, the household pays an extra CHF 2 per bill. Electronic options (e-bill / email) do not carry that CHF 2 add-on.
Wrong address or household members: correct your data at the commune first. Serafe is fed from the register. For other invoice questions, use Serafe customer service.
Moving or leaving Switzerland: tell the commune. If you deregister and emigrate, OFCOM says the unused part of a paid annual fee is reimbursed once Serafe has your bank details. Temporary travel abroad without deregistering does not stop the fee.
Phishing: Serafe warns it does not send emails with links asking for account details, and does not ask for TWINT payments. Prefer the official serafe.ch channels. More on fake messages: see Phishing, fake parcel SMS and phone scams.
What to do if you get a bill in a student hall
- Check whether your address is a recognised collective household / student residence.
- Ask your hall / EPFL housing office whether the institution pays Serafe for that building.
- Contact Serafe with the invoice number and explain you live in a collective household (keep copies).
- Do not ignore reminders; unpaid fees can lead to debt-collection proceedings (OFCOM FAQ).
To verify: if a personal bill arrives for a hall address, confirm recognised collective-household status case-by-case with the housing office and Serafe.