If you plan on driving on certain roads in Switzerland, you need to purchase a vignette, either as a sticker that you display on your windscreen, or an e-vignette that you buy online. Here’s what you need to know about the e-vignette in Switzerland.
Rather than charging tolls, Switzerland uses the system of a motorway vignette (Autobahnvignette) to raise money to maintain its motorway network.
The Swiss motorway vignette costs 40 Swiss francs per year and comes in two different forms:
The sticker vignette is a sticker that can be affixed to the inside of your car’s windscreen. It must be clearly visible, but should ideally be placed in a position so that it does not distract you while driving, for instance in front of the rearview mirror.
The colour of the sticker vignette changes each year so that it is instantly clear whether a vehicle’s vignette is valid for the current year. The colour for the 2025 vignette is orange.
Since August 2023, drivers have also been able to purchase the motorway pass online. This is known as an electronic vignette or e-vignette.
Once purchased, the e-vignette is valid immediately. It is linked to the number plate of the vehicle, meaning authorities can check that the toll has been paid, without the vehicle displaying a physical pass.
All cars, motorbikes, trailers, caravans, delivery vans and camper vans weighing up to 3,5 tonnes need a vignette to travel on designated toll roads in Switzerland (see below).
Heavy vehicles weighing more than 3,5 tonnes do not need a vignette, as they are covered by the LSVA (performance-related heavy vehicle fee).
The vignette system is only in place on toll roads in Switzerland, which includes motorways and expressways. These rolls are clearly recognisable by their green and white signage.
You can see a map of which roads are covered by the motorway pass system on the Federal Roads Office website.
You can buy a sticker vignette from most petrol stations, post offices and customs posts in Switzerland. You can also buy a sticker vignette online from the Swiss Post website.
You can buy the electronic vignette (e-vignette) from the Via portal, the official website of the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security. You may find other websites selling the e-vignette, but the best option is to purchase through the Via website, as these third-party websites often charge higher prices. The e-vignette should cost 40 Swiss francs.
The 2025 Autobahnvignette is valid from December 1, 2024, until January 31, 2026. Drivers have until February 1 each year to purchase a new vignette.
It is not possible to buy a daily, weekly or monthly vignette, so even if you are visiting Switzerland for just a short period of time, you must purchase a yearly vignette.
If your car is registered in Switzerland and you get a new number plate (for instance if you change address or lose your old numberplate), you can change the number plate registered to the vignette once. You’ll need to provide documents such as the old and new vehicle registration documents to prove that you are updating the vignette for the same vehicle.
With a foreign number plate, you can only make a change to the registered number plate within 24 hours of purchasing your vignette, for instance if you make a typo.
If you are not sure if you previously purchased an e-vignette for your vehicle, you can use the Via portal to check whether a specific number plate already has a valid e-vignette. Simply enter the country of registration and the car’s number plate into the website.
If you are caught driving without a vignette on a Swiss motorway, you will be fined 200 Swiss francs, plus the cost of the vignette.