Ordinance of June 25, 2003, on Fees and Compensation Collected for Statistical Services Provided by Administrative Units of the Confederation (Confederation) - Scope of Application (GEBVOST)

This ordinance governs the fees and compensation collected by the Federal Statistical Office and by other administrative units of the Confederation as designated in Art. 2, para. 1, of the Federal Statistics Act (administrative units) for the following services in the fields of statistics and administration: a. publications (Art. 18 Federal Statistics Act); b. communication of unpublished results (Art. 18, para. 1, Federal Statistics Act); c. execution of special analyses (Art. 19, para. 1, Federal Statistics Act); d. communication of personal data and anonymized data of legal entities, as well as anonymized data from the Business and Enterprise Register or the Federal Buildings and Dwellings Register of the Federal Statistical Office (Art. 19, para. 2, Federal Statistics Act); e. research and analysis work, consultations (Art. 19, para. 3, Federal Statistics Act); f. authorization to use statistical results for profit-making purposes (Art. 20, para. 2, Federal Statistics Act); g. use of the central IT and communication platform sedex to provide services outside the scope of register harmonization (Art. 4, para. 2, Federal Statistics Act); h. information provided on the Enterprise Identification Number in response to batch requests according to Art. 11, para. 2, of the Federal Act of June 18, 2010, on the Enterprise Identification Number.

Anyone who requests a service as referred to in Art. 1 is required to pay a fee and expenses. Anyone who requests such a service for commercial purposes is required to pay a compensation.

If the fee for a service is owed by several persons, they shall be jointly and severally liable.

Invoicing is carried out by the administrative unit that provided the services. If the probable amount of the fees related to the requested services exceeds 500 francs, including disbursements, the administrative units must inform the liable parties in advance; in such cases, the services must be ordered in writing, either on paper or via email.

The administrative units may, for valid reasons (residence abroad, arrears, etc.), require the liable party to make an advance payment.

The fee is notified by means of a decision.

The fee is due: a. upon invoicing; b. on the day the decision or the decision on appeal becomes effective. The payment period is 30 days from the date on which the fee is due. Administrative units may extend this period in special cases.

The limitation period occurs five years after the date on which the fee is due.

The limitation period is interrupted by any administrative act aimed at recovering the due fees.

Fees for offline service provisions are levied: a. per unit of information (see annex); b. per unit of time (see annex); c. for disbursements according to Art. 9.

The fees per unit of information and the fees per unit of time may be calculated separately or globally.

Disbursements are invoiced separately.

Disbursements are considered to be all costs that are additional to offline service benefits, including notably: a. postage, telephone, and telefax costs with foreign countries; b. costs of work that administrative units have executed by third parties; c. costs of materials and distribution (see annex).

Fees are charged for online service provision: a. at registration; b. per information unit (see annex); c. for annual subscriptions for the use of online services: 1. in all areas of statistics, notably for the Statistical Encyclopedia of Switzerland, 2. in specific areas of statistics.

The registration fee may not exceed 50 francs. It is not charged for the annual subscriptions referred to in para. 1, let. c.

The annual flat rate for the subscription may not exceed 1500 francs. It replaces the fees per information unit.

The fees charged for address lists and addresses on labels are calculated per address (see annex).

For reminders concerning loaned books, a fee is charged for the second reminder and for each subsequent reminder. The fee is 10 francs for the second reminder and 20 francs for any subsequent reminder.

The use of statistical results for commercial purposes requires authorization and is subject to the payment of compensation. The authorization may be subject to conditions and obligations. The administrative unit providing the services issues the corresponding decision.

The decision specifies the amount of the compensation and imposes at least the following obligations: a. the delimitation of the scope of data use; b. the obligation

1. not to alter the content of the data,

2. to present the commercialized product as an unofficial publication,

3. to visibly indicate the source.

Compensation may take the form of an annual lump sum or a one-time lump sum. The annual lump sum amounts to: a. five times the fee charged under section 2, if the data provided constitutes up to 50% of the commercialized product; b. ten times the fee charged under section 2, if the data provided constitutes more than 50% of the commercialized product.

The decision may provide for partial or total advance payment.

The administrative unit issuing the decision may waive the compensation if the usage rights are transferred to non-profit institutions or individuals.

The procedure is governed by the Federal Act of 20 December 1968 on Administrative Procedure.

The use of statistical results for non-commercial purposes does not require authorization and is exempt from fees.

The source must be visibly indicated.

The following are exempt from fees: a. the basic offer of publications distributed in a single copy for public information (public service); b. the information and services referred to in Art. 1, letters b to e, provided orally (customized service) for up to a quarter of an hour; c. a selection of data disseminated on the Internet as a rapid and easily accessible service; d. the consultation of documents in the documentation services of administrative units; e. offers made by administrative units for advertising purposes, subject to the protection fee referred to in the annex.

More advantageous subscription rates may be set for users who repeatedly acquire publications (printed or on offline electronic media), results, or specific analyses. The reduction is a maximum of 20%.

A quantity discount of 20% is granted from the tenth copy to users who acquire multiple copies of a publication (printed or on offline electronic media).

A discount of 40% is granted to resellers of publications (printed or on offline electronic media).

Fees for the multiple use of digitized data are calculated on a degressive basis depending on the number of users (annex).

Discounts on service provisions cannot be combined.

The exemption or reduction of fees may result in the exemption from payment of disbursements.

The competent administrative unit provides free copies of publications to: a. the administrative units of the Confederation as defined in Art. 6 of the Ordinance of November 25, 1998, on the Organization of the Government and the Administration; b. the services of the Parliament; c. the members of the Federal Assembly and the Federal Commissions; d. the statistical services fully or partially subject to the FSR; e. the offices and statistical services of the cantons and the communes; f. public libraries and media libraries; g. foreign embassies in Switzerland; h. journalists.

The competent administrative unit grants a 50% fee reduction on the first copy of a publication to schools and educational institutions at all levels.

A 20% fee reduction on the first copy of a publication is granted to: a. pupils and students; b. cantonal and communal authorities; c. public-benefit organizations, political parties, and political organizations.

For the services referred to in Art. 1, let. b to e, it provides up to ten hours of work free of charge and grants a 20% fee reduction on additional work time to: a. administrative units of the Confederation within the meaning of Art. 6 of the Ordinance of 25 November 1998 on the Organization of the Government and Administration; b. parliamentary services; c. members of the Federal Assembly and federal commissions; d. statistical services fully or partially subject to the LSF; e. statistical offices and services of cantons and communes.

For the multiple acquisition of offline publications, a volume discount of 20% is granted starting from the second copy to acquirers who benefit from an exemption or a fee reduction on the first copy.

For the multiple use of digitized data, acquirers who benefit from an exemption or fee reduction on the first copy of a publication shall pay the fees for the multiple use of digitized data (see annex).

The competent administrative unit shall provide a copy of the publications to foreign statistical offices and intergovernmental organizations in accordance with the current exchange agreements.

Cantonal and communal administrative services, businesses, and organizations that provide data free of charge for a statistic or that contribute to the development of a statistic may receive a selection of the results of this statistic free of charge.

Fees may be waived: a. if the acquirer provides reciprocity; b. if the service provided is necessary for the execution of a mandate from the federal administration; c. if the acquirer carries out tasks in the interest of the Confederation.

The ordinance of 30 June 1993 on fees for statistical services provided by federal administrative units is repealed.

This ordinance shall enter into force on August 1, 2003.