Fee collection is put out to tender
Companies that wish to collect the general fee for radio and television reception in the future can apply to the federal government by mid-November. The new fee system will be launched in early 2019.
The mandate for collecting the device-independent household fee, which will replace the current reception fee under the new Radio and Television Act (RTVA), was put out to public tender, the Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM) announced on Tuesday. Applications can be submitted by Billag, which currently collects the device-based reception fee, and other companies. The procedure will be carried out by OFCOM. Interested companies can submit their bids on the electronic platform on public procurement Simap. The contract is expected to be awarded in the first quarter of 2017.
Test phase from July 2017
Whoever receives the mandate is to begin preparations in July 2017. Specifically, the necessary infrastructure for the collection of the household levy is to be provided and tested. In the process, the new collection agency will work closely with the cantons and municipalities. These provide the household data from the population registers. Registrations, changes and deregistrations will be recorded automatically. The first invoices under the new system are to be sent out by the central survey office at the beginning of January 2019. The mandate agreement with the federal government will run until the end of 2025.
Lower compensation
Until the start of the new levy system, the device-based reception fee will remain in force. Swisscom's subsidiary Billag, whose contract expires on this date, will be compensated for collection by the federal government to the tune of CHF 54 million per year. How high the compensation will be in the new mandate is to be contractually regulated after the surcharge. However, this will be "lower," as OFCOM writes. This is because the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) will be responsible for collecting the corporate levy in the future. It will invoice the companies on the basis of the VAT register.
Television on the cell phone
The basis for the change from the current reception fee to a device-independent fee is the revised RTVA, which came into force on July 1. The new levy system takes into account the fact that radio and TV programs can also be received on cell phones and computers and that most households therefore have reception devices. The Federal Council will not decide how high the new levy will be until shortly before the new system comes into force. It is likely that the levy for private households will fall from CHF 451 today to CHF 400. Since the levy for radio and television is no longer device-dependent, all households and companies will in principle be subject to the levy when the new system comes into force in 2019. However, people who receive AHV or IV benefits or those who live in a retirement or nursing home will be exempt. Households without radio and television sets can be exempted on request for five years from the introduction of the new levy. (SDA)
