Do you pay Swiss import VAT and customs charges when ordering from Lidl?
The German Lidl online shop delivers only to addresses in Germany, so a Swiss address cannot be entered at checkout. Swiss customers who use a forwarding service pay the import VAT and that service's fees themselves.
The terms are explicit and dated 2025, so the delivery restriction is firm. The weakness is that Lidl runs several country shops, and a Swiss shopper landing on lidl.ch will see different rules that this verdict does not cover.
Lidl's own terms for the lidl.de online shop state that offers are addressed solely to buyers with a delivery address in Germany. The shipping page lists a flat EUR 5.95 charge and says nothing about foreign delivery, customs or import VAT. Lidl Schweiz runs a separate site at lidl.ch with its own range, and the German shop does not serve it.
Because no parcel goes to Switzerland directly, there is no shop position on import charges to report. Swiss buyers reach lidl.de through forwarders such as MeinEinkauf.ch, which take a German delivery address and then handle the border themselves. In that case the import VAT of 8.1 percent and the forwarder's fee are paid to the forwarder, not to Lidl, and Lidl's terms have no bearing on it.
Orders placed through a parcel forwarder look domestic to Lidl. The import VAT and the forwarder's clearing fee, from about CHF 17.90, then fall to the buyer.
“Die Angebote richten sich ausschließlich an Besteller mit einer Lieferanschrift in Deutschland.”
“Für den Versand Ihrer Bestellung berechnen wir pauschal einmalig 5.95 EUR.”
“Geniessen Sie freie Auswahl bei allen Online-Shops in Deutschland - auch bei denen, die nicht in die Schweiz liefern.”
Shop policies change. Watch this one and we will re-check it for you, and tell you if the answer moves.