Online Christmas appeal in Switzerland: a digital experience
An online Christmas appeal with a tree, stars, gifts or cards: four WeGlow.world experiences in concept stage and the Swiss rules you need to know.
In short An online Christmas appeal can become a place people visit: a tree, a starry sky, a yard of gifts or a wall of cards, where every donation takes a visible shape. The four WeGlow.world experiences are concepts until the official launch. Plan 6 weeks and check the rules of your canton.
This article describes the rules in Switzerland.
A charity can settle for a donation page and an email, then wait. A digital experience adds what is often missing online: the feeling of taking part in a shared gesture, like standing at a stall at the Christmas market.
Why an online Christmas appeal works
A market or a concert needs a hall, volunteers and often a permit from the municipality. An online appeal can be prepared by 5 to 10 people and shared at a distance, which suits families spread across several cantons and donors who no longer travel.
Its weakness is well known: an online donation is silent. Nobody sees the other donors and the collective momentum disappears. A digital experience answers this by making every donation visible, with a card and a name, like a light added to the others.
Four Christmas experiences, honestly described
WeGlow.world is preparing four Christmas experiences. Today they are concepts: the official launch has not taken place yet. Each experience has its own presentation page.
The Glow Room
This is a 3D living room with a Christmas tree. Every donation becomes a decoration on the tree. See the Glow Room.
The Starry Sky
Every donation becomes a star. Visitors fly from star to star and discover the messages left by other donors. See the Starry Sky.
The Gift Yard
You choose the setting: forest, village, frozen lake, cabin or library. The visitor then flies to the next gift. See the Gift Yard.
The Card Wall
Envelopes hang from a string, and every card is a stamp. A donation adds an envelope to the wall. See the Card Wall.
Which experience for which charity?
The right choice depends on the mood your audience expects, not on the technology. A few pointers to decide in a single committee meeting.
- A close community that likes to gather: the Glow Room, like a shared living room.
- A calm, poetic appeal: the Starry Sky.
- A young or family audience, or a setting that looks like you: the Gift Yard.
- A postal feel, with handwritten wishes: the Card Wall.
The Swiss rules to check before you launch
An online appeal avoids many formalities, but not all. In Switzerland the Confederation sets the framework, while cantons and municipalities decide many details.
Tax deduction: for direct federal tax, a donation to a legal entity based in Switzerland and exempt because of its public benefit purpose can be deducted from income. Donations must reach 100 Swiss francs in the tax year and must not exceed 20% of net income. It is a deduction from income, not a refunded percentage: the benefit depends on the donor's tax rate.
The cantonal ceiling varies: ask the tax administration of your canton. A foreign organisation is not a deductible recipient, because the law requires a seat in Switzerland. There is no federal model receipt: ask your canton what it accepts.
Raffle: do not link it to your donation page. Small lotteries cannot be run online, and an online or intercantonal lottery is a large game that needs authorisation from Gespa. A raffle ticket is a purchase, not a donation.
Emails to donors: the law against unfair competition requires prior consent, correct identification of the sender and a simple, free way to refuse. Collecting in the street or door to door requires a cantonal permit, for example in Geneva.
How to do it with WeGlow.world
If your organisation is on WeGlow.world, the donation page guides the donor in three steps: amount, details, summary. It offers one time and monthly donations, with separate amounts for each, and works on a phone.
Your supporters can start their own fundraising page to raise money from the people around them. You can also write a thank you text: the platform sends it after the donation if the organisation has filled it in.
For a short appeal, a single experience is enough. Discover the experiences on the Christmas appeals page, then start free with an account. For a specific question, use the contact page.
A plan in 6 weeks
An online appeal is prepared faster than an event, but not in one evening. Here is a realistic rhythm, detailed in our guide to organising a Christmas appeal in Switzerland.
- Weeks 1 and 2: goal in francs, team, check of the cantonal rules.
- Weeks 3 and 4: donation page, choice of experience, thank you text, mailing list with consent.
- Weeks 5 and 6: communication, last reminder before 31 December, thanks within 48 hours.
If you are still unsure about the format, compare the Christmas appeal ideas for a charity in Switzerland. And for what you can promise your donors, read our article on the tax deduction of Christmas donations in Switzerland.
FAQ
Here are the five questions charities ask most often before choosing a digital experience.
Are the Christmas experiences already available?
No, they are concepts until the official launch. Each experience has a presentation page. You can already prepare your appeal, then choose the experience at launch time.
Will my donors be able to deduct their donation?
Only if your organisation is based in Switzerland and exempt from tax because of its public benefit purpose. The donation must reach 100 francs in the year. The cantonal ceiling varies: ask the tax administration of your canton.
Can you run a raffle with the experience?
It is better to avoid it. An online lottery is a large game that needs authorisation, while small lotteries stay local. Keep the experience for donations and messages, and ask your canton for advice before any draw.
Do you need a permit for an online appeal?
An online page does not occupy the public street. But collecting in the street or door to door, a market stall or a local raffle falls under the canton or the municipality. To find out whether an online appeal counts as a collection, ask the canton.
Do you need donors' consent to email them?
Yes, the safest approach is to write only to people who agreed to receive your news, with a free unsubscribe in every message. For the exception for existing customers, ask a lawyer or the Federal Data Protection Commissioner.
Sources
Official sources, checked on 9 October 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.