Plan a Christmas campaign in six weeks in Switzerland

Six weeks until Christmas: a weekly plan for your fundraising campaign, with cantonal permits, raffle rules, tax deductions and mailings in Switzerland.

In short Six weeks are enough for a Christmas campaign if you clarify early what needs a permit. In Switzerland, permits for collections, raffles and market stalls are regulated by cantons or municipalities. Plan backwards from 24 December, form a team of 5 to 10 people and start with the donation page.

This article describes the rules in Switzerland.

A Christmas campaign rarely fails because of the idea. Usually a permit, a receipt or the time for thank-you e-mails is missing. This weekly plan takes you from choosing a format to saying thanks in January, with the bodies you need to ask.

What does the six-week timeline look like?

Count backwards from 24 December. Week 1 then begins on 12 November. Each week has one goal, so nothing is left until the last minute.

  • Week 1: clarify format, team, fundraising goal and permit questions.
  • Week 2: submit applications and registrations, build the donation page.
  • Week 3: write the story, pick photos and draft the e-mails.
  • Week 4: open the campaign, send the first e-mail, invite supporters.
  • Week 5: share a progress update, send a reminder.
  • Week 6: final push until 31 December, then thanks and the final accounting.

If you have less time, shorten the format, not the permit questions. Ideas for the format are in the article Weihnachtsaktion Ideen für die Schweiz.

Which permits do you need in Switzerland?

It depends on the canton and the municipality. The federal level only sets the framework, for example for gambling. Collections in public space, raffles and market stalls are regulated by cantons and municipalities, so ask early and keep everything in writing.

In the canton of Zurich you need a permit for direct donor contact in public space or at the door. If you collect in several municipalities, the application goes to the Sicherheitsdirektion (security directorate), within one municipality to the municipality. Each person collecting carries a copy of the permit.

In the canton of Geneva you need the department's prior permission for a collection on public roads or at the door. The application must arrive at least one month before the start. Exempt are, among others, collections at the organisation's own events.

For other cantons: ask the cantonal office and your municipality. We do not list rules here that we have not verified.

What applies to a market stall?

A Christmas market is a matter for the municipality. The city of Bern accepts applications for Christmas market stalls until 30 April each year, through an official form. For large city markets, deadlines are therefore often long past before Advent.

Whether your municipality has a similar deadline, we do not know. Ask the market administration, also for the coming season. If you want to sell food or drink, ask the canton whether a licence or permit is needed.

If no pitch is left this year, the options are an event in your own premises or the donation page online.

What is allowed for raffles and prize draws?

The Geldspielgesetz (federal gambling act) distinguishes small and large games. A raffle at an entertainment event, with prizes in kind only, can be exempt from a permit under federal law if all stakes together total at most CHF 50,000. Cantons may set stricter rules or ban small games.

In the canton of Fribourg, a notification to the Oberamt is enough for such a raffle. In the canton of St.Gallen, raffles with prizes in kind up to CHF 50,000 are generally exempt from a permit, cash prizes are not. Tickets sold outside the event need a permit.

Online it is clearly tighter: a lottery held online is not a small game but a large game. So do not plan an online raffle or a prize draw on the donation page. Ask your cantonal gambling authority before you sell tickets.

How do you handle tax deductions and receipts?

Donations to organisations based in Switzerland that are tax-exempt for charitable purposes are deductible for direct federal tax. The amount must reach at least CHF 100 in the tax year and may be at most 20 percent of income.

Cantons set their own limits for cantonal tax. Check your canton: we only confirmed Zurich and St.Gallen, each with CHF 100 and 20 percent. An organisation without a seat in Switzerland is not a deductible recipient.

Never promise a percentage back, because the deduction reduces taxable income. A purchase, such as a market product, is not a donation. You can read all the details in the article Spendenabzug für Weihnachtsspenden in der Schweiz.

How do you write to your donors?

For mass advertising by e-mail, the federal act against unfair competition requires prior consent, correct sender details and a simple, free way to unsubscribe. Treat consent as the safe rule.

Respect every unsubscribe immediately. On the donation page, briefly state who processes data, for what purpose and to whom it goes, as the Datenschutzgesetz (data protection act) requires. For questions about your donor list, contact the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner.

How to do it with WeGlow.world

If your organisation is on WeGlow.world, you build the donation page in three steps: amount, details, summary. It offers one-off and monthly donations, each with its own amounts and labels, and works on a mobile phone.

Supporters can start their own action page and invite their network. That saves you a lot of work in weeks 4 and 5. Add a thank-you text so that a thank-you e-mail goes out automatically after a donation.

The four Christmas experiences are still concepts until the official launch. In the Starry Sky every donation becomes a star and you fly from star to star. The Card Wall shows envelopes on a string, each card with a stamp. More on the pages Starry Sky and Card Wall.

You can start for free with an account. Sign up at WeGlow.world/signup or write to us via contact. How to set this up as an online campaign is covered in Online Weihnachtsaktion in der Schweiz.

Frequently asked questions

Answers to the five questions that come up most often during planning.

Are six weeks really enough for a Christmas campaign?

Yes, if the format is small enough and the permit questions are settled in week 1. A donation page with e-mail sending is very doable in six weeks. A market stall, by contrast, often needs applications in spring.

Do I need a collection permit for a donation page on the internet?

We could not confirm whether an online donation page counts as a collection in your canton. Ask the cantonal office. Zurich describes the permit duty for contact in public space or at the door.

May I sell raffle tickets online?

No, not as a small game. Lotteries held online are large games under the Geldspielgesetz and need a permit from the intercantonal authority. Skip online tickets and settle raffles on site with your canton.

Can a donor deduct a donation from their taxes?

For organisations based in Switzerland and tax-exempt, yes: from CHF 100 in the tax year and up to 20 percent of income for federal tax. The canton sets its own limits. Issue a receipt with name, amount and year.

When should I send the thank-you message?

Best right after the donation, with a personal note, and a second time in early January with the final result. Plan the texts in week 3, so they are ready when the first donations arrive.

Sources

All sources were checked on 9 October 2026. This is not legal advice.

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