Majority of Swiss nonprofits yet to adopt new QR-bill invoicing standard

Despite Switzerland introducing the QR-bill – an invoicing standard that will replace payment slips – last June, many nonprofits have still to make the switch, according to a Swissfundraising survey.

Organisations in Switzerland have until September 2022 to stop using the country’s orange and red payment slips and fully adopt the QR-bill. The new standard has been introduced to modernise and simplify payment transaction processes – including donations – and to meet anti-money laundering regulatory requirements.

Swissfundraising’s survey on the changeover shows that less than 1 in 10 (8%) have sent QR-bills so far. Almost a third of respondents have yet to start the process, while planning is in progress for 56%, and a further 4% have started the process.

One barrier to switching over shared by respondents is concern over how older donors will react. In addition, organisations that have already carried out tests with QR-bills state that there remains a need for education, with many members of the public still unfamiliar with them.

However, the survey responses also highlight a number of positives: more information is automatically transmitted with the QR-bill for instance, such as the reason for payment, which makes it easier to allocate payments made via this method. Respondents also feel the country’s increased use of digital payment technology could help with take up – popular Swiss mobile payment app TWINT, for example, uses QR codes and now has more than 3 million registered users.

Questions raised by survey participants included what scope organisations have to customise the QR-bill. According to Swissfundraising, this is possible to a certain extent, but the QR-bill must comply with certain standards.

Another question was on how QR-bills can be issued. According to Swissfundraising, they can be sent physically on paper, electronically as an eBill, or as a PDF, and the payment part with the receipt can be placed at the bottom of the page or printed on a separate sheet.

To help further, Swissfundraising is compiling a catalogue of questions and answers on the topic, which is accessible on the Swissfundraising site and continuously updated.

Photo by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay