Corporate Transfers in Zurich: Invoices and VAT

Business trips rarely fail because of the ride itself, but because of what comes afterwards: the receipt that does not fit the system, the VAT that is missing, the cost centre nobody assigned. A meter slip with a handwritten amount is a problem for many accounting departments; an app receipt without Swiss VAT too. This article describes how corporate transfers from Zurich Airport run so that everyone involved has peace of mind.

We drive for companies from Zurich, Zug, Basel and abroad – from the assistant coordinating thirty guests for a conference to the sole trader flying to Zug twice a month. The requirements are similar: reliable pickup, correct invoice, clear rules on changes, one point of contact.

The article is divided into ten chapters: invoice and VAT, consolidated invoices and cost centres, guest pickups, booking by third parties, cancellation and changes, vehicle classes for representation, events, data protection, a process proposal and contact. If you only want the process: chapter 9.

1. The invoice: automatic, with VAT shown

Every journey with us generates an invoice you receive by email – with booking reference, date, route, vehicle class, net amount, VAT and gross amount. Swiss VAT is shown, so companies entitled to input tax deduction can claim it. There is no handwritten slip and no receipt to photograph.

The invoice is generated by the system, not by the driver. That means it is uniform, numbered, and matches the fixed price you saw before the journey. Anyone who paid online finds the payment reference on the invoice; anyone travelling on account finds the payment term.

For travellers who submit their own expenses this means: forward the invoice, done. For assistants booking for others it means: the invoice goes to the email address entered at booking – the assistant's, not the guest's, if you enter it that way. How the fixed price is made up is explained in Fixed price instead of meter.

2. Consolidated invoices and cost centres

Companies with regular journeys receive, on request, a consolidated invoice – monthly or per project – instead of one invoice per ride. The consolidated invoice lists every journey with date, traveller, route and amount and shows VAT in total. For accounting that means one entry instead of twenty.

Cost centres, project numbers or traveller codes go into the remarks field when booking; they appear on the invoice. Anyone with a fixed standard – say "CC 4711 / Project Alpha" – tells us once, and we apply it to all journeys on the account.

Payment terms for corporate clients are agreed individually: online card payment at booking is standard, invoice with payment term is possible by arrangement. To set up, an email with company name, billing address, VAT number and the desired rhythm is enough.

• Monthly or project-based consolidated invoice
• Cost centre / project in the remarks field → appears on the invoice
• Payment by card at booking or on account by arrangement

3. Having guests collected: company name on the sign

When you have customers, candidates or partners collected at the airport, the first impression is the driver with the sign. On request it shows your company name – or company and guest name – so your guest recognises you immediately. The field for this in the booking form is called "Name sign".

The guest needs to know nothing except: "A driver is waiting with our name in the arrivals hall." We track the flight, the driver is ready at the actual landing time, 60 minutes of waiting are included, and the guest is taken to the hotel or your site. On request you receive a message when the guest has boarded.

For guests visiting Switzerland for the first time, a note on the meeting point in the confirmation you forward is advisable. Details are in Arrival 1 or Arrival 2?. The invoice goes to you, not to the guest.

4. Booking by assistants or travel management

Most corporate bookings come not from the traveller but from an assistant or travel manager. The form is designed for this: you enter the traveller's name and phone number, but your own email for confirmation and invoice. The traveller receives a separate copy if desired.

For several journeys – outbound and return, or several travellers on the same day – book one after the other; each journey has its reference. For larger volumes, such as a conference with twenty arrivals, send us a list with names, flights and hotels, and we create the journeys and confirm them together.

Changes run via the same reference: new flight number, different address, different time – an email or WhatsApp is enough. Up to 24 hours before pickup, changes are free subject to availability. How frequent flyers integrate booking into their routine is in Business travel Zurich: 5 habits.

5. Cancellation and changes: clear rules

Up to 24 hours before the agreed pickup time you cancel free of charge; any payment made is refunded in full. For corporate clients on account the line simply drops out. Within 24 hours the driver is usually already assigned; here we reserve the right to charge the full fare, but find a fair solution for flight cancellations and similar cases.

Flight delays are not a change: we track the flight and adjust the pickup automatically at no extra cost. For diversions to another airport we coordinate. For no-shows without notice the fare is due – which is why the traveller's phone number matters, not only the assistant's.

All rules are in our refund policy, linked in the footer. They are deliberately kept simple so nobody in the travel office has to look anything up. What happens in practice on delay, diversion and cancellation is described in Flight delayed or cancelled?.

6. Which vehicle class for which occasion

For the individual traveller with suitcase and laptop, the Business Class – Mercedes-Benz E-Class – is the standard: quiet, with charging port, enough space to work. For delegations of up to seven or guests with plenty of luggage, the Business & Family Class (V-Class) is the right choice; everyone travels together, the conversation continues.

For representative journeys – board members, key clients, guests where the first impression counts – we offer the Premium Class, a Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The difference is tangible, and it is shown transparently in the booking process. All classes with capacities are on the vehicles page.

For several vehicles at once – say two S-Classes and a V-Class for a delegation – we coordinate the pickup so all cars are ready in the hall at the same time. Send us people, flights and destination; you receive a proposal.

7. Events, trade fairs, congresses

For conferences in Zurich, fairs in Basel or the WEF in Davos we take over the entire arrival logistics: a list with names, flights and hotels, and we create the journeys, track every flight, provide drivers and vehicles and report to you who has arrived. You have one contact, not twenty drivers.

For fair weeks we recommend booking as soon as the dates are fixed – capacity is scarce then, and early bookers have a choice of vehicle class and times. Special rules with closure zones and access apply for the WEF; details in WEF Davos transfer guide. For Basel during the art and watch fairs, see Zurich Airport–Basel.

Billing is by consolidated invoice per event with all journeys, names and amounts. For sponsors or guests paying themselves we create individual invoices. And for returns on the last day, when everyone wants to go to the airport at once, we plan staggered.

8. Data protection: what we do with traveller data

For a journey we need name, phone number, flight number, addresses and time. This data is passed to the assigned chauffeur and stored in our system and dispatch calendar. We do not sell data, and we do not use it for marketing to your travellers.

We retain invoice data in accordance with statutory periods. On request we provide information, correct or delete data where no retention obligation exists. For companies that need a data processing agreement, we provide one.

The full privacy policy is linked in the footer. It also describes the service providers used – payment processing, hosting, calendar – and the legal bases under the Swiss Data Protection Act and, where applicable, GDPR.

9. A process that runs without queries

The following table describes the procedure as it has proven itself with our corporate clients: set up once, then it runs. The key is that every journey has the same five details and the invoice always goes to the same address.

Anyone who has set up this process once only needs to enter flight number, destination and time per journey. Everything else – company name on the sign, cost centre, billing address, consolidated invoice – is on file. Changes run via the reference, cancellations by the rules in chapter 5.

And if something is not right: you have a phone number and an email address with someone behind them who knows the journey. That, in the end, is the difference between an app and a service provider.

10. How to start

For the first journey you need no account: book online, enter the company name in the remarks field, and you receive an invoice with VAT. If it went well – and that is the test we want to pass – write to us to set up a corporate account with consolidated invoicing.

For assistants and travel managers looking after several travellers we offer a short call: fifteen minutes in which we understand your process and adapt ours. After that it runs by email and WhatsApp, without formalities.

The routes corporate clients book most often: Zug, Basel, Bern, Lucerne and Zurich city. All fixed prices are on the prices page. Book the first journey.