The Unternehmens-Identifikationsnummer: CHE followed by nine digits, usually written CHE-103.867.266. The ninth digit is a mod-11 check digit with the weights 5, 4, 3, 2, 7, 6, 5, 4, and the check is enforced: a UID with a wrong check digit is a 400 validation error.

Is the Swiss VAT number the UID?

Yes. The Swiss VAT number is the UID followed by MWST (German), TVA (French) or IVA (Italian), for example CHE-103.867.266 MWST. Search it with vat= and country=CH; it resolves to the same company as the UID. Switzerland is not in VIES, so whether a number is registered is a question for the Swiss tax authorities.

Which activity classification do Swiss records use?

None. The register publishes no activity code (no NOGA code), so the activity fields of a Swiss record are null.

Does Prometiam serve Swiss officers, company events or insolvency notices?

Company events and insolvency notices yes; officers no. Swiss records are company-level: legal name, legal form, status, registered address with the canton, and business purpose. There are no officers and no registry-compliance signal. Register-change events (name, status, legal form and registered address; dated when the change first appears in the register data, none before 2026-09-30) and monitoring are available. Corporate insolvency notices from the SHAB are linked to the company by UID where the notice names the debtor's UID; a notice without one stays unlinked.

Which Swiss entities are included?

Legal entities and branches entered in the commercial register: companies limited by shares, limited liability companies, cooperatives, partnerships, associations, foundations, public-law institutions and branches of Swiss and foreign companies. Sole proprietorships (Einzelunternehmen) and other natural persons are never served, so a search for one returns nothing even though it exists.

How does the status of a Swiss company work?

A company in the register is active. The register marks a liquidation in the company name ("in Liquidation", "en liquidation", "in liquidazione"), and such a company is served as in_liquidation. A company deleted from the register is served as dissolved. There is no separate bankruptcy status.

What is Zefix (the Swiss commercial register)?

Zefix is the central business name index of the Swiss commercial registers, run by the Federal Commercial Registry Office of the Federal Office of Justice, and it is where the Swiss company records Prometiam serves come from. Every legal entity in it carries a UID: CHE plus nine digits, written CHE-103.867.266 for Novartis AG. The Swiss VAT number is the UID followed by MWST, TVA or IVA.

The UID

The UID (Unternehmens-Identifikationsnummer) is CHE followed by nine digits, usually written with dots and a hyphen. The ninth digit is a mod-11 check digit (weights 5, 4, 3, 2, 7, 6, 5, 4) and the check is enforced: a UID with a wrong check digit is rejected.

Legal forms and status

The legal form is the register's code with its label, for example 0106 for the Aktiengesellschaft (AG) and 0107 for the GmbH. The status is active, in liquidation (the register marks it in the company name) or dissolved once the company is deleted. The register publishes no activity code.

What Prometiam serves for Switzerland

Company records from Zefix, the Swiss central business name index: legal name, legal form, status (including liquidation), registered address with the canton and business purpose; with register-change events and monitoring, but no officers, no registry-compliance signal and no activity code. Legal entities and branches only; sole proprietorships (Einzelunternehmen) and other natural persons are never served. Corporate insolvency notices (SHAB) are linked to the company by UID where the notice names the debtor's UID. The UID with its MWST, TVA or IVA suffix is searchable with vat.

Querying Swiss companies

GET /companies/search?company_number=CHE-103.867.266&country=CH returns the record. The free UID lookup runs the same call without a key.

Read the full guide · Get a free API key

Official sources: Zefix · UID register. Source: Zefix, Federal Office of Justice, Federal Commercial Registry Office (open use, source required); restructured by Prometiam, not a certified register extract

Who supplies what

Name	What it is
Zefix	The central business name index of the Swiss commercial registers. The source of the legal name, legal form, status, registered address, canton and business purpose.
Federal Commercial Registry Office	The unit of the Federal Office of Justice that runs Zefix. Prometiam's Swiss records carry the credit line "Source: Zefix, Federal Office of Justice, Federal Commercial Registry Office (open use, source required); restructured by Prometiam, not a certified register extract".
Cantonal commercial register offices	The offices of the 26 cantons that make the entries. A company is registered at its seat, and its entry is written in the language of the canton: German, French or Italian.
UID	The enterprise identification number, issued by the Federal Statistical Office. `CHE-103.867.266`. The key you store for the register record.
SHAB	The Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce, where register entries and insolvency notices are published. See What is the SHAB?

What a Swiss record holds

Field	Notes
Legal name	The name as registered.
Legal form	The register's legal-form code with its label: for example 0106 for the Aktiengesellschaft (AG, SA), 0107 for the Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung (GmbH, Sàrl), 0108 for the Genossenschaft (cooperative), 0109 for the Verein (association), 0110 for the Stiftung (foundation), 0103 for the Kollektivgesellschaft, 0104 for the Kommanditgesellschaft, 0151 for the Swiss branch of a company and 0111 for the branch of a foreign company.
Status	Active, in liquidation or dissolved. The register marks a liquidation in the company name ("in Liquidation", "en liquidation", "in liquidazione"); a company deleted from the register is dissolved. There is no separate bankruptcy status.
Registered address	Street and number, postal code and locality, with the canton (two letters, such as ZH or VD) in `region`.
Business purpose	The purpose clause (Zweck) in `business_purpose`, in the language of the cantonal entry.
Identifiers	The UID (`company_number`) and the CH-ID (`ch_id`, the register's own number, such as CH03640617915) in `identifiers`.
Activity code	None. The register publishes no NOGA code, so the activity fields are null.

Frequently asked questions

What is Zefix?: The central business name index (Zentraler Firmenindex) of the Swiss commercial registers, run by the Federal Commercial Registry Office of the Federal Office of Justice. It is the source of the Swiss company records Prometiam serves.
What is a Swiss UID?: The Unternehmens-Identifikationsnummer: CHE followed by nine digits, usually written CHE-103.867.266. The ninth digit is a mod-11 check digit with the weights 5, 4, 3, 2, 7, 6, 5, 4, and the check is enforced: a UID with a wrong check digit is a 400 validation error.
Is the Swiss VAT number the UID?: Yes. The Swiss VAT number is the UID followed by MWST (German), TVA (French) or IVA (Italian), for example CHE-103.867.266 MWST. Search it with vat= and country=CH; it resolves to the same company as the UID. Switzerland is not in VIES, so whether a number is registered is a question for the Swiss tax authorities.
Which activity classification do Swiss records use?: None. The register publishes no activity code (no NOGA code), so the activity fields of a Swiss record are null.
Does Prometiam serve Swiss officers, company events or insolvency notices?: Company events and insolvency notices yes; officers no. Swiss records are company-level: legal name, legal form, status, registered address with the canton, and business purpose. There are no officers and no registry-compliance signal. Register-change events (name, status, legal form and registered address; dated when the change first appears in the register data, none before 2026-09-30) and monitoring are available. Corporate insolvency notices from the SHAB are linked to the company by UID where the notice names the debtor's UID; a notice without one stays unlinked.
Which Swiss entities are included?: Legal entities and branches entered in the commercial register: companies limited by shares, limited liability companies, cooperatives, partnerships, associations, foundations, public-law institutions and branches of Swiss and foreign companies. Sole proprietorships (Einzelunternehmen) and other natural persons are never served, so a search for one returns nothing even though it exists.
How does the status of a Swiss company work?: A company in the register is active. The register marks a liquidation in the company name ("in Liquidation", "en liquidation", "in liquidazione"), and such a company is served as in_liquidation. A company deleted from the register is served as dissolved. There is no separate bankruptcy status.