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Online accounting for garages in Sion: the practical guide

Between VAT, social contributions and the year-end close, a Swiss SME juggles dozens of deadlines a year. This page focuses on online accounting in Sion: what the law requires, what can be automated, and when to delegate.

Digitalising online accounting: what actually works

Access for the fiduciary, the auditor and employees is set by roles: view, enter, approve, close. Well-set rights protect the data and speed up collaboration.

For an SME in Sion, the real gain of digitalised online accounting shows day to day: no paper pile at month-end, VAT prepared continuously, and an owner reading today's figures rather than last quarter's.

Outsource online accounting or keep it in-house?

Responsibility stays with the client: the fiduciary executes with care, but the signed accounts bind the company. Understanding what you sign is not optional.

For online accounting, a quarterly 30-minute check-in with the fiduciary beats an annual marathon: questions get handled while they are small.

The Swiss legal frame for online accounting

Three documents summarise the health of a Swiss business: the balance sheet (what it owns), the income statement (what it earns) and the notes (what else you should know). All the work of online accounting converges on those three pages, in Sion too.

The law also settles the form: accounts may be kept in a national language or in English, on paper or electronically (art. 957a para. 5 CO). That pragmatism lets online accounting run entirely on digital tools — no paper binder is required.

Pen pointing at a bar chart on paper

A well-structured SME chart of accounts

The test of a good chart of accounts is a single question: can the owner find the margins in three clicks? If not, the chart serves the tax office but not the business — even in Sion.

For a business in Sion, comparability over time beats sophistication: a chart stable for five years beats a “perfect” one rebuilt every year. Banks and the tax administration read year-on-year movements first.

Sion: what changes, what does not

Sion (postal code 1950, canton Valais) applies the same federal rules as the rest of the country: what changes in Sion are the cantonal counterparts — tax administration, compensation office, commercial register.

For a business in Sion, that means VAT returns identical to anywhere in Switzerland, but a tax return and family allowances governed by the canton Valais.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a limited and an ordinary audit?

The ordinary audit applies to companies exceeding, for two consecutive years, two of three thresholds: CHF 20 million balance sheet total, CHF 40 million revenue, 250 full-time positions. Others fall under the limited audit, and those with no more than ten full-time positions on annual average can opt out with all shareholders' consent. These federal thresholds do not depend on the registered seat — in Sion as anywhere.

Do you need a fiduciary for online accounting, or can you do it yourself?

Both are defensible. Below CHF 500,000 of revenue, a sole proprietorship may keep simplified accounts itself. As soon as payroll, VAT and a closing with tax stakes are involved, professional support prevents mistakes that cost more than the fees. With a shared platform, the fiduciary does not even need to be in Sion.

Which documents should be prepared for the year-end closing?

Bank and cash statements at the closing date, the inventory of stock and work in progress, final AHV/LPP/accident settlements, contracts signed or amended during the year, invoices straddling two years and the detail of accruals. With an up-to-date document archive, most of it is already there. The list is identical in Sion: the CO dictates it, not the commune.

How long must records related to online accounting be kept?

Ten years from the end of the financial year concerned (art. 958f CO). Electronic retention is permitted if the integrity and readability of the records are guaranteed — a serious digital archive validly replaces paper binders. A business in Sion can therefore archive fully digitally.

Also worth reading

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Switch to accounting that keeps itself up to date

MyFiducia.ai automates online accounting for businesses in Sion: AI-read documents, posting suggestions, VAT and exports ready for your fiduciary. Try the platform or browse our other guides.

The application is operated in French.

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