Billag fees in general suck, we all know that. In Germany and most european countries you have to pay a basic fee, too, but it't not even close to Billag.

In general, for people that move here: Billag switched to yearly bills some time ago. Before that, it was 3 month bills. If you just live some time here you must try to get 3 month bills.

Otherwise it will be more compilcated to get your money back if you leave the country and so on.

Sorry, but it is a tax. Just the same as your license fee on your car is a road tax.

I paid it for 2 years whilst living in Switzerland. I didn't have a problem per se but it would have been nice if it got me more than the few HD Swiss flyover programs that I really enjoyed. Everything else I watched and listened to were BBC programs on the Cablecom and Commercial radio and NPR on the car radios.

The license fee that the viewing public pay in the UK seems to be a much better deal as it is only 145.50 pounds and the programming is much better, IMHO. Just my Two Pence.

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In Switzerland the fee is so high because we have three language regions. Canton Tessin (italian, just 330'000 people) has two TV channels the rest of Switzerland has to co-finance and so on. it's crazy.

At least the Ticinese programming is good, we rarely watch any DRS programming.

Tom

Thanks for this thread.

I was considering getting a TV but the thought of a fee of CHF 500 on top of the device quickly took care of that terrible idea

Make sure you don't have anything capable of receiving a television or radio broadcast, or they'll make you pay anyway.

If you have no tv and just a radio, there is a radio-only fee. The fee is not as high, and some of the local radio stations are worth listening to.

We get billed every 3 months and we just moved here a year ago...

I was told by our relocation assistant that even if you don't have a TV you'll have to pay the TV component of Billag if you have a computer or PDA that can receive video. We don't even have a TV, but rather than fighting it we just paid both fees.

We only pay the radio component, even after a Billag guy came around to visit and check our details.

Has anyone out there actually seen billag bills beyond the "letzte Mahnung" or translated - final warning??? What happens? what do they do?

Only if you register with a service providing live TV on your PC such as Zattoo or Wilmaa.

And what happens with the tax you pay with your rent? I think 20CHF are to pay something like that, but I am not sure. It's inclusive... so I cannot decide to pay it or not.

That may be the cable fee, which is not the equivalence to Billag.
JC

Thanks. I know that that's not billag, but I would like to know if paying that, forces you to pay billag even if you don't have TV or internet.

Even though it is only a matter of twisting a plug and removing a cable from a box... The landlord would probably not disconnect your cable connection. However, you can ask (that is still free).

Maybe someone here has tried this - to contact Billag and voluntarily ask for them to inspect your apartment, in order to be removed from any billing database.
JC

I believe in the old times (80s or thereabouts) there was an option to have a seal put on your TV socket. I don't know whether they still offer that though, or what exactly happens if they discover the seal is broken.

Anyway, now that there are multiple ways to receive a TV signal, that seal wouldn't really prove very much.

But in the bigger picture, most people who live in the real world and not on the TV coach aren't even home at the times the Billag man typically calls. His letters are easily thrown in the bin (or photocopied multiple times, filled out with bogus names and addresses and returned to sender at Billag's expense) so there isn't really any need for further steps.

Do i need to inform Bill AG if i am moving out of Switzerland ? Can i pay a fractional bill, say i now i am going to move next month so can i pay only for a month even if i receive a bill for 3 months ?

Personally, I do not know. However, the best thing to do is talk to them. Explain your situation and ask them what the best method is.

You receive invoices on a three month interval? That is odd, I thought they went 100% to annual invoices starting 2011. Oh well
JC

Yes, i get quarterly invoice, i got my first invoice starting March this year and i was given option of quarterly billing