2026-10-16 · Law & compliance for software
What it takes for a Swiss GmbH to sell a subscription to consumers in the EU
I wanted to sell managed applications online, to businesses and to private individuals. Between “add Stripe” and “ready to sell” there were taxes, a cancellation button and a lot of small print.
The technical part of an online subscription is quick to build: cart, Stripe Checkout, done. The rest is what surprised me — because as a small Swiss company I assumed much of it did not apply to me.
Tax from the first franc
A company outside the EU that sells electronic services to private individuals in the EU owes the VAT of the customer's country — from the first sale. The 10,000 euro threshold you often read about applies only to companies inside the EU. In practice: registration for the OSS scheme in one EU country, consumer prices including the respective tax, evidence of the customer's residence and a return every quarter, even when nothing was sold.
For businesses it is simpler — which meant two prices per product: one including tax for private individuals, one without for companies.
What German consumer law requires
For consumers in Germany the website needs a “Cancel contracts here” button leading to a form that immediately sends a confirmation of receipt. After payment the customer must receive the terms, the withdrawal notice and the model form on a durable medium — a link is not enough. I built both: a confirmation email from the Stripe webhook carrying the full terms, and a cancellation form with an automatic receipt.
One point remains open: in subscription mode Stripe Checkout does not let you change the label of the payment button. It says “Subscribe”, the law asks for something like “order with obligation to pay”. That is a question for a lawyer.
Two models as reviewers
I had texts and code reviewed by two AI models, independently and in rounds, until neither found anything critical. It took three rounds. What they found most were places where the terms and the code did not say the same thing — such as a cancellation date the receipt asserted although it depended on the plan.
This does not replace a lawyer. But I now go to one with a few concrete questions instead of a blank page.