Swiss Representative

Swiss Representative | Swiss REP

Data Business Services provides you with all the services of a Swiss Representative for data protection. With Data Business Services located in Zurich, Switzerland as your Swiss Representative you can be sure that your company is set for complete nFADP compliance. And with a Swiss Representative in Switzerland, you are prepared for all Swiss privacy inquiries that may arise.

If you do not have a registered office in Switzerland, you probably still need a Swiss Representative. Why? Because you are likely to lose business and perhaps even risk being imposed a fine. One of the rules of the nFADP is the necessity to appoint a Swiss Representative when you process personal data of people located in Switzerland, regardless of your company’s location.

Do I Need A Swiss Representative?

Do you offer goods or services to customers or clients in Switzerland?
Do you monitor the behavior of people in Switzerland?

If the answer to one of these questions is YES, then you must appoint a representative according to the nFADP, especially if your company does not have any physical presence in Switzerland. Exception: If you are processing personal data only occasionally and if so, then without any risk to the rights and freedoms of natural persons. However, the scope for applying this exception is rather small especially for online companies, as most of them rely heavily on the usage of personal data.

Which Duties Does A Swiss Representative Have?

The tasks are defined in Art. 15 FDPA:

Point of contact for data subjects and the FDPIC – the Swiss Rep can make legally effective declarations and receive such declarations by proxy;
Swiss supervisory authorities can oblige the Swiss Rep to provide all relevant information necessary to clarify data protection facts; and
Maintenance of the register of processing activities according to Art. 12 FDPA. It is not prescribed whether this task must be ensured by the Swiss Rep. However, this can be contractually transferred to the Swiss Rep.

Whom Can I Appoint As My Ec-Representative?

Natural persons or companies with a registered office in Switzerland can be appointed. Although there are no requirements defined in the law, it is recommended that the Swiss Rep meets the following requirements:

Knowledge of the Swiss data protection laws and the GDPR;
Knowledge of corresponding laws in Switzerland;
Basic knowledge of information security;
Experience with data protection in practice; and
Experience in dealing with supervisory authorities and data subjects.

How To Appoint A Representative?

The representative needs to be assigned in writing. The mandate should include the actual functions and duties of the representative. At this point, the Swiss authority does not need to be informed about the appointment. However, you must mention the representative in your information for the affected individuals (e.g. your company’s privacy notice) as well as in the report of your data processes.