The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is a public transport offer in Switzerland. It is available in various credit sizes (“packages”) and consists of two components: the “customer deposit” (payment by the passenger) and the “bonus”, which the public transport sector grants according to defined rules.

When you conclude a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS contract and pay the customer deposit, you will have a personal credit which is stored as the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS payment method in the digital sales channels for public transport. You can use this credit to pay for your personal single tickets in digital channels for a maximum of one year.

Yes. You need a SwissPass account and therefore a SwissPass login as well.

If you want to buy a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS for your son, for example, you must do so using your son’s SwissPass login. If he does not yet have one, you will have to create one for him first.

The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is personal; a contracting party must also be the holder of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS. You can therefore only use your login details to buy a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS for yourself or your son’s login details to buy one for your son, for example. 

As the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS consists of a “customer deposit” paid in by you and a bonus component, you travel for free once you have used up your customer deposit.

When using the credit as a payment method, the tickets are first paid for from the customer deposit. Once the customer deposit amount has been used up, the bonus phase begins. From this point on, tickets are paid for using the bonus component.

The bonus phase ends either

• once a year has passed (on the last day of validity of the package),
• once the credit has been fully used before the last day of validity of the package (customer deposit and bonus component) or
• following cancellation.

The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is offered with credit amounts of CHF 1,000, CHF 2,000 and CHF 3,000. There is a difference between the customer deposits and the bonus components for the following two customer groups: ‘Adults’ (aged 25 and older) and ‘Youth’ (aged at least 6 and under 25).

You can obtain the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS at all public transport points of sale and online via the following digital channels:

• SBB.ch
• ZVV Ticket Shop
• ZVV app
• Libero Webshop
• öV Plus App

Further digital channels will follow.

The first day of validity of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is ‘today plus one day’ at the earliest.

Example: On 10 January 2025, you can purchase a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS that is valid from 11 January 2025 or later, but not one that is valid from 10 January 2025. Apart from this, the first day of validity may be freely selected (flexible date), provided the advance sale period of two months is observed.

The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit for the package you select will end once it has been fully used, one year after the first day of validity at the latest (one travelcard year) or after cancellation of the contract.

Once the travelcard year has passed, the remaining (unused) amount of your customer deposit will be reimbursed to your bank/postal account approximately 15 days after the last day of validity of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package. No offsetting is permitted for the new travelcard period of validity.

Within the period of validity, you can use the remaining bonus to buy a ticket on SBB.ch. If the ticket price is higher than the remaining bonus, you can select another payment method for the amount remaining and pay with that.

Important: this function is currently only available on SBB.ch, not in the SBB Mobile app.

The (remaining) bonus automatically expires after the travelcard year. There is no right to payment or credit for other/new offers for the remaining bonus.

No. The Half Fare Travelcard is not a component of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS and must be purchased separately.

No. You are not required to hold a Half Fare Travelcard to benefit from the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS offer. However, from a cost perspective, using a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS without a Half Fare Travelcard is not recommended.

Activation on SBB.ch.

1. If you haven’t already: carry out the two-factor authentication of your mobile phone number on swisspass.ch under ‘My account’ > ‘Customer data’ > ‘Correspondence’.
   
2. Log in to SBB.ch with your SwissPass login.
3. Under ‘Profile’ select ‘Travelcards’.
4. Click on ‘Enter payment method’ for the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS.
5. You will receive an SMS with an activation code. Enter this activation code in the corresponding field and complete the verification process by clicking ‘Confirm’.
6. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS has now been successfully activated and added as a payment method. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is now available to you on SBB.ch and on SBB Mobile / Preview.
7. If you wish to use it, please ensure that you select the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS payment method each time you purchase a ticket.

Activation on SBB Mobile / Preview.

1. If you haven’t already: carry out the two-factor authentication of your mobile phone number on swisspass.ch under ‘My account’ > ‘Customer data’ > ‘Correspondence’.
   
2. Please ensure that you are using the latest version of the SBB Mobile / Preview app (version 12.20.0 onwards / App StoreLink opens in new window., Google PlayLink opens in new window.).
3. Log in to SBB Mobile / Preview with your SwissPass login if you are not already logged in.
4. Under ‘Profile’ select ‘Wallet’.
5. Click on the ֲ‘Half Fare Travelcard PLUSֽ’ payment method. If the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS does not appear, log out of the app and log in again.
6. Click on ‘Activate credit’.
7. You will receive an SMS with an activation code. Enter this activation code in the corresponding field and complete the verification by clicking ‘Confirm’.
8. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS has now been successfully activated and added as a means of payment. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is now available on SBB Mobile / Preview and on SBB.ch.
9. If you wish to use it, please ensure that you select the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS payment method each time you purchase a ticket.

Each contracting party – regardless of residence and age – concludes the contract for an indefinite period of time. The contract is valid for an unlimited period.

No. Your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit is not renewed automatically. It expires after one travelcard year. (If you would like to renew the credit, you can buy a new package.)

However, the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS contract continues indefinitely, so you can top up your credit later at any time.

If you want to withdraw from the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS contract entirely, you can cancel the contract. You can find information on this in the section ‘Right of withdrawal and cancellation’.

As soon as your credit is in the bonus phase, you have three options for topping up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit and purchasing another Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package.

• You can top up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit in your profile on SBB.ch (SBB.ch > Profile > Travelcards > Half Fare Travelcard PLUS > Top up.)
• Alternatively, you can go to a staffed public transport point of sale.
• Or contact the SBB Contact Center on 0848 44 66 88 (CHF 0.08/Min.) by phone.

The new package automatically has ‘today +1 day’ (not freely selectable) as the first day of validity (FDV). The top-up credit in the new package can therefore be used from the next day onwards, provided the payment has been made.

Example.

• On 15 January 2025, you would like to top up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS and you pay the respective package price.
• On 16 January 2025, you can use the topped-up Half Fare Travelcard PLUS as a payment method again. From this point onwards, the new package will be valid again for a maximum of one year.

The bonus of the previous package will remain available until the end of the package’s period of validity. As soon as the bonus has been used up or has expired, you will automatically start using the newly deposited credit.

Upon conclusion of the contract, you are granted a 10-day right of withdrawal, but only as long as you have not yet used your credit to pay for tickets.

If you conclude your contract but do not pay your customer deposit within 10 days, the contract will be cancelled.

You can cancel the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS contract by giving one month’s notice before the end of each travelcard month.

You can cancel:

• online in your SwissPass accountLink opens in new window.
• in person at a public transport point of sale
• in writing by sending a letter to the SBB Contact Center, P.O. Box, 3900 Brig.
• by calling the SBB Contact Center on 0848 44 66 88 (CHF 0.08/min.), every day, 24/7, queues possible at times).

If you still have Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit after one year or if you wish to cancel early, the remaining customer deposit (original customer deposit minus credit already used) will be returned to you. The bonus amount expires. It is only possible to pay out the remaining customer deposit to the contracting party’s personal bank/postal account. This payment will be made approximately 15 days after the last day of validity of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package.

SBB reserves the right to cancel the contract at any time for justified reasons.

You can pay for the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS using the common payment methods (exception: purchase by invoice not possible). The amount paid in corresponds to the customer deposit.

The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS can be used for personal individual tickets and day passes of National Direct Service and the fare networks (including ‘Sparwelt’). It works for both 1st and 2nd class. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS cannot be combined with other discount models (excluding ‘Sparwelt’).

• Tickets via EasyRide and check-in ticketing.
• (Supersaver) tickets.
• (Saver) Day Passes.
• (Supersaver) class upgrade.
• Tickets, Day Passes for Dogs and Bike Day Passes.
• Reservations (except for panoramic trains).

The following are excluded:

• Travelcards.
• RailAway leisure offer.
• Multiple-journey tickets.
• Municipal Saver Day Passes.
• the promotional range (from partners such as Coop, Interdiscount, etc.).
• the Junior Travelcard.
• the Children’s Co-Travelcard.
• international tickets and reservations including the regions on either side of the border.
• Dog Pass & Annual bike pass.

Before you can buy tickets with the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS, you first need to activate the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS as a payment method. (See question ‘How do I activate my Half Fare Travelcard PLUS in the SBB Mobile app?’)

You can then select it as a payment method from the first day of validity onwards and use it to buy personal single tickets and Day Passes.

No. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS is personal. As the holder of a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS, you are also the contracting party. Buying tickets for other passengers is not permitted. In the event of a breach of this rule or of misuse, we reserve the right to terminate the contract at any time.

You can use the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS as a payment method on the following channels:

• SBB.ch
• SBB Mobile app (incl. EasyRide).
• SBB Preview app (incl. EasyRide).
• Libero Webshop.
• öV Plus app.
• ZVV Ticket Shop.
• ZVV app (incl. check-in ticket).
• BLS Webshop.
• BLS Mobil app (incl. check-in ticket).

Further digital channels will follow.

No. The validity of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS cannot be suspended and the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS cannot be deposited However, it is possible to cancel the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS contract.

Yes, it is. As soon as your credit is in the bonus phase, you have three options for topping up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit and purchasing another Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package.

• You can top up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit in your profile on SBB.ch (SBB.ch > Profile > Travelcards > Half Fare Travelcard PLUS > Top up.)
• Alternatively, you can go to a staffed public transport point of sale.
• Or contact the SBB Contact Center on 0848 44 66 88 (CHF 0.08/Min.) by phone.

The new package automatically has ‘today +1 day’ (not freely selectable) as the first day of validity (FDV). The top-up credit in the new package can therefore be used from the next day onwards, provided the payment has been made.

Example.

• On 15 January 2025, you would like to top up your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS and you pay the respective package price.
• On 16 January 2025, you can use the topped-up Half Fare Travelcard PLUS as a payment method again. From this point onwards, the new package will be valid again for a maximum of one year.

The bonus of the previous package will remain available until the end of the package’s period of validity. As soon as the bonus has been used up or has expired, you will automatically start using the newly deposited credit.

Yes, you can. You can arrange for your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit to be blocked as follows:

• in person at a public transport point of sale
  
• by calling the SBB Contact Center on 0848 44 66 88 (CHF 0.08/min.), every day, 24/7, queues possible at times).

Yes, you can pay for personal tickets from EasyRide or another automatic check-in ticketing system using the credit on your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS.

Please note:
Journeys with automatic ticketing (e.g. EasyRide) are charged the following day. The Half Fare Travelcard PLUS account can only be charged if a valid Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package is available on the day of charging. If charging takes place after the last day of validity of a Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package, the charge can only be applied if there is a subsequent package with no gap in validity.

Yes. Personal tickets paid for using your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS credit are refunded to the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS account. If the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package is no longer active, the credit will be issued in the form of a voucher/coupon. There is no entitlement to a refund for tickets valid outside the validity period of the Half Fare Travelcard PLUS package (advance sale) that were paid for with the bonus portion.

swisspass.ch.

On swisspass.ch, you can check your balance under ‘Travelcards’ after logging in to SwissPass.

SBB.ch.

After successfully logging in via SwissPass, you can view your balance at SBB.ch in your profile under ‘Travelcards’.

SBB Mobile (from version 12.20.0) / Preview app.

You can view your current balance via the SBB Mobile app in the ‘Tickets & Travelcards’ tab and in the ‘Profile’ tab under your stored payment methods.

To do this, log in at swisspass.ch. Then go to ‘Travelcards’ and select the option ‘Show purchases’. You will find your Half Fare Travelcard PLUS balance history there. All payment charges (purchases) and credit notes (refunds) will be displayed. Credit notes are marked with a minus sign (–).

If you do not want to top up your Half Fare travelcard PLUS at the moment, you can use the remaining bonus to buy a ticket on SBB.ch within the period of validity. If the ticket price is higher than the remaining bonus, you can select another payment method for the amount remaining and pay with that.

Important: this function is currently only available on SBB.ch, not in the SBB Mobile app.

The (remaining) bonus automatically expires after a year. There is no right to payment or credit for other/new offers for the remaining bonus.