Help us fight damaging conduct (e.g.
corruption, indiscretions, irregularities)
in the federal administration, in organisations close to the Confederation or among recipients of subsidies!

What is it about?

It is about combating damaging conduct (e.g. corruption, indiscretions, irregularities) in the federal administration, in organisations close to the Confederation or among recipients of subsidies.

What is the SFAO responsible for and what is it not responsible for?

Based on a report, the SFAO can become active in those areas that are subject to its financial supervision.

These include, for example

• central and decentralised federal administration
• recipients of subsidies
• companies in which the Confederation holds a majority stake
• organisations to which the Confederation has delegated public tasks
• etc.

The SFAO cannot, however, become involved itself in reports outside its supervisory area.

These include, for example

• labour law incidents in the private sector
• neighbour disputes and other private disputes
• incidents that have no connection to Switzerland
• reports concerning cantonal and communal bodies
• etc.

In these and similar cases, you can contact the relevant authorities directly.

The SFAO is not a general legal advice service.

We thank you for respecting these principles and supporting us in remaining efficient and effective.

Who can submit a report?

Employees of the federal administration and organisations with close links to the administration are either obliged or entitled to report certain incidents. External parties such as suppliers, customers and any taxpayer can report such incidents.

What can or must be reported?

Crimes or offences that require official prosecution must be reported. This applies to punishable behavior, such as bribery or embezzlement. The employees of the federal administration and organisations with close links to the administration have a duty to report crimes and offences. They have a right to report other irregularities. This refers to malpractices in public procurement processes (e.g. informatics), uneconomical conduct, etc.

Why use an external platform?

Protection of the whistleblower is the highest priority. The use of the BKMS^® System ensures that all data is stored in encrypted format on a non-federal server in Switzerland. This excludes any possibility of unauthorised access of the data by federal authorities and guarantees that reports cannot be traced back to the whistleblower.

What is the process for submitting a report? How do I set up a postbox?

To submit a personalised or anonymous report, start by clicking the “Submit report” button located at the top of our introduction page.

The reporting process consists of 4 steps:

1. First, you will be asked to read the information on the protection of your anonymity and to respond to a security query.
2. On the following page, you will be asked about the category of your report.
3. On the report page, you can elaborate on your report in your own words and answer questions about the case by selecting responses. You can type up to 5,000 characters into the free text field, which corresponds to a full A4 page. You may also submit a file of up to 10 MB to support your report. Please bear in mind that documents can contain information about the author. Following the submission of your report, you will receive a reference number to confirm that you have sent this report.
4. Please subsequently set up your own secured postbox. You will receive feedback from us via this postbox, including answers to questions and, wherever possible, receive information about the progress of your report.

If you already have a secured postbox, you can access it directly via the “Login” button. First, you will also have to answer a security query.

As long as you do not enter any data from which conclusions about your person can be drawn, the technology of the BKMS^® System will protect your anonymity.

Please rest assured that we are interested only in the case you are reporting. Malpractices should be revealed and financial losses prevented.

How do I receive feedback and remain anonymous at the same time?

The overriding principle of the BKMS^® procedure in use is the protection of the whistleblower. The system's anonymity protection function is certified by an independent body.

When setting up your secured postbox, please select your own pseudonym/user name and password. Your report is kept anonymous through encryption and other specialised security measures. You will never be asked for personal information at any time during the reporting process. Do not submit any information that can be traced back to you.

The secured postbox also constitutes a way of contacting you if necessary, and you can use it to submit questions if anything is unclear. You will remain anonymous during the dialogue, too.

Foundation in the Federal Personnel Act

The legal bases can be found in Articles 22a and 34c of the Federal Personnel Act.

Federal Personnel Act (FPA, SR 172.220.1)

Art. 22a Obligation to report, reporting rights and protection

1. Employees are obliged to report to the prosecution authorities, their supervisor or the Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO) all crimes or misdemeanours subject to ex officio prosecution that they note in their official activities or that are brought to their attention.
2. Reporting obligations from other federal acts remain reserved.
3. The duty to report is not applicable for persons who, according to Article 113 Paragraph 1 and Articles 168 and 169 of the Swiss Criminal Procedure Code of 5 October 2007, have the right to refuse to testify.
4. Employees have the right to report other irregularities to the SFAO that they note during their official activities or that are brought to their attention. The SFAO will clarify the circumstances of the case and will take the necessary measures.
5. Persons filing a complaint or submitting a report in good faith or testifying as witness must not be disadvantaged in their professional status as a result.

Art. 34c Further employment of an employee

1. The employer shall offer its employee the same position or, if this is impossible, another reasonable position if the complaints authority has approved the complaint about the termination of their employment relationship for one of the following reasons:
1. The employment relationship was terminated because the employee filed a complaint in good faith as per Article 22a Paragraph 1 or submitted a report in good faith as per Article 22a Paragraph 4 or testified as witness.
2. The termination of the employment relationship shall be considered wrongful as per Article 336 of the Swiss Code of Obligations.
3. The employment relationship was terminated during one of the periods specified in Article 336c Paragraph 1 of the Swiss Code of Obligations.
4. The termination of the employment relationship shall be considered discriminatory as per Article 3 or 4 of the Equal Treatment Act of 24 March, 1995.
2. The complaints authority shall grant the affected employee upon his/her request compensation amounting to six monthly salaries at least and one annual salary at most, instead of further employment as per Paragraph 1 provided that the complaint was approved.