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Create Swiss QR Bill in Zapier

What this action does

PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill generates Swiss Payment Standards (SPS) compliant Swiss QR-bills (QR-Rechnung) inside your Zapier workflow. Convert invoice data from Bexio, Sage, Abacus, QuickBooks, Xero, Microsoft Dynamics, or any Zapier-connected source into a print-ready Swiss QR-bill with IBAN, structured creditor and ultimate debtor details, QR Reference (QRR) or Creditor Reference (SCOR), Amount, Currency, and multi-language labels. Output as PDF, PNG, JPEG, or TIFF. Accepted by every Swiss bank, PostFinance, and Swiss banking app since the QR-bill became the only valid Swiss payment document on 30 September 2022.

Authenticating Your API Request​

To access the PDF4me Web API through Zapier, every action must be authenticated. Click Connect a new account the first time and paste your PDF4me API key. Subsequent Zaps reuse the connection automatically.

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Important Facts You Should Not Miss​

Swiss QR-bill is the ONLY valid Swiss payment document since 30 Sep 2022
Legacy red (ES) and orange (ESR) payment slips were retired by SIX Group and Swiss banks. Every Swiss B2B and B2C invoice now requires a Swiss QR-bill for domestic payment. The Zapier action produces fully SPS-compliant output accepted by all Swiss banks and PostFinance.
QRR vs SCOR vs NON: pick the right reference type
Use QRR (27-digit QR Reference) with a QR-IBAN for automated Swiss bank reconciliation. Use SCOR (ISO 11649 Creditor Reference) for SEPA cross-border invoicing. Use NON for simple payments without structured reference. Pair with Unstructured Message for context.
Structured address (S) is required for automated reconciliation
Both Creditor and Ultimate Debtor address types accept S (Structured: separate street, number, postal code, and city fields) or K (Combined: two free-form lines). Use S for production Swiss banking workflows; K is permitted but lower precision for downstream automated processing.

Configure in Zapier​

On the Configure step, fields appear in the order below. Format Type, IBAN, Creditor Address Type, and Creditor Name are required (asterisked in Zapier); other fields are optional or conditional.

Zapier PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill Configure step: Format Type PDF, optional File or File URL and File Name, paging Options Custom with Page Number, Currency CHF, and Reference Type

Output and PDF placement: set Format Type (PDF/PNG/JPEG/TIFF), optional File or File URL, paging Options, and Page Number when using Custom placement.

Zapier PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill Configure step: Format Type PNG, Currency CHF, Reference Type QRR, Language Type English, Separator Line, Amount, IBAN, Creditor Address Type S, Creditor Name, and creditor address fields

Payment and creditor: Currency, Reference Type, Amount, IBAN, and structured Creditor address fields (S = Structured).

Zapier PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill Configure step: Ultimate Debtor address fields, Reference, Unstructured Message, Billing Info, AV1 Parameters, and AV2 Parameters

Debtor, reference, and advanced fields: optional Ultimate Debtor details, Reference (for QRR/SCOR), Unstructured Message, Billing Info (Swico), and AV1 / AV2 parameters.

Parameters​

Required in the Zapier UI (asterisked): Format Type, IBAN, Creditor Address Type, Creditor Name. Conditional: File or File URL (either-or, used when embedding QR-bill in an existing PDF); Page Number (when paging Options is Custom). Strongly recommended for valid Swiss QR-bills: all Creditor address fields and Ultimate Debtor fields. The Swiss Payment Standards specification requires complete address data even though the Zapier UI does not asterisk them.

ParameterRequiredWhat it doesExample
Format TypeYesOutput file format. PDF for print-ready Swiss QR-bills (default), PNG/JPEG for digital web or email embedding, TIFF for archival quality, Empty/null for raw data. Asterisked in the Zapier UI.PDF
FileConditionalBase PDF where the Swiss QR-bill will be embedded. Either provide File or File URL, not both. Map binary content from a previous step (Dropbox, Google Drive, HTTP). Hint: "Either provide File or File URL".Input sample (sample.pdf)1. File
File URLConditionalPublic URL to the base PDF. Either provide File or File URL. PDF4me downloads the file and embeds the QR-bill onto it.Input sample (sample.pdf)1. File
File NameNoOutput filename for the generated Swiss QR-bill document. Include the extension matching Format Type (.pdf, .png, .jpg, .tiff).Output sample (sample.swissqr.pdf)
paging OptionsNoControls where the QR-bill is placed in the output PDF. First (top of doc), Last (final page), Add Page At End (appends a new dedicated QR-bill page), Custom (specific page index; requires Page Number below).Custom (page number)
Page NumberConditionalSpecific page index for the QR-bill placement. Required when paging Options is Custom. Page index starts at 1.3
CurrencyNoCurrency for the QR-bill payment amount. Only CHF (Swiss Franc, default for Swiss domestic) and EUR (cross-border) are valid per SPS specification.CHF
Reference TypeNoSent as code: NON (No Reference, for simple payments), QRR (27-digit QR Reference for QR-IBAN auto-reconciliation), or SCOR (ISO 11649 Creditor Reference for SEPA-compatible cross-border).QRR
Language TypeNoDisplay language for printed QR-bill labels. Options: English, German, French, Italian. Match the recipient's Swiss region.English
Separator LineNoVisual separator between invoice body and QR-bill tear-off section. Options: "Line with Scissor" (Swiss standard for printed bills), Simple Line, No Line.Line with Scissor
AmountNoPayment amount in the chosen Currency. Enter as a number with up to two decimal places. Leave blank if the customer fills in the amount themselves.19432
IBANYesCreditor's Swiss IBAN. Must start with CH and have 19 digits total. For QRR reference type, use a QR-IBAN (with QR-IID 30000–31999). Asterisked in the Zapier UI.CH4431999123000889012
Creditor Address TypeYesAddress format for creditor information. Sent as code S (Structured, recommended for Swiss banking) or K (Combined, two free-form lines). Asterisked.S
Creditor NameYesFull name of the creditor (company or individual) as registered with the bank. Printed on the generated QR-bill. Asterisked.muneer
Creditor: Street Name or Address Line 1NoStreet name for the creditor (Structured) OR first free-form address line (Combined). Strongly recommended for valid SPS output.vb vcb
Creditor: Building Number or Address Line 2NoHouse/building number (Structured) OR second free-form address line (Combined).1268
Creditor CityNoSwiss city for the creditor. Must correspond to the Postal Code.Zurich
Creditor Postal CodeNoValid 4-digit Swiss postal code for the creditor.2501
Ultimate Debtor Address TypeNoAddress format for the party who will pay the bill. S (Structured) or K (Combined). Use S for automated processing.S
Ultimate Debtor NameNoFull name of the party who will pay. Appears in the payment section of the printed QR-bill.Pia-Maria Rutschmann-Schnyder
Ultimate Debtor: Street Name or Address Line 1NoDebtor street name (Structured) or first free-form line (Combined).Grosse Marktgasse
Ultimate Debtor: Building Number or Address Line 2NoDebtor house/building number or secondary address line.23
Ultimate Debtor CityNoSwiss city of the debtor.Rorschach
Ultimate Debtor Postal CodeNoValid 4-digit Swiss postal code for the debtor.9400
ReferenceNoThe actual reference value embedded in the QR code. Required content when Reference Type is QRR (27-digit numeric) or SCOR (ISO 11649 starting with RF). Empty when Reference Type is NON.210000000003139471430009017
Unstructured MessageNoFree-form payment note printed on the QR-bill. Combined with Billing Info, max 140 characters total. Useful for invoice references when Reference Type is NON.Instruction of 15.09.2019
Billing InfoNoStructured billing information per Swiss QR-bill specification (Swico syntax). Encodes invoice number, date, VAT details. Combined with Unstructured Message, max 140 characters total.S1/01/20170309/11/10201409/20/14000000/22/36958/30/CH106071086/40/1020/41/3010
AV1 ParametersNoAlternative procedure parameter 1 (AV1). Reserved for future Swiss payment alternative procedures and bilateral agreements between sender and receiver.Name AV1: UV;UltraPay005;12345
AV2 ParametersNoAlternative procedure parameter 2 (AV2). Reserved for future Swiss payment alternative procedures.Name AV2: XY;XYService;54321

Format Type Options​

Controls the output file format of the generated Swiss QR-bill.

PDFDefault (print-ready)
Full-fidelity Swiss QR-bill PDF ready for printing, mailing, or archival. The standard for B2B and B2C Swiss invoicing.
PNGWeb and digital embedding
QR-bill as a PNG image. Embed in customer portals, web invoices, mobile apps, or HTML emails where an image format is required.
JPEGEmail-friendly compressed image
Smaller file size than PNG. Suitable for inline email embedding or mobile delivery where bandwidth matters more than perfect fidelity.
TIFFArchival quality
High-resolution TIFF for document management systems, banking archival, and regulatory retention workflows requiring maximum image fidelity.
Empty (null)Raw data output
Raw QR-bill data without a specific file wrapper. Use for downstream API integrations that handle format conversion themselves.

Reference Type Options​

Controls which payment reference standard is embedded in the QR code. This directly affects how payments are reconciled in the receiver's bank statement.

NONNo Reference (simple payments)
No structured reference embedded. Use for one-off payments where reconciliation is handled manually or via the Unstructured Message field. Compatible with regular CH-IBANs (not QR-IBANs).
QRRQR Reference (27-digit Swiss reconciliation)
27-digit numeric reference (replaces legacy ESR). Mandatory when using a QR-IBAN (containing QR-IID 30000–31999). Enables fully automated payment reconciliation with PostFinance and all Swiss banks. The standard choice for domestic B2B invoicing at scale.
SCORCreditor Reference (ISO 11649 SEPA)
ISO 11649 structured Creditor Reference starting with RF + two checksum digits + up to 21 alphanumeric characters. Use for cross-border SEPA-compatible invoicing or when your accounting system requires standardized ISO references.

Address Type Options​

Applies to both Creditor Address Type and Ultimate Debtor Address Type.

SStructured (recommended)
Each address component stored in a separate field (Street, Building Number, Postal Code, City). Required by most Swiss banking systems for automated payment reconciliation. Mandatory for QR-IBAN processing.
KCombined (two free-form lines)
Full address as two free-form lines. Simpler to populate but less precise for downstream automated processing. Use only when Structured is not feasible due to legacy address data sources.

Paging Options​

Controls where the QR-bill is placed in the output PDF when Format Type is PDF.

First
Places the QR-bill on the first page of the output document.
Last
Places the QR-bill on the final page of the existing document.
Add Page At End
Most common option. Appends a dedicated new page with the QR-bill. Preserves all invoice content untouched.
Custom (page number)
Specific page index from the Page Number field. Use when your invoice template reserves a specific page for the QR-bill.

Sample Files​

Use these files to test Create SwissQR Bill before wiring your live Zap. sample.pdf is the input: a plain PDF you map to File (or host at File URL). sample.swissqr.pdf is the output: the same document after PDF4me adds the Swiss QR-bill payment section with your configured IBAN, creditor, and reference fields.

Output Fields​

FieldTypeWhat it contains
File ContentBinaryGenerated Swiss QR-bill file (PDF/PNG/JPEG/TIFF). Map into the next step for upload, email, or further processing. See sample.swissqr.pdf for a PDF example.
File UrlStringDirect URL to access the generated QR-bill, useful for sharing or downstream HTTP processing.
File NameStringOutput filename without extension (for example sample.swissqr when the full name is sample.swissqr.pdf).
Full File NameStringComplete output filename with extension matching the chosen Format Type (for example sample.swissqr.pdf).

Quick Setup​

  1. In Zapier, click + to add a new action and select PDF4me.
  2. Choose Create SwissQR Bill as the action event.
  3. Connect your PDF4me account or paste your API key when prompted.
  4. Set Format Type: PDF for printed invoices, PNG/JPEG for web/email, TIFF for archival.
  5. If embedding the QR-bill in an existing PDF, map File OR File URL (not both) and choose paging Options (Custom requires Page Number).
  6. Enter Currency (CHF for domestic Swiss, EUR for cross-border), Amount, Reference Type (QRR / SCOR / NON), Language Type, and Separator Line.
  7. Enter IBAN (valid Swiss CH IBAN; for QRR reference type use a QR-IBAN with QR-IID 30000–31999).
  8. Fill all Creditor fields: Name, Address Type (S recommended), Street Name, Building Number, City, Postal Code.
  9. Fill Ultimate Debtor fields with the paying party's details (same Structured/Combined pattern).
  10. For advanced cases, add Reference (27-digit QRR or RF... SCOR), Unstructured Message, Billing Info (Swico syntax), AV1, AV2.
  11. Test the action with sample data, verify the output, and turn the Zap on.

Workflow Examples​

Workflow ExamplesCommon Zapier workflow patterns using Create SwissQR Bill.
Bexio / Sage invoice → Swiss QR-bill → email to customer
  1. A Bexio, Sage, or Abacus webhook fires when a new B2B invoice is finalized for a Swiss customer.
  2. PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill runs: Format Type = PDF, Currency = CHF, Reference Type = QRR (with QR-IBAN), Language Type = German, Amount and IBAN mapped from the webhook payload.
  3. Creditor fields are mapped from your company record; Ultimate Debtor fields from the customer record in the source system.
  4. A Gmail or Outlook step sends the QR-bill PDF as an email attachment to the customer's billing email. The file is fully SPS-compliant and ready for instant payment from any Swiss banking app.
  5. A Google Sheets or Airtable log captures invoice ID, customer, amount, QR Reference, and timestamp for AR reconciliation.
E-commerce Swiss order → QR-bill PNG → checkout email
  1. A Shopify, WooCommerce, or Stripe checkout webhook fires when a Swiss customer chooses "Pay by Bank Transfer" instead of card.
  2. PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill runs: Format Type = PNG (image embedding), Currency = CHF, Reference Type = QRR, Amount from the order total, Language Type matched to customer's locale.
  3. The PNG image is embedded inline in an HTML order-confirmation email so the customer can scan it directly in their banking app to pay.
  4. Payment received → bank reconciliation matches QR Reference back to the original order automatically.
  5. Shopify order is marked Paid and fulfillment begins with no manual reconciliation or invoice-number guessing.
Monthly subscription batch → QR-bills → archive in SharePoint
  1. A Schedule by Zapier trigger fires on the 1st of every month for monthly subscription billing in CHF.
  2. A Google Sheets or Airtable lookup retrieves all active subscribers with their IBAN, address, amount, and QR Reference template.
  3. A Loop by Zapier iterates over each subscriber. PDF4me Create SwissQR Bill generates one QR-bill per row with QRR reference and Add Page At End paging.
  4. Each QR-bill PDF is emailed to the subscriber via Gmail and archived in Microsoft SharePoint with a filename pattern like qrbill_{customerId}_{YYYY-MM}.pdf.
  5. A monthly summary email to the finance team reports total invoiced amount, subscriber count, and exception count for clean cash-flow visibility on day 1.

Frequently Asked Questions​

What is the Swiss QR-bill and why did Switzerland introduce it?+
The Swiss QR-bill (Swiss QR-Rechnung) is the official digital payment standard introduced by SIX Group and Swiss banks in June 2020 to replace the legacy orange (ESR) and red (ES) payment slips. Every Swiss QR-bill contains a Swiss QR Code carrying structured payment data (IBAN, amount, currency, creditor, debtor, and reference) that can be scanned by Swiss banking apps and PostFinance for instant, error-free payments. All Swiss banks, PostFinance, and the Swiss payment ecosystem support the QR-bill format as the only valid domestic payment document since 30 September 2022. The legacy slips were officially retired on that date and are no longer accepted by Swiss banks for new payments.
What is the difference between QR Reference (QRR), Creditor Reference (SCOR), and No Reference (NON)?+
QRR (QR Reference) is a 27-digit numeric reference replacing the legacy ESR reference. It is mandatory for QR-IBAN accounts (IBANs containing the QR-IID 30000–31999) and enables fully automated payment reconciliation in Swiss banking systems. Your bank statement maps each incoming payment back to the original invoice using this reference number. SCOR (Creditor Reference) is the ISO 11649 structured reference starting with RF, used for SEPA-compatible cross-border invoicing where the recipient operates in the broader EU/EEA payment area. NON (No Reference) is used when no structured reference is needed, most often paired with an Unstructured Message describing the payment purpose. Choose QRR for Swiss domestic B2B and B2C with auto-reconciliation, SCOR for cross-border SEPA, NON for simple one-off payments.
What is the difference between Structured (S) and Combined (K) address types?+
Structured address type (code S) stores each address component in separate fields: Street Name (or Address Line 1), Building Number (or Address Line 2), Postal Code, and City. This gives maximum compatibility with the Swiss Payment Standards specification and automated bank reconciliation systems. Combined address type (code K) stores the full address as two free-form lines, simpler to populate from legacy CRMs but less precise for downstream automated processing. Structured is recommended for all production Swiss QR-bills and is mandatory for QR-IBAN reconciliation; Combined is permitted but should only be used when you have no choice. The Zapier action accepts S or K codes directly in the Creditor Address Type and Ultimate Debtor Address Type fields.
Can I generate a Swiss QR-bill in PNG, JPEG, or TIFF format instead of PDF?+
Yes. The Format Type parameter supports PDF (default, print-ready Swiss QR-bill, the standard for B2B and B2C invoicing), PNG (digital web embedding for customer portals, web invoices, mobile apps), JPEG (email-friendly compressed image for HTML emails), TIFF (archival quality for document management and regulatory retention), and Empty/null (raw data for downstream API integrations). PNG is particularly useful for e-commerce checkout flows where the QR-bill is shown inline so customers can scan directly from their phone screen. PDF remains the standard for printed invoices and bank archival. For PDF output, you can also use Paging Options to control where the QR-bill appears within an existing multi-page invoice (First, Last, Add Page At End, or Custom).
How does this Zapier Swiss QR-bill generator compare to SmallPDF, SIX Group QR-Bill Generator, or manual ESR tools?+
Manual tools like SmallPDF, the SIX Group QR-Bill Generator at qr-rechnung.ch, qr-rechnung.com, bank-portal generators from PostFinance/UBS/Raiffeisen, and standalone desktop apps require you to fill in payment details one bill at a time, typically 2–5 minutes per invoice plus license fees per user seat. The PDF4me Zapier action automates the same Swiss QR-bill creation at scale, triggered by invoice creation events from Bexio, Sage Swiss, Abacus, Microsoft Dynamics 365, QuickBooks, Xero, Shopify, Stripe, or any of 6,000+ Zapier-connected business apps. The output is fully Swiss Payment Standards (SPS) compliant, accepted by every Swiss bank including UBS, PostFinance, Raiffeisen, ZKB, and the cantonal banks, and integrates directly with your existing invoicing and accounting workflows without manual data re-entry. Use this when you generate dozens, hundreds, or thousands of Swiss QR-bills monthly rather than one-off ad-hoc bills.

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