Fireworks display regulations in Switzerland: cantonal F4 authorisation, FWA/FWB permits and municipal pre-notice

Switzerland regulates pyrotechnic devices through the Federal Act on Explosives (ExplA, SR 941.41) and the Explosives Ordinance (ExplO, SR 941.411). The Confederation, through fedpol, handles import, manufacture and product approval; the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SEFRI) issues use permits; the cantons issue acquisition permits, sales and storage authorisations and, where their legislation provides for it, the firing authorisation.

The categories are those of the European Union: F1 to F4 for display fireworks, T1/T2 for stage, P1/P2 for other uses. An acquisition permit is needed for categories F4, T2 and P2; it is only issued to holders of a SEFRI use permit. Fedpol states that a firing authorisation is only required if municipal regulations or cantonal legislation prescribe it for the firing location, which is the case in most French-speaking cantons.

In the canton of Vaud, anyone wishing to fire F4 or T2 devices must obtain the authorisation of the cantonal police, whatever the location, private land included. The application is filed exclusively on the cantonal events portal POCAMA, with scanned documents, and must arrive at least 15 days before the event; the fee is 50 Swiss francs. The authorisation is only issued if the pre-notice of the commune where the display takes place is positive.

The Vaud file requires a pyrotechnician holding a valid FWA or FWB permit and liability insurance covering the event for damage caused by the fireworks; the legal basis cited is article 47 paragraph 5 ExplO and the cantonal directive on display pyrotechnic devices of 1 February 2022. Other cantons (Fribourg, Bern, Neuchâtel, Geneva, Valais) have their own forms and deadlines, generally between 15 days and one month: the cantonal police of the firing location is the authority to contact.

The pyrotechnic device use permit is obtained after training and an examination organised by the Fireworks Interest Group under SEFRI supervision. The FWA endorsement (fireworks A) allows the holder to plan, acquire, prepare, set up and fire outdoor displays autonomously with ready-to-use F4 pieces and T2/P2 devices of a maximum 75 mm calibre, within a limit of 50 kg net explosive mass on the firing site, without nautical effects or pyrotechnic chaining of F4/T2/P2 pieces.

The FWB endorsement (fireworks B) lifts the mass and calibre limits: it allows electric or pyrotechnic ignition of all professional pieces, the assembly of mortars and mortar racks above 75 mm and transport beyond the ADR/SDR exemptions. The BF endorsement covers stage fireworks, indoors and outdoors. The SEFRI 2023 guide details the training modules; the use permit is personal and must be shown when buying and on the firing site.

The applicable safety distances are those given by the manufacturer for each approved product, supplemented by cantonal rules and by the conditions set in the firing authorisation (perimeter, access closure, fire service presence). The FWA/FWB holder is trained to assess the firing site, estimate risks and take the measures preventing harm to people or property; the authority may require a location plan and a product description.

Storage of F4/T2/P2 devices requires a cantonal storage authorisation; road transport follows ADR and its Swiss transposition SDR, with quantity exemptions that only an FWB holder may exceed for displays. PyroDesk generates the site plan with safety radii per position, the product list with net explosive mass, and gathers the crew's use permits in the file to attach to the cantonal application.

1 August and New Year's Eve concentrate most Swiss displays, but cantons regularly pronounce general bans on open fires and pyrotechnic devices during summer drought episodes; the canton of Vaud has done so several times by press release, sometimes a few days before 1 August. These bans apply to professional displays already authorised, unless an express exemption is granted.

Some communes also restrict fireworks to a few dates a year or impose time limits; the municipal pre-notice, mandatory in the Vaud process, is where these constraints surface. PyroDesk shows, on the Switzerland formalities page, the competent authorities per canton and reminds the operator to check the canton's fire-danger status before set-up. The reminder is worth keeping even for winter displays: strong wind or a temporary ban may be announced the day before, and the client contract should provide for postponement.

Liability insurance covering the event is required in the Vaud authorisation file and requested by most other cantons and organisers. On invoicing, Switzerland does not mandate B2B electronic invoices; the QR-bill is the national payment standard and many public clients ask for electronic submission. PyroDesk draws up quotes, contracts and invoices in Swiss francs, in French, German via export, Italian or English.

The software brings the display file together: venue, commune and canton, date, firing plan, products with categories and net explosive mass, pyrotechnicians with FWA/FWB/BF permits, insurance certificate, municipal pre-notice and cantonal authorisation. The Switzerland formalities page gives, for each canton, the authority to contact and the known deadline range, with an automatic reminder to file at least 15 days ahead, and more where the canton requires it.