Sell your watch in St. Gallen
Handover in person, offer within 12 hours from more than 25 dealer bids.
Describe your watch, handover in St. Gallen.
Anyone in St. Gallen with a luxury watch to sell receives the highest bid from more than 25 partner dealers in Switzerland as a binding offer, within 12 hours on working days. The valuation is made from photographs and details, free and without obligation. The handover takes place in person in the city or elsewhere in eastern Switzerland.
St. Gallen is the centre of eastern Switzerland, drawing in people from Lake Constance, the Rhine valley, Appenzell and the Principality of Liechtenstein. Multergasse and Neugasse form a compact shopping quarter with a number of jewellers and authorised dealers, yet the choice of places willing to buy is markedly smaller than in Zurich. Someone selling a Rolex, IWC or Omega often travels to Zurich instead, or turns to an online platform with all the effort and risk that involves.
Where does the handover take place in St. Gallen?
The meeting is arranged once the offer has been accepted. Usual choices are a bank branch in the centre, near the station or on Marktplatz, your office or practice, or your home. A fiduciary office or a notary's chambers also works well as neutral ground.
The catchment area covers the city and the surrounding communes: Gossau, Wittenbach and Abtwil on the doorstep, Rorschach and Arbon on Lake Constance, and Wil to the west. St. Gallen station lies on the line between Zurich and Lake Constance, and the A1 runs through the city. Appointments in Appenzellerland, in the Rhine valley and in Liechtenstein are possible as well.
Why there is no shop
Premises in the St. Gallen old town would have to earn their rent and staff costs through the trading margin, and that margin is then missing from your offer. Uhrenkontor runs no sales floor. The partner dealers calculate their bid from the watch data and photographs alone and do not receive your contact details.
The second reason is discretion. In eastern Switzerland people know one another, and selling a valuable watch in front of passing customers is rarely what anyone wants. An agreed appointment at a bank or at your home replaces the shop visit, and the inspection on the day usually takes less than half an hour.
What applies in Liechtenstein, in Appenzell and at the notary offices?
The St. Gallen catchment area extends beyond the canton into the two Appenzell cantons and Liechtenstein. The process stays the same; the authorities responsible change. Within the canton of St. Gallen itself, the cantonal notary offices come into play when a watch has been inherited.
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein has been part of the Swiss economic area since the Customs Treaty of 1923, which in effect created a customs union with open borders, and the Swiss franc has been its official currency since 1924. A handover in Liechtenstein therefore needs no customs declaration, and the offer is paid in Swiss francs.
Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Appenzell Innerrhoden
The two Appenzells are separate cantons, each with its own tax administration: in Herisau for Ausserrhoden and in the village of Appenzell for Innerrhoden. If you live there, questions about wealth tax go to them. In the canton of St. Gallen, private individuals deal first with the tax office of their municipality, which works under the Cantonal Tax Office in St. Gallen.
Notary offices: certificates of inheritance and certified signatures
No notary is needed for the sale itself. A contract for the sale of a watch is valid without any special form (Art. 11 Code of Obligations), and ownership passes on handover (Art. 714 Civil Code). The cantonal notary offices (Amtsnotariate) matter once a watch has been inherited. In the canton of St. Gallen they alone issue certificates of inheritance (Art. 559 Civil Code), on application and only after the three-month period for disclaiming the estate has expired; if all heirs accept the inheritance unconditionally, it can be issued sooner. The office responsible is the one for the deceased's last place of residence: the main office in St. Gallen or one of the regional offices in Buchs, Rapperswil-Jona and Wil.
Until the estate is divided, the heirs can only dispose of the watch jointly (Art. 602 para. 2 Civil Code). Signatures, for example on a power of attorney from co-heirs, are certified by the notary offices and also by lawyers entered in the register of notaries; there is no fixed territorial assignment. How the sale of an inherited watch works is covered in the guide to selling an inherited watch.
Sources: FDFA, bilateral relations Switzerland–Liechtenstein; cantonal tax sheets of the Federal Tax Administration, as of February 2026: St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden (German); Canton of St. Gallen: taxes, notary offices, certificate of inheritance and notarisations and certifications (German); Code of Obligations; Civil Code.
How selling a watch in St. Gallen works
- Describe the watch. Brand, model, reference number (the model number, usually on the case between the lugs), condition, what is included and at least three photographs, entered in the form at the top of this page. It takes about three minutes.
- Dealers bid. More than 25 partner dealers assess the anonymised enquiry. The highest bid is passed on as a binding offer within 12 hours on working days.
- Check the offer. Valid for several days, free and without obligation, subject to condition, authenticity and completeness matching the description.
- Handover and payment. A personal appointment in St. Gallen or eastern Switzerland, inspection of the watch, payment in cash, by bank transfer or by Twint.
What determines value and which routes to a sale exist is explained in the guide to selling a watch in Switzerland. Brand pages: sell a Rolex and sell an Omega.
Uhrenkontor is a platform of Solidas GmbH, 8834 Schindellegi, entered in the commercial register of the canton of Schwyz (UID CHE-291.391.209). Verifiable in the public register; details in the imprint.
- Offer within 12 hours
- Over 25 dealers
- Handover in Switzerland
- Free & discreet
Brands
Frequently asked
Selling a watch in St. Gallen.
Do you also come to Gossau, Wil or Rorschach?
Yes. The handover in person is possible across eastern Switzerland, including Gossau, Wittenbach, Abtwil, Rorschach, Arbon and Wil, as well as Appenzellerland, the Rhine valley and the Principality of Liechtenstein. The appointment is arranged once you accept the offer, travel costs you nothing, and you choose the place.
Can I bring my watch in somewhere in St. Gallen?
No, there is no shop and no address with opening hours in St. Gallen. You describe the watch online with photographs, receive the best dealer bid within 12 hours on working days, and after accepting it arrange a personal appointment at a place of your choosing.
How soon can an appointment in St. Gallen be arranged?
Usually within a few working days of your accepting the offer. St. Gallen is easy to reach via the A1 and by rail, so appointments can normally be set quickly. The offer remains valid for several days, and you decide both the time and the place of the handover.
Do you buy inherited watches and estates in St. Gallen?
Yes, provided the watch has a market value of roughly CHF 3,000 or more. Vintage models, watches needing a service and watches without box or papers are valued too. With an estate containing several watches, submit each one separately with photographs so that each receives its own offer.
Where can I have a power of attorney from my co-heirs certified in St. Gallen?
At a cantonal notary office in St. Gallen, Buchs, Rapperswil-Jona or Wil, or with a lawyer entered in the register of notaries. There is no fixed territorial assignment. The person signing must appear in person with official ID. Certification is not required to sell a watch; in practice, written consent from the co-heirs is enough.
Is anything different about a handover in Liechtenstein?
Very little. Liechtenstein has formed a customs union with open borders with Switzerland since 1923, and the Swiss franc is its official currency. No customs declaration is needed, and the offer is paid in Swiss francs. The process, the inspection of the watch and the sale contract are the same as in St. Gallen.
Which tax administration is responsible in Appenzell?
Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Appenzell Innerrhoden each have their own cantonal tax administration, in Herisau and in Appenzell. What counts is where you live, not where the handover takes place. The gain from selling a privately owned watch is tax-free there too; each canton sets its own wealth tax. This is not tax advice.
Where do I obtain a certificate of inheritance in St. Gallen for an inherited watch?
From a cantonal notary office: in St. Gallen only the Amtsnotariate issue certificates of inheritance, on application. The office responsible is the one for the deceased's last place of residence in the canton: St. Gallen, Buchs, Rapperswil-Jona or Wil. The certificate is issued after the three-month period for disclaiming the estate; if all heirs accept unconditionally, it can come sooner.