Do I need consent for cookies on my website?
For technically necessary cookies no — for tracking yes, and that is new since 2025. For a long time the line was: Liechtenstein had not adopted the EU cookie directive, so setting cookies could rest on legitimate interest. That advice is outdated. Since 1 February 2025, Article 61(4) of the Communications Act (KomG, LR 784.10) is in force and takes over the consent rule almost word for word. So: technically necessary cookies — shopping cart, login, language setting — may be set without consent (Art. 61(4)(b) KomG, based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). For tracking, profiling, personalised advertising and social-media plugins you need express consent (Art. 7 GDPR) — in practice a cookie banner. And the banner must be fair: refusing must be as easy as accepting, otherwise the consent is invalid.
📋 The rules
- Legal basis since 1 Feb 2025: Art. 61(4) KomG (LR 784.10) takes over Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive almost verbatim. The requirements for information and consent follow the GDPR (via the DSG, LR 235.1).
- Technically necessary = no consent: Shopping cart, login, multi-page form entries, a changed language setting and storing the consent status fall under the exception (Art. 61(4)(b) KomG). A privacy notice is still mandatory (Art. 13 GDPR).
- Tracking = express consent: Cookies for profiling, user tracking, personalised marketing or social plugins need informed, freely given consent (Art. 7 GDPR) — in practice a consent banner.
- Fair design: “Reject” must be as easy as “Accept”. If “Accept” is visually emphasised or rejecting is made harder (dark patterns), the consent is invalid under Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR.
- Plain visitor statistics: Strictly anonymous, on-site audience measurement without cross-site tracking may, on the Data Protection Office reading, run without consent — with information and a right to object (Art. 21 GDPR).
🔓 Exceptions
- Log files: Server logs collected automatically fall outside Art. 61 KomG; their evaluation for statistics can rest on legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) with suitable information.
- Large analytics services: If providers use the data for their own purposes too or transfer it to third countries, the statistics exception does not apply — then consent is needed, plus safeguards under Chapter V GDPR.
- Not just websites: Art. 61(4) KomG covers any access to devices — including local storage, device IDs, fingerprinting, not just classic cookies.
⚠️ Penalties & fines
The framework is the GDPR — with EU-style fines. Breaches of the consent and information duties can be punished with fines up to EUR 20 million or 4 % of worldwide annual turnover (Art. 83 GDPR), enforced by the Data Protection Office (DSS) as supervisory authority. The more common consequence is subtler: if your banner is misleadingly designed or refusing is made harder, the consent is invalid — then you process tracking data without a legal basis, that is unlawfully, which invites complaints, orders and damages claims. On top come the costs of fixing it: an unchecked “free banner” from the internet often fails the requirements and must be replaced. Whoever uses a consent tool is responsible for its compliance — its mere availability on the market is no guarantee. Data subjects also have a right to complain to the DSS and can assert their access and objection rights.
📎 Official sources
- Data Protection Office Liechtenstein · cookies and comparable technologies →
- Gesetze.li · Communications Act (KomG, LR 784.10), Art. 61, and DSG (LR 235.1) →
- Data Protection Office Liechtenstein · consent under the GDPR →
❓ Frequently asked
Do I really need a cookie banner in Liechtenstein?
For purely technically necessary cookies no, for tracking and marketing cookies yes. Since 1 February 2025, Art. 61(4) KomG requires express consent for those, which in practice is obtained through a consent banner on the site.
Is it not true that Liechtenstein never adopted the cookie directive?
That was the case until early 2025 and is now outdated. While Directive 2009/136/EC was not taken into the EEA, Liechtenstein has adopted its core rule almost verbatim through Art. 61(4) KomG, in force since 1 February 2025.
Which cookies may I set without consent?
Technically necessary ones such as shopping cart, login, multi-page forms and language setting, plus storing the consent status. For these an entry in the privacy notice is enough, and express consent is not required from the visitor.
May “Accept” be greener and bigger than “Reject”?
No, if that makes rejecting harder or less visible, the consent is invalid. Rejecting must be as easy to reach as accepting; a single difference in colour alone, however, does not automatically make a banner unlawful.
Does the same apply in Switzerland?
No — Switzerland generally requires no prior consent for cookies and works with an opt-out and a duty to inform. Liechtenstein, as an EEA member, follows the GDPR and, since 2025, the ePrivacy consent rule, that is a stricter opt-in.
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