Relocating from the United States to Switzerland means clearing two very different systems back to back: the US export and tax framework you leave behind, and the Swiss customs, residence and veterinary rules that decide what actually gets through the border. This guide covers both halves of the corridor honestly, plus a short note on the reverse direction, so you can plan the move end to end. It is written for private individuals and families moving their own used household goods, a pet, and possibly a car, and it links every rule to the government authority responsible for it.

Key takeaways

• Your Swiss customs treatment follows your residence status: duty-free "removal goods" clearance requires a genuine transfer of domicile to Switzerland, declared on Form 18.44.
• Items generally must have been owned and personally used for at least six months, and must continue in use in Switzerland, to qualify duty-free (BAZG).
• On the US side, a household-goods container over $2,500 in value normally requires Electronic Export Information filed in the Automated Export System (Census FTR FAQ); genuine personal effects not moving as commercial cargo can be exempt under 15 CFR 30.37(p).
• US citizens remain taxed on worldwide income and must keep filing US returns after moving abroad (IRS).
• Non-EU/EFTA nationals need an employer-sponsored permit approved by the canton and the State Secretariat for Migration before moving, then must register at their commune within 14 days (ch.ch).
• Dogs and cats need a microchip and a valid rabies vaccination; because the US is a listed (not high-rabies-risk) country, no antibody titer test is required (USDA APHIS; BLV).
• A car owned and used abroad for six months can enter as removal goods; otherwise Swiss customs charges 4% automobile tax plus 8.1% VAT and issues Form 13.20A for registration (BAZG).

1. Your Swiss immigration status determines the customs treatment

Everything about your import hinges on one fact: are you actually transferring your domicile to Switzerland? Swiss customs grants duty-free entry of household goods only as Übersiedlungsgut (removal goods) tied to a genuine change of residence (BAZG).

As a US citizen you are a non-EU/EFTA national, so residence is employer-led. Your Swiss employer applies to the cantonal labour-market authority, which forwards approved cases to the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) for admission approval. Only then can you obtain the national (type D) entry visa and, after arrival, your L (short-term) or B (annual) residence permit (ch.ch). That permit is part of the documentation Swiss customs expects when you clear removal goods, so the immigration process must be settled before the shipment moves.

2. The US export side: customs authority, export filing and tax exit

The United States has no population registry to "deregister" from — there is no equivalent of a European commune notice of departure. Your US departure obligations are instead about export reporting and taxes.

Export declaration. US exports are policed by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), working with the Census Bureau’s Foreign Trade Regulations. When goods move as cargo, the exporter is responsible for preparing Electronic Export Information (EEI), which the carrier files in the Automated Export System (AES) (Census AES). EEI is required when the value of goods under a single Schedule B classification exceeds $2,500, or when an export licence is needed (Census FTR FAQ). A full container of household goods will usually cross that threshold, so your international mover typically files the EEI and gives the shipping line the Internal Transaction Number.

There is a genuine-personal-effects carve-out. Under 15 CFR 30.37(p), "baggage and personal effects, accompanied or unaccompanied, of persons leaving the United States" are exempt from EEI filing when they are not shipped as cargo under a bill of lading or air waybill and need no export licence. In practice, a sea container booked under a bill of lading falls outside that exemption, which is why professional shipments are filed; accompanied airline baggage generally is not. The separate low-value exemption in 30.37(a) covers commodities of $2,500 or less per Schedule B code.

Tax exit. US citizenship-based taxation does not end when you leave. You remain "subject to tax on worldwide income from all sources and must report all taxable income," wherever you live (IRS). You do get an automatic two-month extension to June 15 for filing while abroad, though interest still runs from the April deadline. You can reduce or eliminate double taxation with the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, claimed each year on Form 2555 and adjusted annually for inflation (IRS), and with the foreign tax credit. Once you hold Swiss bank accounts, watch the FBAR: any US person whose foreign financial accounts exceed $10,000 in aggregate at any point in the year must file FinCEN Form 114 (IRS).

3. Ports and transit times

The USA to Switzerland is a sea-plus-road move: Switzerland is landlocked, so ocean freight lands at a North Sea or Mediterranean port and trucks inland to a Swiss inland customs office. Realistic departure gateways for household goods are the East Coast container ports — New York/New Jersey, Norfolk (Virginia), Charleston, Savannah — plus Houston on the Gulf and Los Angeles/Long Beach for West Coast origins. Air freight and accompanied baggage move through hubs such as JFK, Newark and Chicago O’Hare.

The following transit figures are freight-industry estimates, not official government schedules, and vary with routing, sailings and congestion. East Coast to Northern Europe port-to-port ocean legs are commonly quoted at roughly two to four weeks, with total door-to-door timelines — including inland trucking to Switzerland and customs — often running four to eight weeks (Maersk transit guidance). West Coast and Gulf origins run longer. Air freight is days rather than weeks but far more expensive per cubic metre. Treat any quoted date as an estimate and build in buffer.

4. The Swiss import side: the actual form and process

Swiss customs are run by the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS/BAZG). To import household goods duty-free as removal goods you must:

1. Transfer your domicile to Switzerland.
2. Show that the goods were personally used for at least six months and will continue to be used — new items bought for the move do not qualify (BAZG).
3. Complete Form 18.44 ("Zollveranlagung von Übersiedlungsgut") and attach a full inventory list, plus supporting documents such as your residence permit, employment contract and rental or purchase agreement for your Swiss home.

Crucially, BAZG asks you to send the relocation file to the relevant customs office at least two working days before crossing the border, and to cross at that same customs office (BAZG). Get this wrong and clearance stalls. The customs information line is +41 58 467 15 15. Goods that do not qualify as removal goods are cleared normally and are subject to Swiss import VAT (standard rate 8.1%).

After arrival you must also register in person at your commune’s residents’ registration office (Einwohnerkontrolle / Contrôle des habitants) within 14 days, before your first working day (ch.ch).

5. Pets

Leaving the US. Dogs and cats bound for Switzerland need a 15-digit ISO microchip, a valid rabies vaccination given after the chip (valid for travel 21 days after the first shot), and an EU health certificate completed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian and endorsed by a USDA APHIS office. Because the US is a listed (not high-rabies-risk) country, no rabies antibody titer test is required. The endorsed certificate is valid for entry into the EU/Switzerland for 10 days from endorsement (USDA APHIS).

Entering Switzerland. The Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (BLV) mirrors these rules: microchip, valid rabies vaccination, and an official health certificate (BLV). A maximum of five pets may travel privately without commercial registration; from six animals, commercial import rules or a BLV permit apply. Note that from high-rabies-risk countries, pets that cannot complete the vaccination-plus-titer waiting period (roughly under seven months old) cannot qualify — this does not affect direct US moves, but matters if your pet has recently transited such a country.

6. Vehicles, money and things people forget

Vehicles. A car you have owned and used abroad for at least six months can be declared as part of your removal goods on Form 18.44 and cleared without duty or VAT. If it does not qualify, Swiss customs levies 4% automobile tax plus 8.1% VAT on the vehicle’s value. In every case customs issues Form 13.20A, which the cantonal road-traffic office requires to register and plate the car (BAZG). US-spec vehicles may also need technical modifications to pass Swiss inspection.

Money and accounts. Beyond the FBAR above, keep at least one US bank account and card open — opening Swiss accounts as a US person can take time under FATCA reporting. Some US states (California, Virginia and others) treat departing residents as still tax-resident until you cut clear ties, so settle your state position before you go.

Easily forgotten. New Swiss residents must arrange compulsory health insurance within three months of arrival; keep original purchase receipts for high-value items to prove the six-month ownership rule; and remember firearms, certain medicines and food products face separate Swiss import restrictions outside the removal-goods scheme.

How Flyto handles your USA to Switzerland move

Flyto runs strong in-house European operations — our own offices, warehouses, teams and vehicles across Northern, Central and Southern Europe — combined with a carefully chosen partner and subcontractor network for the transatlantic legs and origin services in the United States. For the Swiss side we work with trusted local partners who know cantonal customs practice, so your Form 18.44 clearance, delivery and vehicle paperwork are handled by people who do this corridor regularly rather than a one-off.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay Swiss duty on my used furniture and belongings?
No, provided you are genuinely transferring residence, the goods were personally used for at least six months, you keep using them, and you clear them on Form 18.44 with an inventory. New purchases for the move are excluded (BAZG).

Can I ship before my residence permit is approved?
Plan around the permit. As a non-EU national your removal-goods clearance relies on residence documentation, and the whole immigration process is employer-sponsored and approved by SEM before you move (SEM).

Does my mover handle the US export filing?
For a container moving under a bill of lading, EEI generally must be filed in AES because the value exceeds $2,500; your international mover typically files it. Genuine unaccompanied personal effects can be exempt under 15 CFR 30.37(p).

Do I still file US taxes after moving to Switzerland?
Yes. US citizens are taxed on worldwide income and must keep filing, using tools like the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555) and the foreign tax credit to avoid double taxation (IRS).

Does my dog need a rabies blood test?
No. The US is a listed (not high-rabies-risk) country, so a titer test is not required — only microchip, valid rabies vaccination and a USDA-endorsed health certificate (APHIS).

How long will sea freight take?
Freight-industry estimates put East Coast to Northern Europe door-to-door at roughly four to eight weeks including customs and inland delivery; these are not official figures and vary by route and season (Maersk).

Moving back: Switzerland to the USA (reverse direction)

Returning is governed by CBP. US residents can import used household effects duty-free if the goods were available for use or used in a household where you were a resident for at least one year, using CBP Form 3299 (Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles) with a full inventory (CBP). Bringing a dog back falls under the CDC’s 2024 rules: every dog must be microchipped, at least six months old and appear healthy, and because Switzerland is a rabies-free/low-risk country the core required document is the CDC Dog Import Form receipt (CDC).

Sources

• BAZG — Moving to Switzerland: procedure (removal goods)
• BAZG — Form 18.44 (customs clearance of household effects)
• BAZG — Permanently importing vehicles into Switzerland
• BLV — Travelling with dogs, cats and ferrets
• SEM — Entry, residence and working (themes)
• ch.ch — Working in Switzerland as a foreign national
• US Census Bureau — Foreign Trade Regulations FAQ (EEI/AES)
• US Census Bureau — Export filing AES
• 15 CFR 30.37 — Miscellaneous EEI exemptions (eCFR)
• IRS — US citizens and resident aliens abroad
• IRS — Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555)
• IRS — Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR)
• USDA APHIS — Pet travel from the US to Switzerland
• CBP — Moving used household goods and personal effects into the US (Form 3299)
• CDC — Bringing a dog into the United States
• Maersk — Sea freight transit-time guidance (freight-industry estimate)