Switzerland Today
Sunny regards from Bern!
Families who want to cross the border to one of Switzerland’s neighbouring countries for cheap shopping tourism this holiday season might face the Grinch: the threshold for paying taxes on goods bought abroad might be reduced from CHF300 ($332) to CHF150.
CHF800 million frozen in Swiss bank accounts: Switzerland finally wants to close long-standing corruption case against Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the former Uzbek president. But why are there calls for more publicity?
Winter is creeping into our Alpine country. The mountains are already dusted with snow. The cows who lazily grazed in the meadows in the hills and valleys during the summer have been brought back into their warm barns. But what do Alpine farmers do in the winter?
Shopping tourism tax Grinch, frozen funds and where do the farmers go when summer turns to fall – all this in today’s briefing.
But first a look at the news:
- Former Swiss minister Simonetta Sommaruga was awarded the “Trailblazer Award” in Reykjavik, Iceland, at the WEF for women. It is awarded to women who have reached the highest levels of political leadership.
- Swiss Justice Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider opens the first national exchange week. Participating cantons will have pupils spend at least one week in another language region during their primary school years.
- The federal technology institute ETH Zurich published a study which stated that reforestation and restoration of existing forest areas around the world would make it possible to sequester an additional 226 gigatonnes of carbon. This corresponds to more than six times the global CO2 emissions in 2022.
- There is hope that high property prices in Switzerland could finally see a decline. Reasons for this positive outlook include Switzerland’s positive economic environment, low inflation and lowering interest rates compared to other countries.
- Swiss Post is gearing up for holiday package deliveries! Swiss Post has opened new distribution centres and will extend distribution centre hours in the peak season. However, Swiss Post also expects there to be a lower number of packages sent this year compared to 2022.
- 196 kilos of marijuana from Switzerland were seized in Italy. A 53-year-old Pole was transporting drugs worth €2 million (CHF1.93 million) from Switzerland to the Czech Republic for sale in Italy.
Shopping tourism tax: the Grinch that spoils Christmas?
The holiday season means shopping and gift giving to family, loved ones and tolerable work colleagues.
Many shoppers in Switzerland looking to save a few francs cross the border to shop. Goods bought by consumers on these trips have previously been taxed when the value exceeds CHF300 ($332). But now the federal government wants to reduce this to CHF150, which would make “shopping tourism” less attractive.
A recent analysis by the Swiss Retail Federation also assumes annual damage to the local retail trade caused by shopping tourism is around CHF8.5 billion. A study by the University of St. Gallen comes to the conclusion that with a value-free limit of CHF50, shopping tourism would decline by 33%.
However, many oppose the implementation of a reduced threshold for taxing goods bought abroad. The managing director of the Foundation for Consumer Protection, Sara Stalder, says that implementing these measures would only add a burden on the administration tasked to deal with imports. Worst of all, this measure would surely create more traffic at the borders. She says one solution would be to reduce the high margin that Swiss retailers put on imported products.
The $210 million fight for transparency
In an investigation going back to 2012, Switzerland wants to return the funds it holds in relation to a corruption case to UzbekistanExternal link. Around CHF800 million belonging to a shell company linked to Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the former president of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov, is currently frozen in Switzerland.
For years Karimova avoided investigation in Switzerland thanks to diplomatic immunity granted to her by various roles she performed at the United Nations in Geneva.
In 2022, Switzerland and Uzbekistan signed an agreement on the restitution of $131 million (CHF125 million) which was to be used for the benefit of the population of Uzbekistan via a United Nations trust fund. Now, a second agreement should soon be concluded with Uzbekistan on the return of an additional $210 million.
This should be good news, but several NGOs are criticising Switzerland’s move to return the fundsas rash and not complying with the asset recovery mandate. This asset recovery mandate would see the funds transferred to the UN which would implement education and aid projects in the country.
The Swiss court has ruled that the agreement to return the funds does not have to be made public, further angering groups who say that a lack of transparency will risk that the funds will once again be used for corruption.
And so, this long-running case continues.
Where do the Alpine farmers go when the summer meadows become covered in autumn leaves?
Today I learned that farming is not necessarily a year-round occupationExternal link. Only a small fraction of the 17,000 Alpine farmers have their own business that carries them over through the winter season. As winter falls over Switzerland, over 7,000 Alpine farmers abandon their mountain posts to make their way down to the valleys. Their first task? Find a new job.
While many take up seasonal jobs, such as working in winter tourism areas, this doesn’t cover the quiet autumn months. “The Alps are going into a winter hibernation and we’re looking forward to next spring,” say Alpine farmer Rebekka Zimmermann, “this doesn’t mean that we also go into a hibernation until next summer, though it would be nice.” In the autumn and winter months many manage the administration work, such as invoices, recruiting new personnel and purchasing new animals.
Another Alpine farmer, Kristin Stroebel, weaves and sells baskets during the non-summer season. She doesn’t earn a lot of money through selling her goods, “you have to live very mindfully,” Stroebel says. But she is happier producing something useful from local materials.
While many Alpine farmers are faced with pressure to find seasonal work during the autumn and winter months, Erich von Siebenthal from the Swiss Alpine Association is convinced that Alpine farming will retain its attractiveness. “It’s simply something unique.”
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
