Shipping boxes from Canada to Switzerland...

Quebecman · #1 23.06.2011, 17:59

I am moving to Lausanne in August.
I will be shipping a few (4 or 5) 1.5 cu ft boxes from Canada.
What can I expect from the Swiss customs?

Content of boxes: clothes, some work documents, a portable computer and... cream! Jars of cream! MANY jars of cream! I am talking about prescription cream for my son's dry skin. He was born with a skin condition called ichtyosis. My Canadian insurance will cover the cream purchased in Canada only. Shipping cost is lower than the cost of the cream.

If I ship with UPS, will the Swiss customs intercept the shipment and inspect the content?

herc82 · #2 23.06.2011, 18:04

	Quote:	Quebecman
	I am moving to Lausanne in August. I will be shipping a few (4 or 5) 1.5 cu ft boxes from Canada. What can I expect from the Swiss customs? Content of boxes: clothes, some work documents, a portable computer and... cream! Jars of cream! MANY jars of cream! I am talking about prescription cream for my son's dry skin. He was born with a skin condition called ichtyosis. My Canadian insurance will cover the cream purchased in Canada only. Shipping cost is lower than the cost of the cream. If I ship with UPS, will the Swiss customs intercept the shipment and inspect the content?

If you're moving, you should be able to declare the lot as personal effects (see link to Swiss Customs here - the form you'd need is an 18.44) to get it in Duty and VAT-free. But to be honest, I'm not 100% sure if this will apply to the cream too, just in case.

If you do that, make sure that you mention ALL goods you will bring into Switzerland on the form, you can always import the goods in 2 or 3 loads as long as you declare it properly (but cannot issue a second form if you bring more goods).