Swiss legislators dismiss arrivals duty-free plan

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A proposal to allow arrivals shops was criticised by opponents as a potential cause of friction with the country's EU neigbours

Switzerland's upper house of parliament today dismissed a proposal to allow arrivals duty-free shopping in the country. The proposal was made by member of parliament Hans Hess and was narrowly defeated, losing by 15 votes to 13.

Hess and the bill's other proponents, including The Nuance Group, had argued that the country's tourism industry would benefit and airport revenues would increase without costing the taxpayer. Switzerland is not a member of the EU and offers duty-free shopping on departure to all passengers.

Despite this, finance minister Hans-Rudolf Merz said that Switzerland would be moving even further away from the policies of its EU neighbours and it would prove a source of irritation for some, he argued, if Switzerland extended its own duty-free laws.

A Nuance spokesperson told DFNI: "Over the past few years we have consistently tried to convince representatives from the political and economic scene of the benefits that arrivals duty-free and indeed border duty-free could bring. We regret this decision."