UK and Switzerland Sign Landmark Trade Deal to Eliminate Roaming Charges and Enable E-Gate Use
A new UK-Switzerland trade agreement is expected to boost services exports, while separate plans could give British travellers access to Swiss airport e-gates and remove mobile roa
By BBC News
The UK and Switzerland have concluded negotiations on a major trade agreement aimed at making it easier for businesses and professionals to operate across both countries.
The government estimates the deal could increase UK services exports to Switzerland by £5.2 billion a year in the long term.
It covers areas including financial and professional services, digital trade, business travel, life sciences and the movement of workers between British and Swiss operations.
Trade Secretary Peter Kyle described it as the most significant services trade agreement negotiated by the UK.
However, the agreement has not yet fully taken effect.
It will now move towards formal signature and implementation, subject to the usual parliamentary scrutiny.
One of the planned changes is the removal of international mobile roaming surcharges between the two countries.
The UK and Switzerland intend to include surcharge-free roaming in the agreement, which would allow tourists and business travellers to use their normal mobile allowance without additional charges.
No start date has yet been confirmed.
British travellers are also expected to gain access to electronic passport gates at Swiss airports through a separate initiative announced alongside the trade deal.
UK passport holders could be able to use e-gates when leaving Zurich Airport from as early as the end of 2026.
Swiss authorities are also working towards allowing British nationals to use e-gates when entering through Zurich, Geneva and Basel airports, although a timetable has not yet been published.
The e-gate announcement is separate from the free trade agreement and should not be confused with the European Union’s Entry/Exit System.
The business mobility provisions include visa-free access for UK professionals supplying services in Switzerland for up to 90 days a year.
British companies will also be able to transfer employees to Swiss offices for up to five years without facing the same economic-needs tests currently applied to some work permits.
The government said this could benefit professions including law, accountancy, architecture, finance, insurance and consultancy.
Short-term access for Swiss professionals working with UK businesses will also be made easier.
The agreement includes measures intended to reduce paperwork, support digital payments and prevent unnecessary restrictions on the movement of business data.
It also gives British companies greater certainty that future improvements made by Switzerland in parts of its services market will not later be withdrawn.
Switzerland was the UK’s sixth-largest services export market in 2025, with bilateral services trade worth more than £30 billion.
Around 800,000 visits are made from the UK to Switzerland each year, meaning the planned travel and roaming changes could affect both holidaymakers and business travellers.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the agreement would make it easier for British firms to sell their expertise in Switzerland and support jobs and investment in the UK.
The government said it was the sixth trade agreement secured in two years, following deals and arrangements involving partners including the United States, India, the European Union, South Korea and the Gulf.
The £5.2 billion export figure is a government estimate of the agreement’s long-term economic effect rather than an immediate guaranteed increase.
Businesses and travellers will need to wait for the agreement to be signed and implemented before all of its provisions take effect.