Movers to Switzerland from Dubai and Abu Dhabi

Your Switzerland relocation from Dubai or Abu Dhabi

Moving your home from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Switzerland? We are your movers to Switzerland from the UAE: our crews pack and ship your home, our destination partner clears customs, delivers and unpacks, and one coordinator runs the whole move, from the free survey to the last box.

Seemleius Mobility and Cargo L.L.C works from Dubai Investment Park. Whether you are heading for Zurich, Geneva, Basel or a smaller town, the plan is the same: survey, fixed quote, careful packing, the Swiss customs file and delivery.

What our Switzerland relocation services include

One fixed, itemised quote covers:

• A free in-home or video survey anywhere in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Sharjah.
• Export packing by trained crews, crating for fragile items and art, and furniture dismantling and reassembly.
• Form 18.44 and the list of goods for Swiss customs, prepared in Dubai, plus the export documents.
• Sea freight in a full or shared container, depending on volume, and air freight for essentials.
• Customs clearance in Switzerland through our destination partner.
• Delivery, placement room by room and unpacking.
• Transit insurance available (terms confirmed with your quote).
• Storage in Dubai, short or long term, if your dates don't line up.

Swiss customs: Form 18.44 and duty-free household goods

People who move their domicile to Switzerland can bring their household effects in free of duty and VAT, as Übersiedlungsgut. Switzerland's timing rules are worth knowing early, because they shape the whole plan:

• 6 months of use: you must have used the goods abroad for at least 6 months before your domicile transfer and keep using them. Use matters, not ownership, and transport time counts as use abroad.
• Home first: a new domicile needs an available flat or house, and used goods sent ahead of your domicile transfer are dutiable – so the shipment is timed to arrive after you have moved.
• 2 years to import: you have up to 2 years after the domicile transfer. Later shipments must be declared at the first import and arrive within the 2 years; if something prevents the import, apply in writing within 30 days after it ends.

The application is Form 18.44, "Antrag/Zollanmeldung für Übersiedlungsgut (Umzugsgut)", in duplicate with an original signature; a representative can submit it. With it go a list of the goods – plain paper with general entries such as "boxes of books" is accepted – foreign vehicle papers for any vehicle, and proof of the domicile transfer, such as the lease or purchase contract for your new home.

Customs may ask for more, for example your deregistration abroad or the commune's registration confirmation, but a commune registration is not specifically required: deregistration abroad plus employment and rental contracts can be enough. If a document is missing, customs can clear the goods provisionally against a deposit; the documents are then due within 6 months, and the deposit is refunded minus a fee. Clearance is in principle Monday to Friday, during commercial-goods opening hours.

Means of transport, goods used for work and normal household provisions are also exempt, and so are animals, which must still meet veterinary rules. Alcohol is exempt up to 200 litres at up to 25% vol plus 12 litres above 25% vol per household, and tobacco up to 1,000 cigarettes (2,000 per household), 200 cigars or 1 kg of tobacco; anything above that is dutiable. Weapons (fedpol), ivory and protected species (BLV) and plants from outside the EU follow separate rules.

Who does what: we prepare Form 18.44 and the list of goods in Dubai, and our destination partner presents them to customs. You sign both copies and provide the proof of your domicile transfer and any vehicle papers.

Routes and transit times to Switzerland

Since 28 February 2026 the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed to commercial shipping. UAE containers now go by road to a port outside the strait, such as Khor Fakkan or Fujairah on the east coast or Sohar in Oman, and sail from there.

A container for Switzerland lands at a European sea port and continues inland. The Rhine-Alpine corridor links Rotterdam and Antwerp with Genoa via Basel: a Rhine barge from Rotterdam to Switzerland takes about 90 hours of sailing time, and road and rail are the alternatives. Under the common transit procedure, which Switzerland is part of, customs clearance can take place at the destination rather than at the port.

Schedules are longer and less predictable than before 2026. As a guide, CMA CGM's September 2026 schedule starts at Duqm in Oman and shows 40 days – nearly six weeks – from there to Rotterdam, port to port; the road and feeder legs from the UAE, the inland leg to Switzerland, customs clearance and delivery come on top. We confirm the routing and dates at your survey and again at booking, so treat any figure as typical, not a promise.

How your move to Switzerland runs

You deal with one moving company to Switzerland: our crews pack your goods in the UAE, our destination partner clears, delivers and unpacks them, and your coordinator in Dubai runs both ends.

• Survey: a coordinator walks through your home with you and notes what goes, what stays and what needs crating.
• Fixed quote: an itemised quote with the volume, the shipping option and the services at both ends.
• Paperwork: we prepare Form 18.44 and the list of goods; you collect the proof of your domicile transfer.
• Packing day: trained crews pack, crate fragile pieces and art, dismantle furniture and load, in Dubai or Abu Dhabi.
• Departure: the container goes by road to the departure port and sails, timed to arrive after your domicile transfer.
• Arrival and clearance: our destination partner presents the file to Swiss customs and agrees the delivery date with you.
• Delivery: furniture is placed room by room and reassembled, and your boxes are unpacked.

Where we deliver in Switzerland

Delivery covers the whole country, so whether you need a moving company for Geneva, Zurich, Basel or a mountain village, one coordinator looks after you from the survey to unpacking. Lorries over 3.5 tonnes may not drive between 22:00 and 05:00 or on Sundays and public holidays, so delivery days are planned around that.

• Zurich – moving-van parking reserved with the city police. Our relocation to Zurich page has the details.
• Geneva – in the city, a move needs a public-space permit from the Ville de Genève, requested at least 10 working days ahead; parking for the moving van, up to 8 days, is authorised by the commune, with signs up at least 3 days before.
• Basel, on the Rhine-Alpine corridor.
• Lausanne, Bern and Zug, and smaller towns across the country.

Pets and cars

Animals and means of transport are part of the household relief, but each has its own paperwork and moves as a separate service: see pet relocation and vehicle shipping. The car question below covers Form 15.30 and Swiss registration.

Storage in Dubai

Used goods sent ahead of your domicile transfer are dutiable, so if your Dubai lease ends before the Swiss home is ready, keep them in storage in Dubai, short or long term. You have up to 2 years after the transfer to import them duty-free.

Book your free in-home survey

The survey is 100% free, with no obligation. A coordinator visits your home in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, looks at every room, asks about access at the Swiss address and talks through the timing of your domicile transfer; your fixed, itemised quote follows.

Book through the quote form on this page or on our quote page, or call or WhatsApp +971 56 899 2011.