The pact adds reciprocal 90-day visa-free travel for services professionals, aims to end roaming charges and supports pharma IP protections as Britain and Switzerland deepen post-Brexit trade ties.
Britain and Switzerland agreed a services trade deal that the U.K. says could lift British exports by £5.2 billion ($7 billion) a year, while the British embassy in Switzerland said total bilateral trade could rise by about 7.9 billion Swiss francs ($9.76 billion) annually in the long run, a 25% increase. The agreement builds on the countries' existing post-Brexit free trade framework for goods and includes reciprocal visa-free travel for services professionals for up to 90 days a year, as well as provisions allowing U.K. firms to transfer staff to Swiss offices for up to five years without Swiss economic tests. Both sides also aim to scrap mobile roaming fees, and in a separate arrangement U.K. nationals will soon be able to use e-gates when entering Switzerland. Swiss President Guy Parmelin said the accord would provide predictability for businesses amid rising protectionism, while Peter Kyle called it the most significant services trade deal the U.K. has ever negotiated. Parmelin also said the deal preserves existing high levels of pharmaceutical intellectual property protection, including 10 years of regulatory protection for products intended for human use.