Legal | Tax | Compliance
Legal | Tax | Compliance
Yes – Switzerland may be landlocked, but it still has a maritime strategy – and for good reason. Where does the Swiss flag’s maritime story begin, and what course will Switzerland pursue in the future? Our magazine article below looks back and charts what may lie ahead.
Why should Switzerland, a landlocked country, have a maritime strategy at all? Although Switzerland is a landlocked country, it is connected to three maritime regions though its rivers (North Sea, Mediterranean, Black Sea). The Swiss economy is globally oriented and therefore dependent on international trade, 90% of which is carried out at least partially by sea. In addition, the Swiss economy is one of the top 25 ship-owning economies. Considering that this economic sector is linked to logistics companies, the globally significant Swiss commodities trade based on the maritime sector, and the financial industry, Switzerland is anything but a minor player.
On closer inspection, Switzerland cannot afford not to have a maritime strategy – there is simply no such thing as splendid isolation. This article looks back at the beginnings of Switzerland's maritime strategy and traces its development up to the present day.
During the Second World War, Switzerland found itself in an supply shortage. The markets were closed off. Switzerland responded by declaring a “wartime cultivation campaign” to secure food supplies and also took the step of registering its first ocean-going vessel, the Calanda, under the Swiss flag with Basel as port of registry, which was to sail the world's oceans from then on.
While the cultivation battle was not continued after the Second World War, the institution of the Swiss flag remained in place. The post-war regulation stipulated that sea-going vessels sailing under the Swiss flag were owned and operated by private shipping companies. However, in supply emergencies, the federal government had the right to charter these ships (“requisition charter”) and use them to maintain the country's supply. The federal government exercised this right only once during the Six-Day War in 1967. In order to ensure a certain number of Swiss sea-going vessels for such situations, Switzerland provided state guarantees to the relevant shipping companies.
At the beginning of the 2010s, it slowly became apparent that a system change was necessary. The guarantees were associated with considerable financial risks, which Switzerland was no longer willing to bear. In addition, the role of the fleet in a crisis was no longer considered to be as important, especially since Switzerland's ability or willingness to defend such ships militarily in a crisis was highly questionable.
For all these reasons, Switzerland decided in mid-2017 to discontinue financial support for private shipping companies whose vessels sail under the Swiss flag. It will take until 2032 for the last guarantee to expire and this chapter of Swiss maritime history to be concluded.
This decision triggered a steady decline in the number of ships sailing under the Swiss flag. The Swiss flag risks dwindling to insignificance.
A return to the previous system was out of the question. However, the Federal Council has decided to take countermeasures to preserve the Swiss flag. On 2 June 2023, it set out its course in the Maritime Strategy 2023–2027.
One of the goals is to develop the Swiss flag, which was envisioned for wartime supply, into an internationally competitive “quality flag”. Such a quality flag will also increase the international visibility of Switzerland as a maritime location and highlight the advantages of its location: Switzerland's political stability and neutrality, a stable currency, a central location in Europe, and a globally oriented economy.
To this end, a legislative overhaul is pending. Specifically, at the beginning of 2025, Switzerland significantly relaxed the very strict regulations in the Navigation Ordinance for the registration of ships, which were still geared towards wartime supply:
The registration requirements for pleasure boats in the Yacht Ordinance have been relaxed too. In particular, the register is now open to almost all legal entities (and not just associations).
The ongoing revision of the Navigation Act is intended to remove further remnants of the previous system that make it difficult to position the Swiss flag on a global level.
However, the Maritime Strategy goes far beyond strengthening the Swiss flag. It also includes measures such as the digitisation of administrative processes, research and innovation initiatives, notably around decarbonization, and the development of maritime training schools. In addition, Switzerland wants to expand its role in international shipping diplomacy and maritime law. The Federal Council is thus pursuing a comprehensive strategy that combines legal, tax, administrative, and diplomatic factors.
Another goal is to mitigate Switzerland's tax disadvantages. One internationally widely adopted instrument is the tonnage tax. This allows shipping companies to be taxed notional tonnage (cargo capacity) rather than on profits. The European Union, among others, relies on this instrument, and the Federal Council has also spoken out in favour of it in its strategy in order to compensate for the disadvantages of Swiss shipping companies compared to their European competitors.
However, the Swiss Parliament rejected the proposal. In addition to constitutional concerns, the decisive factor for the rejection was also uncertainty regarding the financial impact of the introduction of tonnage tax on federal finances. The Federal Council nevertheless maintains its strategic aim of improving the tax framework and is examining alternatives to tonnage tax in order to create incentives for sea-going shipping operated in Switzerland.
The amendments made to the Navigation and Yacht Ordinances mark a paradigm shift in Swiss maritime policy. With the liberalizations that have come into force, an important first step has been taken to modernize the Swiss flag and free it from the ballast of outdated wartime supply requirements. In a second step, however, the planned overhaul of the Navigation Act is essential to bring the Swiss flag into the 21st century.
The coming years will determine whether Switzerland's efforts under the new maritime strategy will be sufficient to make the flag more competitive and maintain its own merchant fleet on the world's oceans – but one thing is certain: with its maritime industry and commodities trade, Switzerland will continue to be a discreet yet significant player in global shipping.
More information can be found in our article published in the October 2025 issue of Recht der Transportwirtschaft (Transport Industry Law). For more tailored insights into the legal and strategic implications of Switzerland’s Maritime Strategy, our experts are at your disposal.
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