Car Shipping Company from the UAE to Switzerland 0552803439 | Sealed Containers & RoRo from Jebel Ali, Air to Zurich & Geneva

You are looking for a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland that takes the car from the door of your home in Dubai or Abu Dhabi and hands you its key in Zurich, Geneva or Lausanne. That is what Home Safe organises: by sea from Jebel Ali Port to a European port and then on a covered transporter into Switzerland within 30 to 45 days, or by air from the UAE’s airports within 3 to 6 days. The price on this route is set on request once the car, the method and the Swiss city are known. For bookings and enquiries: 0552803439.

In this guide46ShowHide

1. Who ships a car from the UAE to Switzerland?
2. What does a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland take care of?
3. Will Switzerland accept your car from the UAE?
4. From Jebel Ali Port in the UAE by sea to Genoa or Rotterdam, then on to Switzerland by covered transporter
5. Transit time for shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland
6. Price of shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland
7. How do we serve shipping from the UAE as a Saudi establishment?
8. Collecting cars from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the other emirates
9. RoRo or container: which is for your car?
10. Shipping sports cars and supercars from the UAE to Switzerland in an enclosed container
11. Types of vehicle we ship from the UAE to Switzerland
12. Preparing the car before collection in the UAE
13. A summer on UAE plates or a final export?
14. Procedure for the export certificate and export plates in the UAE
15. Documents for shipping the car and what is not accepted
16. Customs, inspection and registration of the car in Switzerland
17. Insuring the car from the UAE until delivery in Switzerland
18. Delivering cars from the UAE in Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne
19. Car shipping for individuals, companies, embassies and government bodies
20. Combining sea and air, and is there a land route?
21. Air freight for cars from the UAE to Switzerland
22. Steps for shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland
23. Tracking the car and notifications at every stop
24. Car shipping from Switzerland to the UAE
25. Home Safe’s advice before shipping your car to Switzerland
26. How do you choose a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland?
27. Common mistakes when shipping cars from the UAE to Switzerland
28. Why Home Safe for shipping your car from the UAE to Switzerland?
29. Related articles and pages
30. Tags
31. Frequently asked questions about car shipping from the UAE to Switzerland
32. How do I know a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland is right for my car?
33. How much does it cost to ship a car from Dubai to Switzerland?
34. How long does the journey from Jebel Ali to Zurich or Geneva take?
35. What is the difference between the tourism certificate and the export certificate in the UAE?
36. Can I ship a car that is mortgaged to a UAE bank?
37. Is customs duty charged on my car in Switzerland?
38. Does the Swiss inspection accept a Gulf-specification car?
39. Which port in the UAE is the car shipped from?
40. Is an enclosed container necessary for a sports car?
41. Can the car be shipped by air from the UAE’s airports?
42. Does the car enter Switzerland on its own wheels from the European port?
43. What about personal belongings inside the car?
44. Do you insure the car during the journey?
45. Do you bring the car back to the UAE when the summer is over?
46. When should I book so that the car arrives at the start of my holiday?

Sea route: your address in the UAE → Jebel Ali Port → the Red Sea and the Suez Canal → Genoa or Rotterdam → covered car transporter → Switzerland · Expected time: 30–45 days by sea, 3–6 days by air.

Who ships a car from the UAE to Switzerland?

Demand on this route comes from four clear groups. The first is Emirati and Gulf families who spend the summer between Geneva and Interlaken and prefer their own car to a hired one. The second is Swiss and European residents whose work in Dubai or Abu Dhabi has ended and who are going home with their cars. The third is collectors of rare cars and showrooms. The fourth is companies and embassies moving official cars. The method and the paperwork differ from one group to the next:

Owner	The usual car	The method we suggest	The UAE paper
A family travelling for the summer	A luxury 4×4 or a sports car	A container two months ahead of travel, or air	Tourism certificate, plates stay on
A resident returning home	The daily car bought in the UAE	A private container, or a 40ft container with the household goods	Export certificate and export plates
A collector or a showroom	A supercar, a classic or a limited edition	A single-car container or air freight	Export on a sale, tourism for a temporary show

What does a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland take care of?

Between your parking space in the UAE and your parking space in Switzerland stand at least five parties: a local carrier, a port, a shipping line, the customs of the transit country and Swiss customs. Our job is to take charge of that whole chain, in six tasks:

• Transport inside the UAE: a recovery truck carries the car from your address to the loading yard or the port, without it being driven on the road.
• UAE paperwork: we settle with you which certificate is needed, and check fines, the mortgage and the validity of the registration before any booking is paid.
• Wrapping and lashing: a protective paint cover where needed, lashing by the tyres, and a numbered seal on the container door.
• Shipping: booking the space on the container ship, the RoRo vessel or the cargo aircraft, and issuing the bill of lading in your name.
• Transit and clearance: a transit declaration from the European port to the border, then the Swiss customs file.
• Delivery and follow-up: setting the car down at your address, inspecting it with you, and answering your questions on inspection and registration afterwards.

Temporary storage before the ship or after arrival is for a charge agreed in advance, detailed on the storage page. The service in general is explained on the car shipping page.

Will Switzerland accept your car from the UAE?

This question comes before price and time, because its answer decides whether the car is shipped at all. Switzerland sets no age limit on an imported car and does not bar Gulf specifications. What it asks for is two things: two taxes on entry if the car is imported for good, and an individual technical inspection before it is given Swiss plates. A visiting car that will return to the UAE needs neither.

The car’s situation	Does it get in?	What follows
Visiting on UAE plates for the summer	Yes	No taxes and no inspection, and insurance that covers Switzerland
The car of someone moving residence, used for six months or more	Yes	Exemption from both taxes as part of the belongings, then inspection and registration
A car bought recently or sold to a Swiss buyer	Yes	4% tax and 8.1% tax, then inspection and registration
A modified car: open exhaust, dark tinting or lowered suspension	It gets in, and may not be registered	It is returned to its original state before the inspection

The point that surprises owners of Gulf cars is emissions: the rule in force is that a car with a recent first registration may be charged a carbon dioxide penalty on import, and large engines are more exposed to it. That is why we ask for the date of first registration and the engine size before any booking, and confirm the rules in force before shipping.

From Jebel Ali Port in the UAE by sea to Genoa or Rotterdam, then on to Switzerland by covered transporter

Jebel Ali is the largest port in the region, and alongside its container terminals it has a quay dedicated to car carriers that takes more than one RoRo vessel at a time. The ship leaves it through the Strait of Hormuz and the Arabian Sea, then enters the Red Sea at Bab al-Mandab and passes through the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean. From there two roads lead to Switzerland: the Italian port of Genoa, the nearest to the canal, or the Dutch port of Rotterdam on the North Sea. At either, the car is moved onto a covered car transporter that takes it into Swiss territory.

Stage	What happens	Approximate time
Collection from your address in the UAE	Inspection, photographs and loading on a recovery truck	One day
Loading yard, then Jebel Ali Port	Lashing in the container and an export declaration with customs	2–5 days
Sailing to Genoa	A direct voyage or a change of vessel at a hub port	About 18–26 days
Sailing to Rotterdam	A longer course round Spain and France	About 24–34 days
From the European port to the Swiss border	Covered transporter under a customs transit declaration	2–5 days
Swiss clearance and delivery	Submitting the file, then transport to the address	2–4 days

The choice of port follows the city you are heading for. From Genoa it is about 200 km to Lugano and about 420 km to Zurich over the Gotthard axis, so it suits southern and central Switzerland best. Rotterdam is further by sea, but it is tied to Basel by motorway, the Rhine and rail, so it suits the north of the country. The figures in the table are estimates, not a promise: if the shipping lines divert their ships to the Cape of Good Hope route instead of the Red Sea, the voyage grows by roughly two weeks, and we tell you the actual routing at booking. The shipping gateways we work through are on the ports and gateways page.

Transit time for shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland

We draw up a written timetable for every shipment before it moves: the collection day, the port cut-off, the sailing date, the expected arrival and the delivery week. If the ship is delayed we tell you the same day and offer the alternative available.

Shipping method	Door to door	When it moves
Private 20ft container to Genoa	30–38 days	The nearest ship once the papers are complete
Private container to Rotterdam	36–45 days	The nearest ship once the papers are complete
RoRo vessel, then covered transporter	35–45 days	According to the RoRo sailings bound for Europe
Air freight to Zurich or Geneva	3–6 days	As soon as the space on the aircraft is fixed

What lengthens the time?

• Export insurance in Dubai runs for only a few days, so if the ship is missed it has to be renewed before the car enters the port.
• An unpaid Salik or parking fine that comes up when the certificate is requested and stops the transaction.
• The transporter reaching the border just before the weekend, as heavy lorry traffic is restricted in Switzerland at night and on Sundays.

To compare this route with others, see the transit times page.

Price of shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland

We do not write a fixed figure for this route. The container rate from Jebel Ali to Europe changes from one month to the next, and the road leg after the port differs between nearby Lugano and distant Geneva. We send you an itemised quotation with its lines: transport inside the UAE, lashing, sea or air freight, European port charges, the covered transporter and clearance. The two Swiss taxes are paid at their actual value to the Swiss treasury, and we write them on a separate line.

Service	Price	Depends on
An economy or family car on a RoRo vessel to the European port	Set on request	The car’s size in cubic metres and the RoRo sailing date
A car in a private 20ft container	Set on request	The shipping line’s rate on the booking day and the arrival port
Covered transporter from Genoa or Rotterdam to the Swiss address	Set on request	The distance, and whether the transporter carries one car or several
Air freight for the car	Set on request	The weight, the dimensions and the aircraft type
For comparison: a saloon by RoRo from Jeddah port to a European port	Starts from SAR 2,800	The price of our line from Saudi Arabia, not a price for shipping from the UAE

Prices circulating in the market: we found no one publishing a price for the UAE–Switzerland route itself. What is published in the UAE market for shipping a car to Europe in general runs between AED 10,000 and 15,000 for the freight alone, without the taxes of the country of arrival. Dollar figures also circulate for sea freight to Switzerland: USD 800 to 1,200 for a small car, 1,000 to 1,500 for a family car, and 1,500 to 2,300 for a luxury car. They do not usually include transport from the European port or clearance. Always compare quotations that end at the same point.

What changes the price	How
The car’s size and weight	A long 4×4 takes more space on RoRo and may need a taller container
The shipping method	RoRo is the lowest, then a shared container, then a private one, with air the highest by a wide margin
The arrival port	Genoa is shorter by sea, and Rotterdam is nearer to Basel by road
The collection and delivery points	Fujairah or Ras Al Khaimah is further from Jebel Ali than Dubai, and Geneva further from Genoa than Lugano
The number of cars	A company or family sending more than one car gets a lower price per car

How do you cut the cost?

• Book sea freight well ahead of the summer season rather than air at the last minute.
• Put your car with that of a relative or colleague in a 40ft container to the same city.
• Book the outward and return trips together if the car is travelling for the summer.

The pricing items are explained on the pricing factors page.

How do we serve shipping from the UAE as a Saudi establishment?

Home Safe is an establishment registered in the Kingdom and based in Jeddah, and it has no branch and no yard in the UAE. UAE shipments are carried out through Emirati freight and clearing agents we deal with: they are the ones who collect the car, lodge the export declaration and take it into the port or the airport. Our team runs the file and coordinates with the partner in Switzerland, and our number is the one you call at every stage. The UAE origin has features we work with:

• Seven emirates and more than one licensing authority: the car’s certificate is issued by the authority where it was registered, so a Dubai car comes under the Roads and Transport Authority, and an Abu Dhabi or Sharjah car under its own authority.
• More than one port: Jebel Ali is the base, Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi has a car terminal, and Sharjah has Khalid Port and Khor Fakkan.
• Three airports for cargo: Dubai International and Al Maktoum in Dubai, and Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi.

Anyone wanting the other direction, a car from the Kingdom to the UAE by road, will find that route in the article on car shipping from Saudi Arabia to the UAE.

Collecting cars from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the other emirates

Collection from the door of the house is the rule with us, not the exception. The agent calls you a day ahead to fix the hour, and the driver arrives with a hydraulic recovery truck that suits a low car.

Emirate	Areas we collect from	Note
Dubai	Jumeirah, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Marina, Downtown, Al Barsha, Mirdif, Deira	The recovery truck cannot enter basement tower car parks, so the car is brought out to the entrance
Abu Dhabi	Abu Dhabi Island, Al Reem Island, Saadiyat, Khalifa City, Mussafah	It is taken to Jebel Ali, or to Khalifa Port if the schedule suits
Al Ain	Al Jimi, Al Muwaiji, Zakher, Hili	An appointment arranged two days ahead
Sharjah and Ajman	Al Khan, Al Majaz, Muwaileh, Al Rashidiya, Al Jurf	Congestion on the road to Dubai makes a morning collection better
Ras Al Khaimah and Umm Al Quwain	Al Nakheel, Al Hamra, Al Salamah	Collection on set days of the week
Fujairah and Khor Fakkan	Fujairah city, Dibba, Kalba	The mountain road adds about two hours to the transfer

RoRo or container: which is for your car?

On a RoRo vessel the car goes up under its own power over a ramp, stands on a roofed deck among hundreds of cars, and comes down the same way. It is not covered, because it is driven on and off. In a container the car is put in once, in the UAE, and tied down to the floor, then the door is sealed and no one touches it until the clearance terminal.

Criterion	RoRo vessel	Private 20ft container	Shared 40ft container
Loading	Driven onto the ship uncovered	Lashed by the tyres and the door sealed	Two cars lashed in one box
The European leg	Covered transporter from the quay	The container as it is up to clearance	Opened at the port or carried on sealed
Belongings with the car	Not allowed	Allowed if declared	Within narrow limits
Cost	The lowest	The highest by sea	In between
For whom	The economy and family car	Sports cars, supercars and classics	A family or two friends going to one city

Each method is explained on the RoRo car shipping and container car shipping pages.

Shipping sports cars and supercars from the UAE to Switzerland in an enclosed container

Supercar owners in Dubai know that the hardest ten metres of the journey are the way into the container. The ground clearance is small, the front bumper is carbon fibre, and any sharp angle breaks it. So the car is not driven in over an ordinary ramp. We use long loading boards that ease the slope, or a lifting platform that brings it level with the floor, and the team pushes it in slowly with the engine off. The container is for your car alone, so no other cargo shifts beside it during four weeks at sea.

• Soft nets over the tyres: they wrap each tyre and are drawn tight to the lashing points in the floor, so no metal touches the rims or the body.
• Padded walls: protective cushions on both sides of the container level with the doors and mirrors, protecting the car if the ship rolls in a heavy sea.
• A paint cover: soft breathable fabric that keeps dust off and does not trap moisture against the paint.
• Records: a full video before closing, a photograph of the seal, and the container number reaches you before it leaves the yard.

The lashing methods are set out in detail on the packing and lashing page.

Types of vehicle we ship from the UAE to Switzerland

An economy or family car is shipped with the same care, and the difference lies in the method, not in the attention. We start with a short assessment: does it run, what are its dimensions, what is it worth, and why is it travelling.

Vehicle	Method	What we check
Small economy car and saloon	RoRo, or half a 40ft container	Whether its value matches the cost of shipping and conformity
Family car and 4×4	A private container, or RoRo for one that runs well	The height with the roof rack, as the door of a standard container is limited
Luxury car	A private container or air	The insured value and the air suspension sensors
Sports car and supercar	A single-car container or air	The ground clearance and the width of the car
Classic	A private container	Leaks, and its historic classification at Swiss registration
Motorcycle	A wooden crate by sea or air	Draining the fuel and securing the handlebars
Lorry or heavy commercial vehicle	RoRo or a flat rack	The dimensions, the weight and Swiss emissions standards

Heavy vehicles have a service of their own on the heavy equipment shipping page.

Preparing the car before collection in the UAE

A quarter of an hour of preparation saves a week of correspondence later. The car will stand closed for more than a month, and will be opened in front of a Swiss customs officer who looks closely at everything inside it. So prepare it as if you were handing it to a buyer:

• Wash the body and the underside free of sand and dust, and clean the cabin.
• Empty the boot and the compartments, and remove the Salik tag, personal trackers and perfumes.
• Keep the fuel at a quarter of a tank or less.
• Ask the dealer for coolant and screen wash that withstand sub-zero temperatures, as Gulf fluids do not suit a Swiss winter.
• Photograph the car from all four sides, the roof, the rims, the cabin and the instrument panel.
• Switch off the alarm, hand over one key and keep the second with you.

Everything worth knowing before shipping is gathered in the car shipping guide.

A summer on UAE plates or a final export?

The paperwork forks here into two roads that never meet. The holiday car stays Emirati: its plates are on it and its registration is valid, and it leaves on a tourism certificate and returns on one. The emigrating car is struck off the UAE record and enters Switzerland as imported goods carrying two taxes and an inspection. Confusing the two roads is the dearest mistake on this route.

Item	Temporary travel, then return	Final export
The UAE document	Vehicle tourism certificate	Export certificate
Plates	Stay on the car	Handed in, and export plates fitted
Period	The practice in Dubai is six months	No return to the file
A mortgaged car	An electronic no-objection certificate from the bank	Full release of the mortgage
In Switzerland	Private use by a visitor living abroad	Two taxes, then individual inspection and registration
Insurance	A temporary policy valid in Switzerland	Swiss insurance before the plates

Two notes on temporary travel. The rule in force is that a visitor living outside Switzerland may use a foreign car there for private purposes for a limited time, usually given as six months in the year, and we confirm the period in force before shipping. And the customs carnet, issued in the UAE by the automobile club, is not a condition in Switzerland but helps when passing through the country of the port; it is explained on the carnet page.

Procedure for the export certificate and export plates in the UAE

There is no single federal body for this transaction. The certificate is issued by the vehicle licensing authority of the emirate where the car was registered. The table sets out the practice in force, and we confirm what applies in your emirate before shipping, because the electronic channels are updated all the time.

Step	The practice in force	Our note
The authority	The Roads and Transport Authority in Dubai, and the vehicle licensing authority in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and the other emirates	We identify the authority from the registration card
Fines	All are paid, together with toll and parking charges	We go through them with you before booking
Mortgage	A mortgage release letter from the financing bank	No export certificate for a mortgaged car
Plates	The originals are handed in and export plates issued	A distinctive plate has a retention procedure, requested before the handover
Export insurance	A short policy requested with the certificate, running in Dubai for only a few days	We request it once the sailing date is firm
How to apply	The Authority’s website and app or the customer happiness centres in Dubai, and the digital channels or service centres in the other emirates	Going in person saves time when the sailing date is near

After the certificate, our agent lodges the export declaration with customs at the port or the airport, and the car leaves with the exit stamp.

Documents for shipping the car and what is not accepted

We ask for pictures of the papers over WhatsApp first and check them, then tell you what is missing. The originals are never placed inside the car: they travel with you or by courier, because Swiss customs asks for them before the container is opened.

Document	Issued by	Where it is used
The car’s registration card	The licensing authority of the emirate	Booking and customs in both countries
Tourism certificate or export certificate	The licensing authority of the emirate	Exit from the port or the airport
Emirates ID and passport	The owner of the car	Every stage
Purchase invoice or certified valuation	The showroom or a valuer	Working out the two taxes and the insured value
Bank letter	The lender	No objection for travel, or mortgage release for export
Swiss residence permit and tenancy contract	The person moving residence	The exemption application under removal goods
Bill of lading or air waybill	The shipping line or the airline	Release of the car on arrival

And these are cases where we stop the shipment until they are dealt with:

Case	What we do
Open fines or a mortgage not released	The car does not leave the UAE before they are settled
An oil or fuel leak	Repaired first, as both the sea and the air carrier refuse it
A radar detector fitted in the car	Removed, as possessing one is banned in Switzerland
Weapons, ammunition or fireworks	Strictly prohibited
Food, plants or soil in the cabin	Removed before loading

The full lists are on the shipping documents and prohibited items pages.

Customs, inspection and registration of the car in Switzerland

Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, so the car is not cleared in Genoa or in Rotterdam. It crosses Union territory under the customs transit system with no tax paid on it there, and is presented to Swiss customs at the crossing or at an inland office. There the taxes are settled, and the form without which the car cannot be registered is issued.

Item	The rule in force	Our part
Customs duty	Abolished on cars as part of the abolition of duties on industrial goods	We check that it applies on the clearance day
Automobile tax	4% of the car’s value	An advance estimate based on the invoice
Value added tax	8.1% on the value with freight and the automobile tax	Written on a separate line of the quotation
Removal goods exemption	A car the person moving has used for at least six months, on form 18.44	We check the ownership date and the proof of the move
Customs inspection report	Form 13.20 A, issued at clearance	We hand you its original with the car
Carbon dioxide penalty	May be charged on a car whose first registration is not old enough	We ask for the registration date and the engine size
Individual inspection	At the road traffic office of the canton, for a car with no European certificate of conformity	We tell you the changes to expect for your model

For a Gulf car, expect the Swiss inspector to ask for headlights with the European beam pattern, a rear fog lamp, and a document from the maker or an accredited laboratory with the exhaust and noise values. Removal of the tinting from the windscreen and the driver’s windows is also asked for, and it is common on UAE cars. What the rates and forms allow is reviewed periodically, so we confirm what is in force before shipping. Details of the clearance service are on the customs clearance page.

Insuring the car from the UAE until delivery in Switzerland

A UAE comprehensive motor policy covers the car on the roads of the UAE, and some extend to the Gulf states, but none of them covers a car in a container on the deck of a ship. The sea carrier is liable by law for a limited sum that comes nowhere near the value of a car. The real cover is therefore the cargo insurance we offer with every booking.

• Scope: from the moment the collection report is signed in the UAE until you sign the delivery report in Switzerland, including temporary storage and road transport.
• Perils: transport accidents, fire, theft, loading and unloading damage, and weather damage at sea.
• Extension: cover for scratches and small dents is an additional item requested for a luxury car.
• Value: an agreed sum written in the policy, and for a rare car an expert valuation before shipping.
• Claim: the remark is recorded on the delivery report before signing, the photographs are attached, and we follow the file with the insurer.

The types and terms are on the cargo insurance page.

Delivering cars from the UAE in Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne

Switzerland has no seaports where a car is unloaded. The actual arrival is at an inland clearance terminal or at an airport, and from there the last leg begins: a covered transporter or an enclosed recovery truck to the door of the house, the hotel or the company premises. Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne receive most of the cars coming from the UAE, followed by Basel, Bern and Lugano. The key is handed over only after an inspection you carry out with the driver against the loading photographs.

City	Location	How it arrives	On delivery
Zurich	North-east of the country	From Genoa over the Gotthard, from Basel 85 km away, or by air to its airport	Building garages have narrow entrances, so the car is set down in the street by appointment
Geneva	The far west near the French border	From Genoa through northern Italy, or by air to its airport	Lakeside hotels ask for coordination with the valet parking service
Lausanne	The northern shore of Lake Geneva	With the Geneva cars on the same transporter	A city built on a slope, so a level spot is chosen for unloading
Basel	Where the borders with Germany and France meet	From Rotterdam by road, rail or the Rhine	Cars for the north are usually delivered on the clearance day
Bern	The centre of the country	From Basel or from Zurich	Delivery to diplomatic missions is arranged by official appointment
Lugano	The Italian-speaking south	From Genoa through the Chiasso crossing	The shortest road leg on the whole route

We also deliver in Montreux, Interlaken, Lucerne, St. Moritz and elsewhere by prior arrangement. Two things we point out to everyone receiving a Gulf car: the annual motorway vignette is bought before the first trip, and summer tyres are no good on a mountain road if the car arrives in the cold season. The service as far as the address is explained on the door to door page.

Car shipping for individuals, companies, embassies and government bodies

An individual wants a clear date and a price that fits the budget. An institution wants a contract, an invoice and a report, and sometimes repeat shipments throughout the year.

• Individuals: flexible collection times, an economy option and a full-protection one, and follow-up over WhatsApp.
• Companies and showrooms: management of multiple shipments under one list of chassis numbers, and a special price for repeat shipping.
• Embassies and consulates: letters on official letterhead, with the diplomatic exemption applied for on the Swiss side ahead of the car’s arrival.
• Government bodies: adherence to the body’s official procedures, and written records of every stage.

Combining sea and air, and is there a land route?

Some customers ask us for a middle way between the cost of sea and the speed of air. The practical answer is to split the two directions: the car goes out by sea two months before the holiday and comes back by air if its owner needs it quickly, or the other way round. The road leg can also be shortened with a fast single-car transporter from Genoa.

As for the land route from the UAE to Switzerland, we do not rely on it. It runs through Saudi Arabia, then Jordan or Iraq, then Turkey and the Balkans, and no regular car transporters work it. The differences between the three methods are on the shipping methods comparison page, and sea services on the sea freight page.

Air freight for cars from the UAE to Switzerland

The UAE is one of the largest air cargo hubs in the world, which makes air a more realistic option here than from any other origin in the region. The car is handed over at the cargo village of Dubai International Airport, at Al Maktoum Airport or at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, secured on a metal pallet, and loaded onto a freighter or into the hold of a wide-body passenger aircraft. It lands at Zurich or Geneva airport, is cleared at airport customs, and is then taken to your address. The total is between 3 and 6 days.

• Who it suits: the luxury car and the supercar, a show or auction car with a fixed date, and anyone who decided to travel at the last minute.
• Dangerous goods: aviation rules class a car as such because of the fuel and the battery, so a special declaration signed by a certified specialist is prepared for it.
• Fuel: the rule in force is no more than a quarter of a tank, and leaks are checked before acceptance.
• Size: the height of the car is what decides whether it fits the hold of a passenger aircraft or needs a freighter.
• Price: set on request, and several times the sea price because the car is charged on its weight and volume together.

There are regular flights between Dubai and Abu Dhabi on one side and Zurich and Geneva on the other, but acceptance of a car on a given flight depends on the aircraft type and the payload available that day. Air services for other shipments are on the air freight page.

Steps for shipping a car from the UAE to Switzerland

The order goes through eight steps, and at each one we tell you what has been done and what comes next:

1. You send to 0552803439 the car’s model, its year of manufacture and a picture of the registration, with the emirate, the Swiss city and your travel date.
2. We ask you whether the car is coming back or not, suggest sea or air, and send an itemised quotation with the lines and the time.
3. You agree, and we book the space on the ship or the aircraft and send the list of papers required from you.
4. You pay the fines and bring the bank letter if needed, and the tourism or export certificate is obtained.
5. The driver reaches your address, the car is inspected and photographed, and you sign the condition report.
6. The car is lashed, the container sealed and the export declaration lodged, and a copy of the bill of lading and the tracking number reach you.
7. The car reaches the European port or the airport, is taken to Swiss customs and cleared.
8. It is set down at your address, you inspect it, sign, and receive the key and the customs papers.

Tracking the car and notifications at every stop

Tracking in sea freight is not a dot moving on a map every minute. It is a container number you follow on the shipping line’s website, the ship’s position as updated through navigation systems, and reports from us at every handover. These are the notifications that reach you without your asking:

• Sealing day: the container number, the seal number, the name of the ship and its sailing date.
• During the voyage: a weekly update, and an immediate notice if the arrival date changes.
• At the European port: confirmation of discharge and of the car being loaded on the transporter.
• Two days before arrival: a report with the clearance date and the amount of tax, if any, so that you can get ready to receive it.

By air, the air waybill number is enough to follow the flight hour by hour. The method is explained on the shipment tracking page.

Car shipping from Switzerland to the UAE

The route works in both directions. A UAE car returning from the summer goes back to its file with the return-from-tourism certificate and is not treated as an imported car. A car bought in Switzerland goes through a different procedure: its Swiss registration is cancelled, it is exported through a European port or by air, and it enters the UAE as an import. The rule in force there is customs duty of 5% on the value with freight and insurance, value added tax of 5%, and a steering wheel on the left. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are reported not to register a used car more than ten years old from its year of manufacture, classic cars excepted, and then comes the technical inspection before the plates. The destination page is shipping to the UAE.

Home Safe’s advice before shipping your car to Switzerland

We have gathered here what we say to every customer on the phone before they book:

• Check the validity of the car’s registration and of your passport, as an expired registration adds a technical inspection before any certificate.
• Choose a shipping date away from the pre-summer peak if you can, as prices and space are better.
• Take out all your personal belongings: extra weight does you no good, and undeclared items do you harm.
• Read the terms of the insurance policy, and ask about the amount you bear yourself on each claim.
• For anyone moving residence: do not sell your old car to buy a new one a month before travelling, or the six-month condition falls away.

How do you choose a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland?

Quality and reliability are two words everyone writes. What proves them is what you see before paying, not what is told afterwards. Here are five signals to look for in any quotation you receive:

Signal	What it means
The quotation ends at your Swiss address, not at the port	Its author has costed the road leg and clearance
It separates the tourism certificate from the export certificate on the first call	It really knows the UAE procedure
It asks for the date of first registration and the engine size	It knows the Swiss taxes and the emissions penalty
It sends a condition report and photographs before loading	It is prepared to be held to account for what it received
Its commercial registration is written, and it says plainly who acts for it in the UAE	It hides nothing about how it works

Common mistakes when shipping cars from the UAE to Switzerland

These are seven mistakes that recur on this route, and all of them can be put right before loading:

• Taking out an export certificate for a car travelling for the summer, so that it loses its plates and its file for no reason.
• Requesting export insurance early, so that it runs out before the car enters the port.
• Choosing the cheapest quotation and then finding that it ends on the quay at Genoa.
• Shipping a modified car with a loud exhaust in the hope of registering it in Switzerland as it is.
• Leaving dark tinting and a radar detector in a car that will be inspected there.
• Leaving the original registration card in the car’s glove box inside the container.
• Relying on UAE comprehensive insurance beyond the limits of its cover.

Why Home Safe for shipping your car from the UAE to Switzerland?

Because we do not sell you one stage of the journey, and we do not claim what we do not have. We tell you who acts in the UAE and who receives in Switzerland, we write the time and the items before you pay, and we answer the phone after delivery as we did before it.

To book: 0552803439 by phone or WhatsApp, from 7 am to 11 pm. Or through the request a quote page.

Related articles and pages

• Car shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Switzerland
• Car shipping company from the UAE to the UK
• Car shipping company from Kuwait to Switzerland
• Car shipping company from Qatar to Switzerland
• Shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Switzerland
• Container sizes

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Frequently asked questions about car shipping from the UAE to Switzerland

How do I know a car shipping company from the UAE to Switzerland is right for my car?

Ask it for three names: the European port where the car will land, the carrier that takes it on to Switzerland, and the broker who presents it to Swiss customs. Home Safe is a registered Saudi establishment that runs this route through agents in the UAE and partners in Switzerland, and its number is 0552803439.

How much does it cost to ship a car from Dubai to Switzerland?

The price is set on request, because the container rate from Jebel Ali to Europe moves a great deal and because the Swiss city changes the carrier fare after the port. What is published in the UAE market for shipping a car to Europe in general is between AED 10,000 and 15,000 for the freight alone, without taxes. Purely for comparison, RoRo on our line from Jeddah port to European ports starts from SAR 2,800.

How long does the journey from Jebel Ali to Zurich or Geneva take?

By sea, between 30 and 45 days from the day the car leaves your home in the UAE to the day it comes off at your Swiss address. The difference is made by the European port and by whether the ship is direct or the container changes vessel on the way. By air, between 3 and 6 days including clearance at both airports.

What is the difference between the tourism certificate and the export certificate in the UAE?

The tourism certificate is for a car that travels and comes back: its plates and ownership stay as they are, and the practice in Dubai is that it runs for six months. The export certificate is for a car leaving for good: its plates are handed in, export plates are fitted and its traffic file is closed.

Can I ship a car that is mortgaged to a UAE bank?

For temporary travel, yes, if the bank issues an electronic no-objection certificate, as the tourism certificate is granted to a mortgaged car on that condition. A final export, however, is not issued before the mortgage is released and the finance settled in full.

Is customs duty charged on my car in Switzerland?

The rule in force is that Switzerland has abolished customs duty on cars, and on import it collects an automobile tax of 4% and value added tax of 8.1%. Someone moving their residence with a car they have used for six months or more applies for its exemption as part of their belongings.

Does the Swiss inspection accept a Gulf-specification car?

It accepts it after an individual inspection at the road traffic office of the canton, because it has no European certificate of conformity. Headlights to the European standard, a rear fog lamp and a document proving the exhaust and noise measurements are to be expected, along with removal of the front tinting. Send us the chassis number before you decide.

Which port in the UAE is the car shipped from?

From Jebel Ali Port in Dubai for most bookings, as it has the container terminals and a terminal dedicated to RoRo vessels. Cars from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain may leave from Khalifa Port if its schedule suits your date. The ports of Sharjah and Khor Fakkan are used when the shipping line has a suitable sailing from them.

Is an enclosed container necessary for a sports car?

We recommend it without hesitation. A low car is not suited to the ramps of RoRo vessels or to many drivers’ hands, and after the sea comes a long road leg across the Alps. Inside the container it travels alone, held by its tyres with soft nets, with the walls of the box padded around it.

Can the car be shipped by air from the UAE’s airports?

Yes, from Dubai International Airport, Al Maktoum Airport or Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, depending on the flight available. The car is secured on an air cargo pallet and arrives in Zurich or Geneva, then is cleared and delivered within 3 to 6 days of collection. The price is set on request once the weight, the dimensions and the fuel type are known.

Does the car enter Switzerland on its own wheels from the European port?

No. We load it on a covered car transporter from Genoa or Rotterdam to the address, or it stays in its container as far as the clearance terminal. Driving it hundreds of kilometres on export plates, or with insurance that does not cover Europe, is a needless risk.

What about personal belongings inside the car?

On RoRo the car is handed over completely empty. In a private container, belongings are allowed beside the car if they are entered on a separate list and submitted to Swiss customs with the rest of the file. Anything left off the list exposes the container to detention.

Do you insure the car during the journey?

We offer marine or air cargo insurance for the agreed value of the car, starting from the moment it is collected in the UAE and ending when you sign in Switzerland. The figure quoted for the premium of such cover is between 1.5% and 2.5% of the car’s value, and we confirm the rate with the quotation.

Do you bring the car back to the UAE when the summer is over?

Yes, and it is best to book both directions in one order. We collect it from your address in Switzerland and return it by sea or air, and it goes back to its traffic file with the return-from-tourism certificate and no import charges, provided the certificate’s period is not exceeded.

When should I book so that the car arrives at the start of my holiday?

For a container or RoRo, about eight weeks before your arrival date, since the sea alone takes more than a month. For air freight, two to three weeks ahead, so that we can fix a place on an aircraft that takes the height of your car.