Switzerland and China sign deal that ends customs duties on Swiss watches
Switzerland and China signed the updated version of their free trade agreement in Beijing on 30 October. Once fully implemented, all Swiss watches will enter China free of customs duties.
Today only about 1% of the Swiss watches exported to China are exempt. The others pay duties that, depending on the category, reach 4% to 8%.
The signing took place in the Great Hall of the People, at a ceremony with Presidents Guy Parmelin and Xi Jinping. The text updates the agreement in force since 1 July 2014 and follows the conclusion of negotiations in August.
For Swiss exports as a whole, the exempt share rises from 53.6% to 99.8%: 77.5% of goods become exempt when the protocol enters into force and the remainder over five to ten years.
The change is not immediate. The protocol must still go through each country's approval procedures, and the reduction of duties on watches will be gradual, over periods of up to ten years depending on the category. China's consumption tax on luxury goods, which covers watches, is not part of the agreement and remains in place.
The deal comes in a falling market: according to Insight Luxury, using data from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, exports to China fell by more than a third in two years and dropped a further 5% in the first half of 2026.
Find out more on the Swiss Government's website.
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