Since 24 July 2026, US tariffs on Swiss products have been capped at 12.5% in total, base duty included. It is the fourth regime since April 2025: a small business that exports or imports can no longer build its plan on a rate. What it can do is reduce what makes it fragile, its dependence on a single supplier or a single market, and the method for that is one you can apply right now.
Key takeaways
- Since 24 July 2026, a Swiss product pays at most 12.5% on entry into the United States (base duty included), with many exemptions and separate sector-specific duties.
- For a product from the European Union, the equivalent cap is 10%: your competitors do not all pay the same.
- Four regimes have followed one another since April 2025, and a second US investigation has not yet published its findings.
- The main risk is not today's rate but dependence: one supplier, one country of origin or one market that weighs too much.
- The method fits in five steps: map, model scenarios, calculate the landed cost, line up a second source, write the rules into your contracts.
What is happening: four tariff regimes for small business to follow since April 2025
On 2 April 2025, Washington introduced so-called "reciprocal" additional duties, based on an economic emergency law (IEEPA). On 14 November 2025, a joint statement between the United States, Switzerland and Liechtenstein capped the total burden on Swiss products at 15%, base duty included.
On 20 February 2026, the US Supreme Court ruled that this law did not allow general tariffs to be imposed. On 24 February, the administration replaced those duties with a temporary 10% surcharge under Section 122 of the Trade Act, limited to 150 days. Importers established in the United States can claim refunds of duties paid under the former regime.
When that surcharge expired, the US Trade Representative (USTR) took over with Section 301, following investigations opened in March 2026 into 60 economies over imports of goods made with forced labour. Since 24 July 2026, the rule for Switzerland is this: the additional duty tops up the base duty to 12.5% in total. SECO gives the example of a product with a 5% base duty: it pays 7.5% more. If the base duty already reaches 12.5%, nothing is added. For the European Union, the same mechanism stops at 10%.
Three details matter for a small business. Many categories are exempt (civil aircraft, pharmaceuticals and gold, for example). Sector-specific duties remain in place: since 6 April 2026, 10 to 50% on steel, aluminium and copper, and since 31 July 2026, up to 15% on certain pharmaceuticals; they are not stacked on top of the Section 301 duty. Finally, a second investigation, into industrial overcapacity, still had no published findings at the time of writing, and negotiations towards a trade agreement are continuing. As SECO points out, only the US authorities are authoritative on the rate that applies to a given product.
In the other direction, nothing has changed: since 1st January 2024, Switzerland no longer charges customs duties on industrial products, whatever their origin. Import VAT and customs formalities still apply.
What it means for you
If you export, the question is not only "how much do I pay" but "how much does my competitor pay". A gap in caps between Switzerland and the European Union can be enough to tip a buyer who compares two offers down to the cent. And what is true today can change with the next decision of a court or an administration.
If you import to resell, your purchase price says almost nothing about your real cost. Between the factory and your customer come freight, insurance, customs clearance, import VAT, exchange rates, tied-up stock and, depending on the product, compliance procedures. A single supplier, in a single country, concentrates all of these risks in one place.
Either way, the tempting reflex is to wait for things to settle. These successive changes show that instability has become the norm. What a business owner controls is not the rate, but the company's ability to absorb a change in rate without being put at risk.
What I learned from it
From 2014 to 2016, I built an import and distribution business for three-wheeled vehicles made in China, under the ZTR Trike brand. Before committing to any stock, I studied the legislation that applies to this type of vehicle, then had to create the import, type-approval and registration procedure, which did not exist. Then came the logistics: containers, customs, stock, spare parts and after-sales service. On the commercial side, a showroom, trade fairs and a sales network. The details are in the ZTR Trikes case study.
I stopped after two years: the market did not follow. This project taught me three things. First, regulation and type-approval are fixed costs tied to a specific product: if the supplier changes, part of the work has to be redone. Second, an imported product is not just its purchase price; until you have costed the whole chain, you do not know whether your margin exists. Finally, the first risk was not customs but how the market received the product: you need to test it before committing to stock, and know when to stop if it does not follow.
I applied the other side of the lesson when I set up a café from scratch: I chose locally produced ingredients, set prices according to the local market, and wrote procedures for stock and supply management. It was not about avoiding a tariff, but the result is the same: less dependence on a distant supply chain.
What to do in practice
1. Map your dependencies
List your top ten suppliers and your top ten customers, with their country and the share of your revenue or purchases they represent. Add the real country of origin of the products, which is not always your supplier's country. Any line that weighs clearly more than the others, or that nothing else could replace, should be dealt with first.
2. Model three scenarios
Start from the current regime, then an unfavourable scenario (the rate goes back up, a sector-specific duty hits your product) and a favourable one (an agreement lowers the rate). For each, calculate the margin per product and the threshold at which you must revisit your price or your supplier. You will know in advance what to do, instead of deciding in a hurry.
3. Calculate the landed cost, not the purchase price
For each imported or exported product: supplier price, freight, insurance, customs clearance, duties and taxes, exchange rate, tied-up stock and compliance costs. Check the tariff code and the origin of your products, as these determine the duty applied. A well-configured ERP does this calculation for you at every receipt, instead of a spreadsheet that nobody updates.
4. Qualify a second source
For your critical purchases, identify a second supplier, ideally in another country, and have it produce a small order to check quality and lead times. It takes time, but a qualified second source also gives you leverage when negotiating with the first. On the sales side, the same principle applies: a second market is prepared before you need it.
5. Write the rules into your contracts
Specify who pays duties and costs (that is what Incoterms are for), how prices are revised if a duty changes, and in which currency you invoice. A price revision clause negotiated in calm conditions is worth more than a tense discussion after an increase.
Frequently asked questions
What rate applies today to a Swiss product in the United States?
Since 24 July 2026, at most 12.5% in total, base duty included, except for exemptions and sector-specific duties. For your specific product, only the US customs authorities are authoritative: check against your tariff code.
Should I change supplier right away?
No. You need to know what a change in rate would cost you, and to have a qualified second source ready to take over. Changing in a hurry often costs more than the duty itself.
Can a small business really afford to diversify?
Diversifying does not mean multiplying suppliers, but not letting a single line weigh too much. A second source for your two or three critical purchases is often enough.
Going further
I help you map your dependencies, model your scenarios and decide before committing to stock: see the Strategy and support page. To find out where to start in your case, let's talk during a 20-minute call.
Sources
- Swiss-US trade relations, SECO, page consulted on 10 November 2026.
- Detailed information on the additional duties introduced by the United States, SECO, version of 17 August 2026.
- Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations (forced labor), Office of the United States Trade Representative, 23 July 2026.
- Implementing Certain Tariff-Related Elements of the Framework for a United States-Switzerland-Liechtenstein Agreement, Federal Register, 18 December 2025.
- US Supreme Court decision on tariffs (in French), Swiss Federal Council, 25 February 2026.
- Abolition of industrial tariffs, SECO, page consulted on 10 November 2026.
Photo: Arum Visuals / Unsplash (unsplash.com/photos/VnMbc9Szs-E).
Tags: tariffs, small business, import-export, suppliers, diversification, landed cost, strategy