A number of American visitors to this website (well, four actually) have asked whether the imposition of 39% US tariffs on Switzerland will cause the cost of assisted dying in Switzerland to rise sharply. The short answer is No. Tariffs are a tax upon imported goods, not upon services in the country where they are delivered.
However, there are indeed a couple of reasons to believe that the Swiss AVD providers might be raising their costs over the next few years.
The first is simply currency fluctuations. Inflation in Switzerland has totalled only 6% since 2021 whereas it has been 17% in the USA. Inevitably these figures have been reflected in the respective exchange rates. So in 2021 ten American dollars would buy ten Swiss Francs. Now, they would only buy eight. One British pound in 2021 would buy 1.2 Swiss Francs; now it buys just under 1.1. During that time, the prices charged by the Swiss AVD providers barely changed at all. But, because of the strength of the Swiss Franc, they certainly did for all overseas visitors.
Also, it looks as though the Swiss clinics themselves may have to increase their prices sometime soon. The demand for their services continues to rise. It remains well within their overall capacity but it seems to be getting harder for them to find the necessary local physicians prepared to do the work. Also, the nature of the cases they deal with is getting more complex. In countries where assisted dying has been legalised, it has enabled the more straightforward cases to receive an AVD locally, leaving those with more complicated issues to turn to Switzerland instead.
There have been no announcements yet. But if you are planning a few years ahead it might be wise to start saving now.
