by Repatriated passengers were expected to cover 80% of their flight bills. Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi The majority of stranded Swiss people repatriated during the first pandemic wave have paid back their share of flight bills. But the foreign ministry has been forced to write off CHF210,000 (0,000) and is still haggling over another CHF360,000. In spring 2020, Switzerland arranged for over 7,000 people (4,000 Swiss and 3,000 non-Swiss) to be flown homeExternal link from countries that were going into Covid-19 enforced lockdowns. The government agreed to cover 20% of the CHF7.5 million bill to carry out the “historic” repatriation effort. Some 7,100 invoices were sent out to people who were expected to stump up the remaining 80% of the flight fares themselves.
Topics:
Swissinfo considers the following as important: 3) Swiss Markets and News, 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy, Featured, health, newsletter
This could be interesting, too:
Frank Shostak writes Assumptions in Economics and in the Real World
Conor Sanderson writes The Betrayal of Free Speech: Elon Musk Buckles to Government Censorship, Again
Nachrichten Ticker - www.finanzen.ch writes Bitcoin erstmals über 80.000 US-Dollar
Nachrichten Ticker - www.finanzen.ch writes Kraken kündigt eigene Blockchain ‘Ink’ an – Neue Ära für den Krypto-Markt?
Repatriated passengers were expected to cover 80% of their flight bills. Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi
The majority of stranded Swiss people repatriated during the first pandemic wave have paid back their share of flight bills. But the foreign ministry has been forced to write off CHF210,000 ($230,000) and is still haggling over another CHF360,000.
In spring 2020, Switzerland arranged for over 7,000 people (4,000 Swiss and 3,000 non-Swiss) to be flown homeExternal link from countries that were going into Covid-19 enforced lockdowns.
The government agreed to cover 20% of the CHF7.5 million bill to carry out the “historic” repatriation effort.
Some 7,100 invoices were sent out to people who were expected to stump up the remaining 80% of the flight fares themselves. They were expected to pay their share within 30 days of receiving bills.
So far, around CHF6.9 million of the CHF7.5 million debt has been paid, the foreign ministry told news agency Keystone-SDA on Thursday.
But not all the money will be recovered because some debtors could not be found or were declared insolvent. In addition, the authorities have gone to the courts to recover some outstanding debt – confirming an earlier report in the Blick newspaper.
The repatriation program in March and April 2020 chartered 35 flights to retrieve citizens in countries as far flung as Peru, Chile, Morocco, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast.
You Might Also Like
Swiss banks implicated in trading cartel investigation
2021-12-03
The European Commission has ended an investigation of five banks, including UBS and Credit Suisse, who colluded in a foreign exchange spot trading cartel.
American farmers pursue Syngenta over herbicide’s link to Parkinson’s disease
2021-11-11
The Swiss-based multinational has already set aside $187.5 million (CHF 171 million) to settle legal cases filed by farmers exposed to paraquat. But the total bill could run into billions as lawsuits pile up.
Health expert recommends Covid certificates for Swiss ski lifts
2021-09-18
Lukas Engelberger, head of the association of cantonal health directors, has recommended making Covid certificates compulsory for riding on Swiss ski lifts, reported Le Nouvelliste.
Swiss won’t vote on arms export ban proposal
2021-09-17
Campaigners seeking a ban on Swiss arms exports have withdrawn their initiative that aimed to stop weapons exports to countries in conflict.
Swiss DLT stock exchange wins long-awaited license to operate
2021-09-11
A new Swiss stock exchange has been awarded a license to trade digital assets using distributed ledger technology (DLT).
Big Swiss companies obliged to report on climate risks from 2024
2021-08-19
From 2024, large Swiss firms will be legally bound to report on their climate-related risks. The government has now published guidelines on which companies and which risks will be involved.
Businesses urged to back Swiss Covid-19 vaccination strategy
2021-08-16
Health Minister Alain Berset has urged companies to back the government’s Covid-19 vaccination campaign, arguing it is in the economy’s interest to get as many people vaccinated as possible.
Zurich airport: 5 percent to 10 percent of passengers not boarding due to Covid document issues
2021-08-07
During July 2021, around 5% to 10% of long-haul passengers, many in transit, were unable to depart from Zurich airport because their Covid-19 documents did not comply with destination country regulations, reported the newspaper Le Temps.
Tags: Featured,Health,newsletter