- Relevant Laws
- Federal Act on Private Security Services Provided Abroad (PSSA, in force 2015); War Material Act; Goods Control Act; Montreux Document (Swiss/ICRC initiative, 2008).
- Licensing Requirements
- PSSA requires companies domiciled in Switzerland to declare private security services provided abroad to the competent federal authority before performing them, and to accede to the International Code of Conduct.
- Armed Contractor Rules
- PSSA prohibits direct participation in hostilities and services that would support serious human-rights violations; the authority may open a review and prohibit a declared activity in whole or in part, or attach conditions.
- Export Control
- War materiel and dual-use exports licensed under the War Material Act and Goods Control Act by SECO and the Federal Council for sensitive destinations.
- Dual-Use Rules
- Goods Control Act implements Wassenaar-aligned dual-use controls; catch-all clause for end-uses of concern.
- Foreign Investment Screening
- No general defence FDI screening at the time of the report; control operates through export and service authorisations rather than ownership review.
- Defense Procurement
- armasuisse procurement under federal procurement law; neutrality policy constrains onward transfer and re-export of Swiss materiel.
- Classified Contract Rules
- Federal information-security and industrial-security procedures; clearances required for classified defence work.
- Technology Transfer Restrictions
- Technical assistance and brokering controls under the War Material and Goods Control Acts.
- Sanctions & End-Use Monitoring
- Embargo Act implementation of UN/EU measures; non-re-export declarations and end-use undertakings.
- Government Agencies
- Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (PSSA authority), SECO, armasuisse, Federal Council.
- Lessons For Ukraine
- The PSSA is the report’s closest structural analogue: a declaration-plus-review model that keeps a lawful private security-services sector while reserving state power to prohibit specific activities. It shows how a mid-sized state can regulate services performed abroad without a large licensing bureaucracy.
- Gaps Or Risks For Ukraine
- Declaration-based review assumes reliable self-reporting and a peacetime administrative environment; Ukraine’s wartime exposure and larger defence-industrial base argue for prior authorisation rather than notification alone.