Zurich consignments are small and expensive. A watch movement, a set of components for a complication, a bank original, a certified laboratory result. None of it fills a bag and all of it is the kind of thing a client wants one named, checked person to carry rather than a network of depots. The seal goes on in front of you and comes off in front of the consignee.
Open · Switzerland desk
On Board Courier, Zurich
The small, valuable and discreet lane. Carry movements, components and originals between the Emirates and Zurich, sealed and in the cabin.
OnBoard Courier is a United Arab Emirates company, contracted by ICSL FZE and run from Dubai. A country named on this site is a country we cover and route through, not a separate company in that country. Assignments are contracted under UAE law, and the terms are published in full under legal and policies.
GatewayZRH · Zurich
Distance from Dubai≈4,750 km
Air time6h 06m
CarriersEmirates · Etihad Airways
EngagementFreelance · per assignment
Fee per assignmentAED 900 to 2,600
Apply for this position
Applying is free. Freelance · self-employed ·
posted 7 September 2026 · open until 7 March 2027
What the work pays
The fee for an assignment is agreed with you in writing before you accept it. These are the figures the site publishes, and what the desk covers on top of them.
Top published feeAED 2,000The highest fee the site shows for a single assignment: sealed medical samples in a cooled case, Dubai to Singapore.
Published band, per assignmentAED 900 to 2,600A document pouch to London is AED 1,200, an aircraft part to Frankfurt AED 1,500, an escorted watch on the Berlin lane AED 1,800.
What the flight costs youAED 0The desk books and pays the ticket, the transfers and, where the routing needs it, the hotel. A courier never fronts the fare.
The one payment you makeAED 199, returnedThe Academy, paid once. It comes back in full on top of the fee for your first completed assignment. Applying itself is free.
Fees vary with the lane, the notice, the waiting time and whether the return is immediate, so the desk quotes each assignment individually rather than pretending one number fits every trip. You are self-employed and there is no minimum: accept or decline whatever you like, and declining costs you nothing. Earnings are paid per delivery by bank transfer, they appear in your courier portal, and you can request a payout once the balance reaches AED 200. Apply and see the flight board.
You fly as a passengerOne consignment in the cabin, one handover against signature. No warehouse, no van, no round.
The desk books and pays the ticketFlight, transfers and, where the routing needs it, a hotel are booked before you leave for the airport.
Paid per assignmentA fee agreed in writing before you accept, paid to your bank account after the signature. Applying is free.
How to start, in four steps
1
Apply once
One application covers every country desk. Tell us which passports you hold and where you can travel.
2
Verification and the Academy
Identity and background check, then a short course on customs, handovers and chain of custody.
3
Your first offer
The desk sends the routing, the dates and the fee in writing. You accept or decline, nothing is automatic.
4
Fly, hand over, get paid
Collect, board, clear customs in person, hand over against signature, and the fee is paid to your account.
The assignment
Emirates and Etihad both fly the Gulf to Zurich, about six hours in the air. Zurich is a compact airport with a serious customs operation for valuables, and the train station is underneath it, which means Basel, Bern and the watch valleys around Neuchâtel and Le Locle are reachable the same day if the handover is not in the city.
Why this lane exists
Switzerland exports very little by weight and a great deal by value, which is the exact profile that makes a passenger seat cheaper than a freight booking. Watchmaking, precision components, analytical instruments and the pharmaceutical corridor around Basel all produce single items whose value dwarfs a business class fare, and all of them have service and repair relationships with the Gulf.
The other half of the lane is documentary. Swiss bank and trust originals, notarised and apostilled instruments, and certified laboratory reports move between Zurich and the Dubai financial centre continuously, and the counterparties expect an original in a hand rather than a courier tracking page.
What you would be carrying
- Watch movements, cases and components going to or returning from service
- Certified analytical and laboratory reports that have to arrive as originals
- Apostilled and notarised instruments for Swiss and Gulf financial counterparties
- Precision instrument spares under a same day service agreement
The clock
Zurich is two hours behind the UAE in summer and three in winter, so a Gulf evening departure gives you a full Swiss working day on arrival.
Airports you would fly into
| IATA | City | Airport | From Dubai |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZRH | Zurich | Zurich Kloten | ≈4,750 km |
The engagement, and who we are looking for
The engagement
- Type: freelance, self-employed. You are an independent courier accepting individual assignments, not an employee, and you decide which ones you take.
- Where it runs: the assignment runs between the United Arab Emirates and Zurich, Switzerland, with the return leg agreed per mission.
- Hours: variable. An assignment is a single trip, not a shift or a roster.
- How you are paid: a fee per completed assignment, agreed in writing before you accept it. The fees published on this site run from AED 1,200 for a document pouch to AED 2,000 for a cooled medical consignment, and the figure for your assignment reflects the lane, the notice, the waiting time and whether the return is immediate.
- What the desk pays: the flight, the transfers and, where the routing needs it, the hotel. A courier never pays for the ticket and never fronts the fare.
- Applying is free. No payment is required to apply, to be screened or to be placed on the courier list. The Academy costs AED 199, paid once, and is returned in full on top of the fee for your first completed assignment. It is the only payment a courier ever makes to us.
What we look for
- A passport with comfortable remaining validity and free pages, and the right to enter Switzerland. The desk checks the visa position for your specific passport before any assignment is offered.
- A clean background check and a willingness to be verified. Couriers carry other people’s property.
- Availability at short notice. Most assignments are confirmed hours, not days, before departure.
- Presentable, calm and articulate at a customs counter. The consignment is only as smooth as the person carrying it.
- A working phone, reachable on the number you gave us, for the whole assignment.
What we provide
- The ticket. Always. A courier never pays for the flight and never fronts the fare.
- The paperwork, prepared before you reach the airport, and a named contact at the desk on both ends.
- A briefing on the consignment, the consignee and what the customs position at the far end looks like.
- A fee per completed assignment, agreed with you in advance and paid by bank transfer after the handover.
Questions about courier work to and from Zurich
01Am I responsible if something valuable is lost?
You are responsible for keeping the sealed consignment with you and following the handover procedure you are briefed on. Insurance for the goods is arranged by the client and the desk, not by you, and the arrangement is explained before you accept the assignment.
02What does the Swiss customs counter want?
A clear declaration and the documents prepared for you. High value goods are declared, and where a temporary import or re-export applies the paperwork is prepared before you leave the Gulf. You are never asked to carry something undeclared.
03Do handovers happen outside Zurich?
Regularly. Basel, Bern, Geneva and the watch valleys are all normal destinations, and the train from the airport is fast. The offer names the address and includes the ground leg.
04How discreet is this work?
Very. You do not photograph the item, you do not discuss the client, and the consignment does not go on social media. That is not a formality on this lane, it is the service.
05How is my fee agreed?
The desk sends the routing, the timing and the fee for that specific assignment in writing. You accept or decline it. Nothing is deducted or charged without your written agreement.
Apply to fly the Zurich lane
One form, a short screening call, and you are on the list the desk calls when something small and valuable has to reach Zurich by hand.
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