Jayne27

Hi everyone,

I'm just putting the feelers out at the moment and wondering if it is possible for a UK citizen to live in Switzerland?. I know that people can live in France very easily but i was wondering if it was the same procedure for Switzerland?

Many Thanks
Jayne

anglogerman

Been down that road, it's a bugger (unlike France, Switzerland is not a EU country, and makes its own rules). For a start, you need a work permit, and for this you need either to be able to do a job which no Swiss person can do, or be stinking rich. Even if you get a work permit, there's no guarantee you'll get a residence permit: a lot of people working in Basle, for example, have to live in Germany or France and commute daily. And unless the rules have changed, your work/residence permits are only valid for one specific canton (state): if you get permits for Zürich, for example, you're stuck there - you'd need new permits if you wanted to go to, say, Geneva.

Jayne27

Hmmm, I thought it might be the case...

what about if somebody owned property out there (which was rented out) how long could they stay for?...

Thanks for your reply
Jayne

anglogerman

If you own property out there, you're likely to have a residence permit already, as most people need one before they can buy real estate. I'm on shaky ground here though. Perhaps this website might help:

Living and Working in Switzerland

JAJ

This is not quite true anymore. Many EEA free movement of labour rights now extend to Switzerland under a special agreement.
http://www.swissemigration.ch/themen...x.html?lang=en
http://bfm.mit.ch/index.php?id=536&L=3

After 5 years in Switzerland, a permanent resident permit can be obtained.

Swiss citizenship is harder to obtain. A minimum of 12 years, and longer in some cantons/municipalities (so choose place of residence well). Similarly, children born in Switzerland to non-Swiss parents do not automatically become Swiss citizens.

However, Switzerland does allow dual citizenship.

cybersecretary

Hi - how did your investigations go into relocating to switzerland??? Husband up for a job there and wondering about housing and schools and stuff like that.

Sophie_T

Hi!

I've been researching Swiss citizenship lately, and found this forum:

www.englishforum.ch

It seems to have a lot of activity from people who are living in Switzerland. Perhaps someone there can help you find the information you're seeking. Good luck!