Moving To Switzerland
 

Just been toying with the idea in my head for a while. Has anyone done it?.

Been there a few times and the country and people seem really nice and the standard of living seems very high. Not to mention the scenery.

Currently i am 26 and work in the construction industry, anybody know much about the construction industry over there?.
Not too bothered about trying something else as long as it works out.

Any opinions would be good really, just not too keen on the uk as it seems to be going down the pan fast and i dont want to be here in 5 years.

Whereabouts in Switzerland? I'd look at the French or Italian speaking parts of the country, in the south or the east.

It was featured on Casualty or Holbycity (which ever ones on the BBC) last night.......... assisted suicide storyline!

Looked really nice................ apart from all the Brits dieing all over the place :thumb:

it is a lovely country, i spose it would have to be one of the bigger cities, somewhere like Geneva, Bern or Zurich would be good.

Will have to look into the work side of things and getting a visa etc, no doubt you will have to support yourself not like over here where you and your family can turn up and claim benefit for the rest of your life.

I guess it would depend on the work where i would go but anywhere over there is nice.

Switzerland - lovely country but very Swiss/Germanic. Clean and civilised, but far less emotion and vibrancy, is probably the best way to put it.

I know when I used to work with Jackie Stewart when I was at Ford in F1, when Jackie left there he told me there was some rule that you could not buy a property for 5 years but had to rent it - so he was renting his place to Phil Collins for the 5 years so Phil could then buy. Not sure if it is still the rule but certainly it was at about 6-7 years ago...

Send a PM to dowser he used to live there or wander over to General technical he usually lurks in there.

oh yeah his name is Richard Dowsett. :D

interesting that about renting for the first 5 years, not too much of a concern i spose.

means i could save and get somewhere nice after that time i guess. or even build my own if they allowed it. basically anywhere out of britain and its over pc and benefit hungry population would be good before it goes down the tube big time.

i am not alone as pretty much 90% of the people i work with are toying with the idea. i do love britain but dont want to stay if things keep going the way they are.

i will have to pm dowser later and find out more.

Every time you stop driving (traffic lights, congestion) you have to switch your car off.

At least you'll be able to open a Swiss bank account. Everyone you tell will think you're rich. :)


Don't they make every building out of wood :wonder: :D

I worked in banking and lived in central Zurich for 7 years between 1993 and 2000 and go back at least once a year to visit friends etc. Cracking place to live and at your age the nightlife is fantastic :thumb: . Pubs open until 0400 and almost never any trouble (only fight I saw in 7 years was between two Brits in the Nelson :o ). Kino am See (open air cinema on the lake) and skiing are other highlights.

I believe 75% of the population rents, so don't worry about feeling the need to buy a place. Peculiarities such as all tenants having to share a washing machine and dryer in most buildings is a small price to pay for the quality of life improvement you will no doubt otherwise experience. :)

I still have my Swiss bank accounts of course :norty:

I think new regulations came into effect recently that give UK passport holders the right to work and live their indefinitely without going through any type of visa application process.

If anyone wants a Swiss bank account you can open one online through Swiss post anyway.

cool. i am off soon as i can then. certainly before i am 30 would be good.

i like the idea of a swiss bank account too. got a bit to stash away.

LMAO at some of the above comments.

switzerland is a great place to live and work! Trust me it will not be an easy process to gain entry and find a job. I have lived in switzerland for 18+ years and am just returning after 4 years abroad, and even i am having a harder time than i would have though getting my residence permit back (after having the highest since moving over 18 years ago).

Just do your research first and perhaps start to apply for jobs now so you can find out what the market is like. I remember when my girlfriend was looking for work the company which she applied to was told that if the position could be filled by swiss passport holder then they couldnt offer her the job!

Switzerland are a signatory to the Bilateral Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons. The priority on employing Swiss people has already been abolished and the only restriction on EU/UK workers is that there has been a quota on the amount of workers.

This quota will be completely abolished as from next year.

If you are being told different then they are in breech of what they have signed up to.

Living and Working in Switzerland
Bilateral Swiss-EU agreements - Work permits in Geneva

If you can make watches, cow bells or cuckoo clocks you've got it made ;)

Seriously though its the one place in Europe i'd leave England for and would love to live in Geneva or a place I used to go to called Zug. But as I can't speak French or German i'll never move there.

Can you speak the language or are you going to learn when you get there?

You could always learn

how you gonna work in a hazardous counstruction industry when you cant speak the tongue?

I used to visit there quite alot with work a place called Baden (near Zurich).

If you've got plenty of cash it is a great place to live and bring up kids etc.

That part of the country is primarily German speaking and it pays to learn the language.

The impression I got from the people I was working with was that it was a very nice place to be and not many would want to move back to england.

The only down side is that they like there rules and enforce them vigorously.

I would say if you can afford it go for it.

I could but languages were never my strong point at school. I just wouldn't feel comfortable working and living in a country where I couldn't speak the language fluently.

OK but school's different to real life. If you know you have to get by in a language, it should be a lot more interesting and hence easier to learn. That's my theory anyway.

I can get by in basic French and just about in German, but I feel like an ignorant f**ker for only speaking English fluently. Definately a near-term goal to learn some other languages.

I agree totally which is why I wouldn't feel comfortable going to another country not being fluent in their language. I don't like it if immigrants come here not knowing English so the same standard applies to me if I were to go abroad.

Maybe when i'm older/kids have grown up etc its more realistic, the Mrs is good at picking up languages and can get by in French. Switzerland would certainly be worth the effort.

prepare to give up your fast cars and enthusiastic driving if you move there.

I dont feel like an ignorant fcuker cause I can speak two langauges fluently!

Why? Some of the best roads on earth are within 1-2 hours drive.

because its ridicoulousy expensive to have a modern fast car over there, and they are tighter than a nuns snatch when it comes to what you can or cannot modify on your car, and speeding laws.

:lol:

true about the cars, they hate fast cars full stop..shame really cos they have some of the best roads going :D


we used to have a couple of chalets out on the french speaking side of switzerland and the rule of buying and then only selling to a swiss national still aplies I think....

great country and pretty much everywhere is driveable within a few hours or so....

In my days you needed a "C" bewilligung/permit (green card) before you could buy property and even then, as a foreigner, you would not be allowed to dispose of it at a profit within 5 years.

On a different subject, there's plenty of high quality totty down there - of all different nationaltitties :luxhello:

I lived there for 4yrs (Neuchatel), and am considering retiring there.

Clean, patriotic, lots of culture, low crime, great healthcare, lovely scenery, low taxation, high wages..

If you can, do.

I've been in Geneva for 2 years working at CERN. If you can move here then you should give it a go. Hundreds of ski resorts, amazing for mountain biking/hiking outdoor stuff etc . Ok nightlife in the cities, as above multinational totty, people are generally chilled and 95% speak english. French and german can be learnt relatively easily.

It is not too bad for motoring unless you have a very large capacity engine and then their 'road tax' is a bit pricy. Fuel is a little cheaper. Urban roads carry many low low speed limits but out of town there is much scope for spirited driving but beware of the fuzz knocking out means tested fines...a colleague recently had one for 2000CHF for 11km/h over the limit. Some of the alpine passes are staggering fun but you can easily upset yuor passengers stomachs...

Not looking forward to returning to the UK in a few more years in the slightest!

Mrs. Vegescoob has a nephew working and living there and now married to a Swiss national.
We've visited once, Basle, great. Pop into France and Germany easily.
Whole place impressed me.

I would have thought getting a job in the construction industry in Geneva wouldn't be too difficult. After all, they are forever tearing the place up and building new stuff, new tramlines etc. etc. Makes driving in the city a bit exciting trying to figure out how to navigate through the streets.