Moving to Switzerland!

Hi Dim78,

I assume that you have Greek nationality. With your passport, you can come to Switzerland to apply for a job. As soon as you
have found a job (or can prove that you can provide for your income in another way), the immigration process is relatively easy. As an EU citizen, you will get your permit to stay almost automatically.

Finding a job highly depends on your education and other competences. Keep in mind that the local languages are German, French and Italian, and that it may be hard to find a job if you don't master at least the basics of one of these three languages. If your English is ok, it is worth to try finding a job at one of the many international companies and organisations. Particularly in Geneva, Zurich and Lausanne you'll find a lot of them.

Switzerland is expensive. You'll probably need much more money for living than you're used to in Greece, but salaries are higher as well. Accomodation is expensive, too, particulary in the cities. Don't be surprised to pay (at least) 1,500 to 2,000 Swiss francs for a flat in one of the cities.

A good "process" of coming to Switzerland would be:
- find a job.
- after finding a job, find accomodation.
- go to the council of the city where you are going to live. Show your passport, your job contract and your accomodation rent contract.
- The council will register you and usually, you have to pay 10-20 CHF for the registration procedure.
- They will tell you that you have to organise (mandatory!!!) a swiss health insurance and show the proof of insurance within three months at the council.
- Depending of the town, the council will organise your work and stay permit, or they'll provide you with a proof of registration with which you can go to the immigration office and organise it yourself.
- It will take approximately 4-8 weeks before the permit is ready. You'll need one passport photograph for it. Expect to pay approximately 70 CHF for the permit. Officially, you are not allowed to work without this permit. Your employer will ask you for a copy of the permit as soon as you have it.

Hope this helps,
Twan.