emmigrating to switzerland

specialk1977

Has anyone made the move to Switzerland. Ive just been offered a job there with a very handsome salary,but itwould mean leavin the wife and kids here.THE plan is to relocate the whole family after 1 yrs trial..My question is was it hard to adjut to the life over there..

silja

A lot will depend on where in Switzerland the job is- for example the German part tends to be more willing to speak English (I assume you don't speak Swiss German!), whereas people in the French part are more likely to expect you to speak French, at least outside Geneva; there are English speaking schools in the major cities if you choose, but they tend to be expensive. Leaving your family will be hard, but flights are not too expensive so hopefully you can visit eachother. A handsome salary is great, but keep in mind Switzerland is quite an expensive country to live in. One issue you may face is that there are lots of rental properties, but most come unfurnished.

I made the jump the other way, if you have any questions about Switzerland I'd be happy to try and answer them.

Jim2007

specialk1977 wrote: »

Has anyone made the move to Switzerland. Ive just been offered a job there with a very handsome salary,but itwould mean leavin the wife and kids here.THE plan is to relocate the whole family after 1 yrs trial..My question is was it hard to adjut to the life over there..

I've been here for the past 21 years now and I can say that it is not so difficult to settle in if you make the effort. In particular you should try to learn the local language, even a basic knowledge will make a big difference.

Where are you heading for?

Jim

The Hill Billy

I'm working in Bern now for a couple of years, but commute back to Dublin most weekends (I've not moved my family over as I am working on a contract basis). However, if you have any questions - feel free to PM me (I don't frequent this forum that regularly.)

Best of luck with the move.

HB

NMK2008

Just reviving this, as I am now in this situation also!I have been offered a position near Zug and would be greatful for some advice on the move!I understand it is expensive, but would like to find out more about the areas i could live in, transport options associated, some opinions of surrounding towns, renting, cost of living per month (so i know my salary will justify quality of life etc), any resources i can use to get up to speed! Winter and what to expect...

The Hill Billy

I'm afraid that I don't know anything really about Zug or the area. However, in general - transport should not be a problem. The buses, trains & trams run like cuckoo-clockwork over here. Check out the Swiss Rail site - SBB for times & fares of trains to & from Zurich (I presume that you'll be flying in & out of there).

For apartment rental check out the following sites:
ImmoScout24
Homegate
Comparis

Comparis is particularly good as it trawls most of the other major property sites for you & gives a comparison rating on whether the property/rental price is favourable.

For winter - you'll need a good ski jacket & ski gloves, decent boots, scarf & hat. Buy them at home - it'll be cheaper than over here. I got great value in TK Maxx.

Best of luck!

CathleenN

Hi,

I am currently preparing the move to Switzerland, and I am glad to see there are people who went through that already on boards.ie! I hope my question doesn't take the thread off-topic (it is titled "emigrating to Switzerland", after all).

Could anyone share your experience with presenting a police certificate when registering with the local authorities in Switzerland? I've got the certificate from Garda, it lists the addresses I lived at in Ireland but not the dates when I lived there (nor, indeed, any dates at all). Is that normal, and would it make the Swiss authorities happy?

Thanks in advance!

The Hill Billy

Hi there. It may be different from Kanton to Kanton but all I needed to register for my work permit was proof of residence (apartment contract), proof of employment (work contract) & ID (passport).

CathleenN

Oops, I thought it was a must for everybody Maybe the canton-specific stuff, or maybe the rules are different for EU/non-EU nationals (I am non-EU). I was told I will definitely need to present some form of police clearance in Zurich.

Jim2007

CathleenN wrote: »

Oops, I thought it was a must for everybody Maybe the canton-specific stuff, or maybe the rules are different for EU/non-EU nationals (I am non-EU). I was told I will definitely need to present some form of police clearance in Zurich.

Yes it is different for a non-EU citizen, as far as I know you will need a police cert. But before all that you need to get the authorization letter for the work permit, that should tell you exactly what you need. Have you already done this?

Jim

CathleenN

Yes, and it said that I would need a police certificate, without mentioning any particulars. My worry is that the police certificate I've got from Garda would lack some essential information that the Swiss authorities expect to see there. That's why I would be glad to learn of someone's first hand experience.
Or maybe I've just got paranoid from my recent dealings with the Swiss immigration

Jim2007

CathleenN wrote: »

Yes, and it said that I would need a police certificate, without mentioning any particulars. My worry is that the police certificate I've got from Garda would lack some essential information that the Swiss authorities expect to see there. That's why I would be glad to learn of someone's first hand experience.
Or maybe I've just got paranoid from my recent dealings with the Swiss immigration

I would suggest that you contact the Swiss embassy in Dublin and see what they say. I expect that they will be able to provide at least a translation of your certificate as well as confirming that it is acceptable for registration in Switzerland.

Jim

swisswoman

NMK2008 wrote: »

Just reviving this, as I am now in this situation also!I have been offered a position near Zug and would be greatful for some advice on the move!I understand it is expensive, but would like to find out more about the areas i could live in, transport options associated, some opinions of surrounding towns, renting, cost of living per month (so i know my salary will justify quality of life etc), any resources i can use to get up to speed! Winter and what to expect...

Hello, I work in Zug too, the transportation around the town is great with the Stadtbahn and the busses, you can reach all the villages around the sea. Living in the area near Zug is very expensive, you better look for an appartement in the area of Aargau or Zürich, it's not that far from there and you have to pay not so much. Winter is great here, snow yes, and the Zugerberg or Rigi is great for a daily trip with skiing or other sport. In the town is mostly not sooo much snow...

uli84

im going for the interview to Basel, a bit put off by the fact there are no direct flights (will be hard to relocate if...) and a bit terrified by the cost of living and that flats for rent are unfurnished. I like Dublin but my boyfriend cannot find a job here - it's heartbreaking seein his potential being wasted (yes I know, I have no guarantee it will be easier for him finding a job over there), If I do get a job it will be very hard to make a decision...

Jim2007

uli84 wrote: »

im going for the interview to Basel, a bit put off by the fact there are no direct flights (will be hard to relocate if...) and a bit terrified by the cost of living and that flats for rent are unfurnished. I like Dublin but my boyfriend cannot find a job here - it's heartbreaking seein his potential being wasted (yes I know, I have no guarantee it will be easier for him finding a job over there), If I do get a job it will be very hard to make a decision...

Don't worry about the lack of direct flights, you can get direct trains from the airport and it only takes about an hour an 10 minutes to get there.

As for cost of living, once you are earning a Swiss salary it is not going to be a problem. And in any case if you are in Basel, you can always pop over the border to Germany or France for cheap stuff.

Your comment about the boyfriend is a bit confusing though... does he already work over here or are you expecting it will be easier for him to find something here? If so, what does he do and does he speak one of the national languages?

Jim (20 years+ in Switzerland)

uli84

thanks for feedback Jim, my bfr does not have a job in Dublin where we are at the moment, he used to work in IT but doesn't have that much experience, speaks English only.

I do have a job in Dublin. Anyways, I'm heading tomorrow, lets see how it goes seen online that the weather is gonna be gorgeous

NMK2008

swisswoman wrote: »

Hello, I work in Zug too, the transportation around the town is great with the Stadtbahn and the busses, you can reach all the villages around the sea. Living in the area near Zug is very expensive, you better look for an appartement in the area of Aargau or Zürich, it's not that far from there and you have to pay not so much. Winter is great here, snow yes, and the Zugerberg or Rigi is great for a daily trip with skiing or other sport. In the town is mostly not sooo much snow...

Thank you for the advice! :)I will be making my arrangements in the next few weeks, and will look out for good value accommodation!

akellegher

Hi, I'm very new here and I wanted to revive this topic as I'm moving to Switzerland myself in January and I'm pretty nervous about it!
I got a job offer in Luasanne and although I haven't accepted anything officially it looks like I'm going to take it as jobs in Ireland are pretty scarce...part of me is really looking forward to getting out of Ireland and I've always wanted to do some traveling but I'm also really nervous about the culture differences and the expense of the country!!
Anyway, I'm just wondering if anybody has done a similar thing and moved over there on their own...if so what were the major difficulties in adjusting to the lifestyle?? I know I'll have to pick up some French as I haven't done it since school!!

The Hill Billy

Living in Lausanne should be OK. It is a big enough place & I'd imagine has a lively enough ex-pat community.

I've lived in Bern for almost 5 years & had no problem settling in. I do commute back home regularly though. I've made friends with many locals & have settled in quite well. That said, there is a good bar scene here in Bern & I'm quite happy going out for a few beers on my own & striking up conversations with friendly strangers.

When you say 'differences in lifestyle' - what do you mean or what are your concerns?