|
Work Permits Entering Switzerland and remaining in the country without violating half the Swiss civil code is a significant accomplishment. That is, of course, because Switzerland has an extensive and often complicated system which regulates every facet of entry into the country by a non-Swiss (much like New Zealand). Assuming one has the proper passport and visa to make one's way across the border, a visitor must sooner or later declare his/her presence to the Cantonal office of population: within three months for those tourists who intend to extend their visit to beyond ninety days, and within 8 days for those who intend to take up residence and/or work. This may sound fairly simple, but things can become a bit complicated, for once a visitors presence is declared to the authorities, they are duly bound to advise the poop foreigner that anyone who enters Switzerland as a tourist and then decides to stay, or anyone who intends to take up work or residence who has not already applied for a permit from abroad, cannot obtain a residence permit, and further, that any application will only be reviewed upon the applicants departure.This rule is, however, not always strictly enforced. But make no mistake, travelling to Switzerland without first arranging for a permit is risky business. Apart from the special permits available for "Border Crossers" who live in neighbouring countries and work in Switzerland and student and au pair visas, the most common permits are the B and C category. The B permit entitles the holder to reside (and possibly work) in Switzerland for one year, and is renewable until until one obtains a C permit. For EU citizens a C permit will be issued after 5 years and for non-EU citizens a C will be issued after 10 years. If you are married to a Swiss citizen or the holder of a C permit then you will receive a C permit after five years. C permits must only be renewed every three years and basically entitle you to permanent residency. However, if you leave Switzerland for longer than two years, then your C permit will expire and you will lose your residency and have to start the process all over again if you wish to return. B permit holders must be very careful when moving or seeking work in another state of Switzerland as the B permit is only valid for the Canton in which you live. You cannot simply go and look for a job in another state, there are very strict quotas that regulate living in one state and working in another. This is largely due to the fact that the greatest portion of your taxes are paid to your local city council and state in which you live. Any visitor to Switzerland who intends to extend his/her stay, take up residence, or seek employment, is well advised to check with the local authorities or the Swiss Consulate in their home country before arriving, such prudence may well save much complication and irritation later. Taxes. One of the most complicated aspects of Swiss life. I doubt there is another country on earth with a more complicated system. Consider the fact that there are in fact 26 different tax systems in Switzerland, one for every state. Add to that the fact that you don't only pay tax to the state, you also pay it to the federal government, but most baffling of all, you pay the bulk of your annual tax bill to the local city council. Now, each city council can set its tax levels to suit their needs. The result is that the people across the road living in the neighbouring city council may pay less than you do. There is almost a competitive nature between city councils as far as tax is concerned to attract wealthy residents who will contribute nicely to the public coffers. Don't expect any special treatment unless you're a movie star, pop singer or formula one champion! Another sound piece of advice: shop around in the general area where you would like to live and find out which city council has the lowest tax levels. This can save you hundreds and even thousands of francs a year. Moving house and crossing these invisible borders between city councils and states can make your tax calculation a nightmare. A sound piece of advice: don't move house unless you really have to! If you've just recently entered Switzerland then your tax will most probably be deducted directly from your salary. This "Quellensteuer" is paid on a month by month basis to protect the Swiss in case you skip the country. All others who have been here for a while receive a tax form to fill out once every year (or two depending in which state you live) and you are generally taxed based on your income over the last two years (but then again, there are some states that tax you on your present earning levels). The result is that in March every year you receive a whopping great bill for thousands of francs that must be paid by May. For those not too keen on saving up in advance, there is the possibility of paying your tax bill in three instalments. The tax levels are generally quite low compared to other European countries, and certainly a lot lower than in New Zealand. A general rule of thumb says that you should put away approximately one month's salary for taxes. In Switzerland your old age pension, or superannuation contribution, is deducted separately from your salary. This AHV deduction is presently 5.5% of what you earn. Add to this the compulsory health insurance contributions which are generally a few hundred francs a month, things that are covered by general income tax in New Zealand, then you'll see that the overall level of tax is not as low as it first might appear. Switzerland has an extreme housing shortage in most major cities. Moderately priced flats and houses are usually difficult to find. Rents are higher than in NZ and vary according to location, neighbourhood and type of building. Both houses and apartments are usually smaller than in NZ and contain smaller rooms. A furnished house is rare and very expensive. On the whole, it is easier to find an apartment in a suburb than in the city centre. Purchase of real-estate by foreigners is restrictively regulated in Switzerland. The national languages of Switzerland are German 69% (central and eastern Switzerland), French 20% (western Switzerland), Italian 10% (southern Switzerland) and Romansch 1% (south eastern Switzerland). If you are planning on staying here for anything longer than a couple of months then it is strongly recommended that you learn the language. This will not only help you in your profession but will also greatly aide in your integration into Swiss society. English is spoken in most hotels, restaurants and shops in larger cities, but do not take it for granted that this will be the case. Holders of a New Zealand drivers licence are recommended to get an International Drivers Licence from the AA before leaving home. You can drive in Switzerland with your international permit when you get here, but must convert it into a Swiss licence WITHIN ONE YEAR OF YOUR DATE OF ARRIVAL. Because we drive on the left, New Zealanders are required to take a short practical driving test before the Swiss licence will be issued. This rule is valid for most Swiss Cantons, but there may be some exceptions where it will be changed automatically at the Ministry of Transport. (Strassenverkehrs- und Schiffsfahftamt). Take note that there are some rather peculiar road rules in Switzerland that will take some getting used to. Roads in Switzerland are graded and the rules as set accordingly. If you are driving on a main road (marked with a yellow diamond), then you have right of way. If you are driving on a minor road (Nebenstrasse), you must give way to ALL traffic coming from the right. This can result in some rather bizarre situations where you are driving straight ahead and must give way to turning traffic from the right. In New Zealand all cars travelling straight ahead have right of way over turning traffic. This Swiss rule takes quite a bit of getting used to. Also, in New Zealand left-turning traffic gives way to right-turning traffic. It's exactly the same in Switzerland, but as we're driving on the other side of the road here, you may be caught out on this one a few times. You will have to get used to driving in heavy traffic and on notably narrower streets. Weather conditions are also more extreme and driving in snow is something that you will also be confronted with if you're in Switzerland over the winter. All Swiss cars must be fitted with special winter tyres otherwise your insurance will not be valid. And speaking of car insurance, it is COMPULSORY. If you head across the border to France, Italy, Austria or Germany then you will also have to obtain a green international insurance certificate. This can be obtained from your insurance company. The climate in Switzerland is continental and therefore characterised by warm summers and extremely cold winters. During the winter it frequently snows down into the low-lying areas and temperatures of -5 to -15 are the norm rather than the exception. The temperature only occasionally exceeds 30 degrees Celsius in summer and humidity is low. The southern region of Switzerland (Ticino) has sub-tropical vegetation and a mild climate throughout the year. January 1 and 2, Good Friday, Easter, Easter Monday, May 1 - day of work, Ascension Day, Pentecost, Pentecost Monday, August 1 - Swiss national day, December 25 and 26 - Christmas day and Boxing day. Banks are open Monday through Friday from 8am - 4.30pm in cities. In suburbs, towns and villages banks close for lunch. Banks throughout Switzerland are closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Swiss holidays. Change counters at airports and railway stations are usually open daily from 6.30am - 10pm. The postal cheque system is the most common method used to pay bills. This system allows you to pay bills through the post office by filling out postal payment cards which are normally enclosed with your bills. Holders of a postal cheque account can carry out their payments by mail. Other alternatives are to go to the post office or bank directly. Of the total population of 6,908,000 (last census end of 1992), 49% are Catholic, 48% Protestant, 0.4% Jewish, with the remaining percentage having various other religious affiliations or none at all. English language services are held regularly in some churches in large cities and tourist resorts. In both the French and German speaking regions of Switzerland it is considered impolite to address people by their first name. There are some unwritten rules that you should know about when conducting business or meeting people for the first time. The French and German languages both have formal and informal versions of the English "you" and it is almost a ritual to be upgraded or really in actual fact downgraded from the formal to the informal "you". Address people you are meeting for the first time as Herr or Frau so-and-so. They will address you in the same way. This is a pretty difficult concept to grasp, especially if you're younger than eighty and not a school teacher. The Swiss like to use so-called "aperos" to conduct their upgrading ceremonies, whereby you place yourself strategically by the people who still call you Mr or Mrs and drink a glass of wine with them. As wine drinking also involved a ritual whereby you toast the other person with a "zum Wohl" or the French equivalent and then look them in the eyes while repeating their name, this usually gives the other person the perfect opportunity to add a "by the way, you can call me Frank". All rather formal, but that's the way things are done here. Never start to sip your wine before the toast has been made, and don't forget the obligatory clinking of glasses while gazing into eyes and reciting name. Now, there is also a pecking order as to who can decide when the upgrading can be done. Generally, if you are younger, you have to wait until the older person offers to let you call him or her by their first name. If, however, you're a woman, the older man will generally wait for you to offer the upgrade. If you're about the same age it's anyone's call. If the other person is a work colleague of higher ranking than you, then you should wait until they offer the upgrade, even if you are older. Children are generally addressed informally, but they also start hand-shaking at an early age, so don't be surprised if an 8 year old offers to shake your hand! The biggest taboo of all, never call your boss by his first name - only unless he invites you to. Follow those simply rules and you'll be just fine. Easy peasy. Be prepared for a bit of confusion when shopping for a new suit or dress or for something for the "rellies" back home. Luckily, the bigger shops are usually equipped with English speaking shop assistants who, if you're lucky, will be familiar with British clothing sizes. Here's a table that may be of help:
Zurich Relocation AG has a very informative website with a wealth of useful information for newcomers to Switzerland. Visit Zurich Relocation. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||