How to work in Switzerland as a newcomer.

Switzerland runs on a few deadlines and a lot of paperwork done once. Fourteen days, three months, one payslip — and you are in.

Working here is simple for EU/EFTA citizens and selective for everyone else, but the first weeks are the same for all: register, insure, let the employer start the AHV and the tax. After that the job market has its own habits — reference letters, 42-hour weeks, four weeks’ holiday, a probation month — which this page explains in order.

1. Day 1–14: the Gemeinde.Register at the Einwohnerkontrolle with passport, contract and lease. You get your permit card weeks later; the registration is what counts.
2. Week 1–2: bank and AHV.A Swiss account (your employer pays nothing abroad), and the AHV number — your employer applies for it with the first payslip.
3. Month 1–3: health insurance.Choose a basic policy (KVG), any insurer, same cover everywhere; the premium differs. Tick “with accident cover” if you work under 8 hours a week.
4. First payslip: tax at source.On a B or L permit your employer deducts tax from the salary. Nothing to file — until CHF 120 000 a year, or until you ask for a return to claim deductions.

The deadlines that matter.

Seven things about the Swiss job market.

• EU/EFTA passport: come, register, workUp to three months without a permit (the employer notifies the authorities); longer stays get a B permit from your commune on the strength of a contract. Job seekers may stay six months. Any job, any employer, self-employment included. [1] [12]
• Other passports: the employer applies firstA work permit is needed before any job, even a short one. Only qualified people are admitted — managers, specialists, graduates with experience — within yearly quotas (8 500 for 2026), and the employer must show no Swiss or EU/EFTA candidate was available. Check whether you also need a visa. [1] [4]
• The Swiss CVTwo pages, a photo is still customary, dates exact. Attach every Arbeitszeugnis (reference letter) — Swiss employers write and read them. Diplomas need formal recognition only in regulated professions. [8]
• The contract: 42 hours, 4 weeks, 13 salariesA typical full-time week is 40–42 hours (legal maximum 45 or 50). Four weeks’ paid holiday is the legal minimum, five is common. A 13th salary is common but only due if the contract says so. [6] [7]
• Probation and noticeProbation one month by default, up to three. After it, notice is one month in the first year, two months in years two to nine, three from year ten — always to the end of a month, for both sides. [6]
• Language: the region decidesGerman in the north and centre (Swiss German spoken, standard German written), French in the west, Italian in Ticino. English carries you in tech, pharma and finance; for household tasks and everyday life, learn the local language — it is also what the C permit will ask about.
• Where the jobs arejobs.ch, indeed.ch and LinkedIn for employed positions; job-room.ch, the public platform of the employment offices; and task platforms like Werkara for side income while you search. [11]

Tick what is done.

Side jobs and what your permit allows: Permits B, C, L, G: who may work on the side and Part-time and side jobs for expats. Going self-employed on a B permit: Freelancing on a B permit. The country in numbers: Switzerland in numbers.

Short answers.

• Switzerland in numbers: the country, its people and its work→
• Part-time and side jobs for expats→
• The Swiss labour market in numbers: who works, where, and for how much→

Where the rules come from.

1. [1]
   ch.ch — the Swiss authorities online — Working in Switzerland as a foreign national — register within 14 days, EU/EFTA and third-country rules, job seekers. www.ch.ch
2. [2]
   ch.ch — the Swiss authorities online — Work — the hub: contracts, notice, holidays, unemployment. www.ch.ch
3. [3]
   Federal Office of Public Health (BAG) — Compulsory health insurance — within three months of arrival, cover retroactive. www.bag.admin.ch
4. [4]
   Swiss Federal Council — Quotas for third-country workers 2026 — 4 500 B + 4 000 L permits, unchanged. www.admin.ch
5. [5]
   Federal Tax Administration (ESTV) — Besteuerung an der Quelle — tax at source for B/L permits; ordinary assessment from CHF 120 000 or on request by 31 March. www.estv2.admin.ch
6. [6]
   Swiss Confederation — Code of Obligations (OR), Art. 335b (probation 1–3 months), Art. 335c (notice 1/2/3 months), Art. 329a (four weeks’ holiday). www.fedlex.admin.ch
7. [7]
   Swiss Confederation — Labour Act (ArG), Art. 9 — 45/50-hour weekly maximum. www.fedlex.admin.ch
8. [8]
   SBFI — State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation — Recognition of foreign diplomas — needed only for regulated professions. www.sbfi.admin.ch
9. [9]
   Serafe — Radio and TV fee — billed per household. www.serafe.ch
10. [10]
    AHV/IV information centre — AHV number and first contributions — deducted by the first employer. www.ahv-iv.ch
11. [11]
    job-room.ch — The public job platform of the regional employment offices (RAV). www.job-room.ch
12. [12]
    State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) — Entry and residence for work — EU/EFTA and third countries. www.sem.admin.ch

Checked against the sources above on 5 October 2026; figures are for 2026 and change each January. The “last updated” date at the top changes whenever a figure is refreshed. Permit rules are summarised from federal sources; cantonal practice varies and the migration office gives binding answers. This page is general information, not legal advice.