Moving to Geneva, Switzerland

[MuniS]

We are deciding to move to Geneva, Switzerland with our 2 year old toddler, purely because I am a teacher and love the education system being a lot more independent and outdoor based as well as starting at 7 years in comparison to the rigid, competitive, mentally draining structure of education in the UK.

Can anyone give any advice on areas worth looking into to settle as a family where there are good public, primary schools. We are visiting in July so would like to consider a few places. I'm a teacher and my partner is an accountant. We would also look into buying a property with a garden. Any advice on weather, lifestyle, people, socialising, cost of living. All advice greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Finland? The Netherlands? Geneva? Make your mind up!

Have you really looked into this? When Swiss school starts it can be full on and the system very rigid, with a secondary and career path being determined by aged 11/12. There is also Kindergarten compulsory in many areas from aged 4/5.

Do you both speak French fluently or are you intending to work in English speaking international schools and companies? You will need employment first in order to even open a local bank account or get a mobile contract, let alone rent. Bear in mind everything requires private insurance too, from possessions to health.

Yes we are travelling to Finland, Switzerland and Netherlands to decide on where we would like to relocate as we are wanting to move out of the UK. This is why I have put u separate threads for all 3 places. Purely for advice and planning. Thanks

We're in Switzerland and love it. Feel free to PM.

Do you have Swiss nationality? If not there are restrictions on owning property and working. Health insurance is extremely expensive as is the cost of living and you will need to speak fluent French obviously. Have you really thought this through?

Thanks Sarah. No we don't have Swiss nationality and I speak 'broken' French! At the moment we are just looking around and hoping to travel to these places as they are the ones been recommended so far by friends and googling lol! However, I don't necessarily rely on the Internet as it can be misleading with reviews, hence signed up to this to get real-life, hands on advice from people. So thanks very much for highlighting the buying of property aspect as that's something I didn't know about. Do you know what kind of restrictions apply for jobs and property? I would be looking to work as an EAL English teacher (primary level).

Buying property in Switzerland is very very expensive. Lots rent though and it is reasonable, renters rights are much better in Switzerland than the U.K. Try the canton of Vaud, round Nyon area and the villages around it. 15 mins on the train from Geneva and Lausanne, right by the lake, lots of lovely village schools.

You really need to check what demand there is for non-French speaking primary EAL teachers. Generally policy is to employ Swiss national candidates unless the specific job requires otherwise, and there will be plenty of bilingual expats. Not sure if English is the official second language taught in primary schools or what demand there would be ft, tutoring might be possible but less steady. Do you have a transferrable teaching qualification?

My friend is Swiss I think they're are significant visa issues and work permit problems for non Swiss Citizens.

She also said food is very expensive many cross the border to France for their weekly shopping and rents in Geneva are astronomical she has a broom cupboard flat there which she rents out for a small fortune. Few buy houses even those on very high incomes, most rent, as property prices are also very high. I also don't exactly get the impression Swiss welcome those from outside Switzerland when it comes to getting work.

Geneva is veeeery expensive for everything. It's also really quite difficult to get by without speaking one of the official languages (obviously French is preferable in Geneva). Almost nothing is in English.

We moved out here 6 years ago. We are not Swiss not to we have passports. We own a house here. I am not a fan of Geneva (personal preference). Nyon and Morges are very child friendly as is lausanne. We live up in the mountains but i drive the hour to Lausanne and further to nyon to do toddler classes with my monkey. I have learnt French since I arrived here (had rusty gcse when I arrived) I am now fluent.

There is a IT of misinformation here. We lived in a village outside Geneva for a few years. I worked in an English speaking institution. My H for an English speaking company. I got my job first. He got his once we'd been out there for a while, but it was very easy to get despite being English.

I had reasonable gcse French. DH had none. We got by. We both had French lessons through work, which was excellent, but you can happily live there with poor French. Everyone I met spoke excellent English.

(Obviously I know nothing about working in schools with no French).

It was pretty expensive, but wages were good too, so it matched. We did shop in France for our weekly shop though.

Bit of misinformation.

Didn't you post this very same thing verbatim about Finland yesterday?

@daffydil I was thinking the same! French is needed eventually but you can survive with bad French. Generally if you find a job they sort out visas - current eu advantage may be lost but I know new arrivals who had no issues with visas. There is a growing international school presence - all teaching in English.

There are plenty of private International schools between Geneva and Lausanne, where English is the mother tongue, so you could try those for teaching positions.

You can definitely get by without French, from an employment front for your husband, there are lots of International companies and International organisations where English is the working language. Economy is not doing well at the moment, so job hunting may be difficult. For you daily life, you will find plumbers, electricians, hairdressers, beauticians, doctors, dentists etc who all speak English, there is a good English speaking community.

Property prices are eyewatering,and most people rent for their whole life. As an Eu citizen (uk for the moment) there is a bilateral agreement to allow you live and work in Switzerland, a lot of people live in France and work in Switzerland.

The swiss Education system is very rigid, but if you did put your child into a local school, they will be bilingual in a few months. Students are 'streamed' very early as of 11 or 12, into 'apprentisage' or 'third level. If you found a teaching job in a private International school, chances are it will come with free education for your children. I think you would need to be fluent french to be hired by a local school.

There is no free health care, and health insurance is huge, most employers will pay, or at least contribute towards the cost.

As someone above mentioned, avoid living in Geneva and look in Vaud (La Cote), anywhere from Mies to Lausanne.

It is a wonderful place to live, easy access to rest of Europe and lots of outdoor activities.

My friends who did this (wife wasn't able to work, not sure why, her DH had a job he was moving to) sent their DC to English boarding schools for secondary education.

I have friends who left Geneva because of the schooling...too rigid, poor quality teaching, no sports, very expensive, apparently. They have moved back to private in the UK.

Leeds2, before CH signed up to freedom of movement (around 2002 iirc) work permits only applied to the person moving with a job and dependants had residency only as part of this. Therefore trailing spouse often could not work without obtaining the relevant longer stay permit or getting a job which came with one. There is pressure within CH to return to limiting the number of expats again.

OP , if you are planning a long term move bear in mind you will not have any influence on this, or the many other regular referenda. Citizenship is difficult to obtain and cannot even be applied for until you have been resident long term.

From one of my friend's experience it is very difficult to become a teacher in a Swiss state school. She went to university in Geneva but is dark skinned Spanish married to a French speaking Swiss man and has found it very difficult. Her daughter has also been abused on public transport for being dark skinned. The Swiss, again from what she has told me, don't offer support to children with dyslexia.

I think you & your husband will find it very difficult to integrate into a country where you don't speak the language. A friend of mine teaches in the Cayman Islands, she has a really high quality of life.

Oh dear. We found Geneva a dreadfully soulless place. No "atmosphere" anywhere, be it walking around, visiting so-called iconic places, in restaurants/cafes.......... Even shops were 99% empty! When six of us went in ANY shop, there may be 7 max in it and the staff all looked grateful there was a "rush" of customers! We all felt it was like starring in The Prisoner, as though it was a fake pretend place! We were also surprised to see 1 or 2 fur-clad, over made-up prostitutes in some of the bars we went into and then it felt like we were on set of The Sweeney circa 1975. Sorry, but we found Geneva odd, odd, odd I'm afraid.

I lived in Geneva for a couple of years and hated it.

Moved back to England before having my youngest DC.

It will be easier for your partner to find a job than for you. Your UK teaching qualification does not qualify you to teach in Swiss state schools. You need to requalify and prove proficiency in French.
Teaching in one of the many international schools is a good option.

As pp have mentioned, La Cote is a wonderful place to live. There are 2 worlds, though - the "expat bubble", all English speaking and lots of trailing spouses. Because the expat community is quite transient the Swiss are not particularly welcoming. We found a reasonably happy medium in the end, but it took a long time.

My DD was a student in the Courrege area of Geneva. Lots of families in the flats nearby. They all shopped in France which is much cheaper. All the students had excellent English and she was there to perfect her French.

DD adored Switzerland. Highly organised and everything worked and was on time! If you like chaos and frenetic cities, Geneva is not for you.

She was able to make lasting friendships and is going back for another wedding this summer. I think friendships are there to be made but you have to make an effort and have a degree of luck. The Swiss value education and they may start formal education later but they also go to university later. All DDs friends speak English, French
and German as a minimum so this is what they learn from an early age.