Moving from Germany to Switzerland

What changes with your residence

Germany and Switzerland are close in language and different in law. Residence is the most important connecting factor — but it does not work in the same way, or at the same time, everywhere.

For work and housing, Swiss law applies as soon as you work and live here: employment contract, lease and purchase of land are governed by Swiss law. In matrimonial property law, the applicable law changes with both spouses' residence, retroactively to the day of the marriage — unless you have made a choice of law or a marital agreement already exists, in which case the previous law continues to apply (Art. 55 Private International Law Act). For inheritance law, the last residence is decisive (Art. 90), whereas the validity and binding effect of a will or inheritance contract already drawn up are assessed under the law of the place of residence at the time it was made (Art. 94 and 95). And in tax matters it is not deregistration that decides, but where residence and habitual abode actually are.

Much of what you had arranged in Germany remains formally valid but works differently. That is why it pays to prepare the move legally rather than tidy up afterwards.

Arriving: permit, health insurance, everyday life

As a German national you are entitled to a residence permit under the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons. Which one depends on the duration of your employment: with a permanent contract, or one for at least 365 days, a B EU/EFTA permit is normally available; for three months to one year it is the L EU/EFTA short-term permit; and for up to 90 days per calendar year the notification procedure is sufficient. Without employment you receive a permit provided you have sufficient means and health insurance. Registration with the municipality takes place within 14 days of arrival and before starting work. Within three months you take out compulsory basic health insurance; it applies retroactively from arrival. You convert your driving licence within twelve months and import your vehicle as household effects. After five years, German nationals are usually entitled to the C settlement permit.

Working: the Swiss employment contract

Swiss employment law is more liberal than German law, but it does set limits. After a probation period of at most three months, notice periods of one to three months apply depending on years of service. The law does not require a general ground for dismissal comparable to the German Kündigungsschutzgesetz — but at the other party's request the dismissal must be given in writing with reasons (Art. 335 para. 2 Swiss Code of Obligations). Three limits matter: the blocking periods under Art. 336c, during which a dismissal by the employer is void (illness and accident for 30, 90 or 180 days depending on years of service; pregnancy and the 16 weeks after birth; military, civil protection and civilian service), the list of abusive dismissals (Art. 336) and summary dismissal, which presupposes good cause (Art. 337). Holidays, overtime, continued pay during illness and occupational pension provision are also regulated by law. Non-compete clauses are permitted but limited in place, time and scope. We review your draft contract before you sign and clarify how your German pension entitlements and the termination of your German employment interact.

Housing: renting or buying

A Swiss lease provides for a deposit of at most three months' rent held in a blocked account, notice periods of at least three months on customary local dates, and the possibility of challenging an excessive initial rent within 30 days. Whoever wants to move out early must propose a reasonable replacement tenant.

For purchases: as long as you still live in Germany, you are subject to the Lex Koller and need a permit for most acquisitions. Once your lawful and actual residence is in Switzerland, you may buy freely as an EU national. The purchase agreement is publicly notarised and ownership passes with the land register entry. Banks usually finance up to 80 percent of the purchase price and require an affordability calculation; pension fund and pillar 3a assets may be withdrawn early for owner-occupied property. We review and negotiate the purchase agreement, clarify easements and mortgage rights and accompany you through to notarisation.

Marriage and family: the property regime moves with you

For married couples the move has a consequence hardly anyone knows: if you have made no choice of law, the property regime is governed by the law of the state where both spouses live. With the change of residence, Swiss participation in acquired property then replaces the German community of accrued gains, retroactively to the day of the marriage (Art. 55 para. 1 Private International Law Act). This changes what is divided on divorce or death, for instance regarding inheritances, gifts and increases in value of individual property.

That retroactive effect is not automatic. It does not occur if the spouses have agreed in writing that the previous law continues to apply, or if a marital agreement already exists between them (Art. 55 para. 2). A couple who concluded a German marital agreement before the move is therefore in a different position from a couple with no agreement at all — so the first look goes to your existing documents. From the German perspective, German law may at the same time remain decisive; the two legal systems do not necessarily answer the question in the same way.

We recommend an explicit choice of law in a marital agreement, which we notarise in-house. There we also settle what should happen to home ownership, business and surplus. For cohabiting couples: Switzerland offers no statutory protection, everything must be settled by contract.

Children who move with you are subject to the law of their new residence for custody, maintenance and compulsory schooling. Where parents live apart, moving a child across the border requires consent; we clarify this beforehand.

Inheritance: your will works differently

Here it is worth keeping three questions apart — they are often conflated.

Which inheritance law applies? The estate of a person whose last residence was in Switzerland is governed by Swiss law (Art. 90 Private International Law Act); the Swiss authorities at the last place of residence are in principle competent. The law governing the estate determines what belongs to it, who is entitled to what share and how large the compulsory shares are — for descendants in Switzerland, half of the statutory share since 2023. As a German national you may subject your estate to German law by a choice of law (Art. 91).

Do a will or inheritance contract remain effective? Form is preserved: a will validly executed as to form remains so (Art. 93). Material validity, revocability and interpretation, by contrast, follow the law of the place of residence at the time the disposition was made (Art. 94), and for an inheritance contract the residence at the time of conclusion (Art. 95). A German joint will is therefore not simply "interpreted under Swiss law" — its binding effect is assessed under German law, while the estate itself is governed by Swiss law. It is precisely this combination that produces the surprises.

Where can inheritance tax arise? That is a third, independent question — it follows not inheritance law but the tax statutes and the treaty between Germany and Switzerland. More on this below under "Taxes".

Whether a choice of law makes sense depends on family, assets and the location of real estate. Often the better solution is a Swiss inheritance contract that binds the spouses and limits the children to their compulsory share. We review your existing dispositions and draw up an arrangement that holds in both countries.

Taxes: two systems, one plan

Deregistration alone does not end unlimited German income tax liability. Under sec. 1 para. 1 of the German Income Tax Act, residence and habitual abode are decisive — anyone who keeps a home in Germany at their disposal may remain fully taxable there. German income such as rent, pensions or profits from a permanent establishment remains relevant in any case; the double taxation agreement determines which state may tax what. We coordinate this part with your German tax adviser.

In Switzerland, salary is taxed at source under a B permit, and assessed ordinarily from CHF 120,000 gross salary or on request. Wealth is taxed at cantonal level. Capital gains on movable private assets are generally tax-free; gains on real estate are subject to property gains taxation. Whether an asset is held privately or as business property, and whether an activity amounts to professional trading, must be checked separately in each case.

For inheritance tax, three questions have to be kept apart. Who counts as a German resident? Under sec. 2 para. 1 no. 1 lit. b of the German Inheritance Tax Act, German nationals continue to count as residents for up to five years after departure as long as they have no home in Germany; if a home is retained, full tax liability continues anyway. What is located in Germany? German situs assets, notably real estate, may be taxed there even afterwards. Who acquires? Under Art. 8 para. 2 of the treaty of 30 November 1978, Germany may also tax the estate where the acquiring person has a permanent home or habitual abode there; and if the deceased had a permanent home in Germany for at least five years at the time of death, a wider right of taxation applies (Art. 4 para. 3 of the treaty). Gifts between living persons are not covered by the treaty.

Such a connecting factor does not mean that tax is actually owed: personal allowances, tax classes and the crediting of Swiss tax have to be calculated for each acquirer. In St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Zurich, spouses and descendants are exempt from inheritance and gift tax. Whoever holds substantial shareholdings in corporations must also plan for German exit taxation. We advise on Swiss law and coordinate the planning with your German tax adviser.

Advance care directive and living will

A German power of attorney for care remains valid in principle, but is little known in Switzerland and leads to queries in practice. The Swiss advance care directive determines who manages your affairs if you become incapable of judgement; the KESB reviews it and puts it into effect. Without one, the KESB orders a guardianship, because a spouse's statutory right of representation only covers everyday matters. We notarise the advance care directive and living will in-house and align them with your will or inheritance contract.

Business: incorporate, relocate, branch

Whoever brings their business has three routes: incorporating a Swiss GmbH or AG and transferring the operations, opening a branch of the German company, or a cross-border transfer of seat, which is possible but laborious. Incorporation requires public notarisation and at least one person with signing authority resident in Switzerland; after the move you meet this requirement yourself. In Germany, the permanent establishment, exit taxation and the winding up of the previous company need to be clarified. We incorporate and notarise in-house, draft articles and shareholders' agreements and work with your tax advisers on both sides of the border.

How we proceed

In the initial consultation, by video if you are still in Germany, we map your situation: what continues to apply, what needs to be re-arranged, in what order, and what it costs. You then receive drafts of the marital agreement, inheritance contract or advance care directive, which we discuss and notarise in-house. For employment, lease or purchase agreements we review the text before you sign.