Swiss citizens also cross borders: in 2020 there were about 25,500 arrivals and 25,800 departures of Swiss citizens from or to other countries. In 2020, the main destination countries were France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Those choosing these destinations were first and foremost people of the right age to undertake paid employment, which would indicate that these international departures were work-related. Given that this age group is also one in which many people live in partnerships, it is likely that family reasons were another factor.

Net migration between Switzerland and other countries makes it possible to provide insights into these flows.

In 2020, net numbers of departures – in other words, more departures than arrivals – were 1,556 Swiss nationals to France, 926 Swiss nationals to Germany, 718 to Portugal, 534 to Italy, and 162 to Spain.

During this same period, there was a net return of Swiss nationals from the United States (957), from the United Kingdom (276), and from Thailand (158) – the number of arrivals in Switzerland was higher than the number of departures to that country.

Where do Swiss citizens abroad live?

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Source: Swiss Federal Statistical Office, STATPOP (2011–2020)

Note on the methodology: A person’s country of residence after their departure and prior to their arrival in Switzerland is recorded as part of the migration flow declaration. However, information is missing for approximately 15% of departures and 10% of arrivals involving Swiss citizens. This missing information is distributed proportionally among the various countries. Only movements that involve a change of residence are used for this statistic. This means that people whose primary place of residence remains in Switzerland (or who already have a primary place of residence in Switzerland on their return) are not recorded.

Terms of use: The Migration-Mobility Indicators are made available free of charge for non-commercial use. We ask the users to acknowledge the source.

Suggested citation: nccr – on the move, Migration-Mobility Indicators. Neuchâtel: nccr – on the move, 2022.

For more information about the data sets used, please click here.

Last update: 1 February 2022