Friendship relations extend to foreign countries and develop in Switzerland

Friends’ place of residence (Source: Migration-Mobility Survey 2018)

When asked where their friends live, 38% of the survey respondents, regardless of gender, respond that they have as many friends in Switzerland as abroad. Some 36% report having all or most of their friends abroad and 25% have all or most of their friends in Switzerland. Less than 10% do not have friends in Switzerland. Close friendships, therefore, appear to transcend national borders. Also worth noting is that 17% of the South Americans report that they have all friends abroad, a much rarer situation in the other communities. People with Secondary I diploma (20%), African nationals (18%) and non-EU Europeans (16%) are the groups that have most frequently maintained and developed their circle of friends in Switzerland only.