Living in Switzerland

Allegra! Have you ever heard a sentence in Romansh? In our newest episode, you'll get to hear several, spoken by the Romansh news anchor Livio Chistell.

You'll get to find out more about:

• Where this language comes from
• Where it's spoken
• What it's like to grow up and work in a Romansh-speaking area
• How you can discover more about the language
• And of course, what it sounds like.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Federal tax, cantonal tax, municipal tax, and church tax...

If you're planning to live in Switzerland or you've just arrived, you may be bewildered by the many different types of taxes in Switzerland. You'll need to learn about:

- What types of taxes you will pay.

- How they will be paid.

- What deadlines you need to observe.

- How to reduce your tax bill.

- How to avoid double taxation, especially if you worked in your home country for part of the year.

In this episode, tax expert Martin Beiner explains the different types of taxes in Switzerland and how to best manage them as an expat.

To watch the video version of this episode, visit our YouTube channel using the link below: It's Tax Time: Taxes in Switzerland with Martin Beiner

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Schwingen, Steinstossen, Hornussen... Switzerland is home to several unique sports.

Hornussen is one of the most popular, known for the small 'nouss' that looks like a hockey puck and the 'schindel', the wooden paddle reminiscent of a pizzaiolo's shovel. The sport contains elements of golf and baseball and is mainly played in the Bern and Solothurn region.

In this episode, Sandra Widmer from the Swiss Hornussen Association explains hornussen's origins, rules, and why it's a great activity to get involved with for both for locals and for expats.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Political parties, interest groups, and even individual citizens can change the Swiss constitution via popular initiatives.

But the process can be complex to understand and initiate.

To launch an initiative, you must rewrite the relevant section(s) of the constitution, put together a committee, liaise with the Federal Chancellery, and of course, collect 100,000 valid signatures within 18 months.

In this episode, Bitcoin educator Yves Bennaïm returns to speak to us about the Bitcoin Initiative, which is currently in the signature-collection phase, and what the process has been like so far.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Swiss citizens have the right to vote on a wide range of issues multiple times a year. Therefore, staying informed about politics in Switzerland is important for anyone living in Switzerland.

In 2025 and 2026, there's a lot going on:

· The government is debating a new agreement with the EU

· Around 60 cost-cutting measures have been proposed

· Residents might get to vote on several popular initiatives

· Swiss industries are struggling, and protectionism is being debated.

Katy Romy has been working as a journalist at Swissinfo since 2015. She works as a correspondent at the Federal Palace and covers politics for the Swiss abroad. In this episode, she discusses the media, industries, and politics in Switzerland.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Around 11% of Swiss residents hold cryptocurrencies.

Despite this, there's still a lot of confusion about Bitcoin in Switzerland.

Many people don't fully understand:

• How the technology works
• What the benefits are
• How to manage the risks and volatility of Bitcoin
• How to buy and store Bitcoin

Yves has been studying and teaching about Bitcoin for many years. He explains what it is and why it's important, not just in Switzerland, but around the world. He also discusses where and how you can buy Bitcoin in Switzerland.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Switzerland offers expats amazing quality of life, a beautiful landscape, and a warm welcome.

Despite this, many people encounter challenges.

They might:

• Find it difficult to settle in: find a home, take out insurance, understand Swiss finances, etc.
• Struggle if one partner is not able to work or speak the local language.
• Worry about how their kids are settling in.
• Struggle to succeed in a new work environment.

Having gone through the process of relocating to Switzerland himself, Esteban can help with all these issues. In this episode, he talks about both the practical aspects of moving to Switzerland and the cultural nuances that help you find a network and feel at home more quickly.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Although many people in Switzerland have a high income, most of them aren't making the most of their finances.

They are so-called HENRYS: High earners, not rich yet.

They often:

• Inflate their lifestyle to fit their salary
• Forget that some bills are more unpredictable in Switzerland than in other countries
• Take out too much insurance
• Lose a lot of money on high banking and investment fees

Eric has created Schwiizerfranke, a blog containing countless guides and financial product comparisons to help you avoid all these traps. In this episode, he talks about setting up your finances, taking out the right amount of insurance, investing in Switzerland, and more. If you're interested in finding out more you can read Eric's blog by visiting https://www.schwiizerfranke.com

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Many expats struggle with dating in Switzerland.

But the process doesn't have to be difficult or painful.

If you're a successful professional living in Switzerland, you might:

• Feel that you're too busy to date
• Avoid dating because you think you'll move away again
• Worry about interacting with locals due to language and cultural barriers

But many Swiss residents are open to dating expats, and they may even be happy to move to another country in the future.

In this episode, Kelly Brändli from Sinaps talks about Swiss dating etiquette, how expats can connect with locals, and how to build lasting romantic relationships in Switzerland.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.

Dating in Switzerland can be confusing, especially for new expats.

But there are plenty of singles looking to settle down. You just need to know where to find them.

You might encounter various roadblocks when dating in Switzerland:

· Finding people to date

· Confidently approaching locals

· Cultural differences

· Understanding local dating faux pas

In this episode, Trea Tijmens from SuccessMatch helps you understand where to find like-minded people in Switzerland, how to approach them, what to keep in mind during the first date, and how to follow up.

If you liked the episode, share this podcast with your friends and leave a review on your favourite platform. You can also subscribe to our newsletter at rigby.ch/newsletter for more great content about living in Switzerland.