Moving to Ireland from Switzerland

Switzerland and Ireland are both small, wealthy countries with strong pharma, finance and tech sectors, and Swiss people move to Ireland mainly through international employers, for Irish universities and research, or for a partner. Some come for a less structured working culture and a more relaxed pace, others for the west coast and the music. Ireland offers English-speaking workplaces and EU access that the Swiss cannot get at home. What surprises most Swiss is how loose Irish timekeeping is, with buses, meetings and dinners all running on a more forgiving clock.

Do you need a visa?

No. Swiss citizens have the same rights under the EU–Swiss agreement: you can enter Ireland with a passport or national identity card, look for work, take a job, study or set up a business without a visa, an employment permit or any registration with immigration. There is no Irish Residence Permit for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens. After three months you are expected to be working, self-employed, studying, or able to support yourself, but nobody checks at a desk; it only comes up if you later apply for something like citizenship.

The picture changes for family. A spouse, partner or dependent parent who is not an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen can join you under EU Treaty Rights: they may need a visa to enter, and once here they apply to Immigration Service Delivery for a residence card (form EU1) within their first months, which gives them Stamp 4 EU FAM and the right to work. Applying early matters because the card can take months.

If you have an Irish parent or grandparent you may already be entitled to Irish citizenship through the Foreign Births Register. It changes nothing about your right to live here, but an Irish passport is handy for family members and for voting.

Finding work and getting your qualifications recognised

Swiss people generally arrive with strong English, whichever language they grew up with, and Irish employers hire on the interview rather than asking for a test. Universities and professional registration bodies may still require a formal English score. Irish appears on signs but is never needed.

You can apply for jobs from home and start the week you land. Irish CVs run to two pages, carry no photo and no date of birth, and lead with what you did rather than your job title. Most hiring runs through LinkedIn, IrishJobs, Jobs.ie and the employers' own sites, with recruitment agencies strong in tech, finance and pharma. EU qualifications are recognised under EU rules, so a nurse, doctor, teacher or engineer registers with the Irish body without re-qualifying, though registration itself takes weeks to months.

Your driving licence

Switzerland is on the NDLS list of recognised states, so a full Swiss licence can be exchanged for an Irish one without a theory or driving test. You can drive on the Swiss licence for up to 12 months after becoming resident, then you must exchange it. Apply online at ndls.ie if you have a Public Services Card and MyGovID, or book an NDLS centre appointment. Bring the licence, a certified English translation if it is not in English, proof of your PPS number, proof of address and photo ID; you may also need a letter of entitlement from the issuing authority. The fee is 65 euro, and the exchanged licence covers the categories that match Irish ones.

Tax, pensions and money

Ireland and Switzerland have a double taxation agreement, so income taxed in one country is generally credited in the other and the treaty decides which country taxes what. You become Irish tax resident after 183 days in a tax year (or 280 days over two years), and from then Ireland taxes your worldwide income, with credit for Swiss tax under the treaty. Register with Revenue through myAccount as soon as you have a PPS number so your employer taxes you correctly, and tell the Swiss tax authority that you are leaving.

Social security follows the EU coordination rules. You pay into one system at a time, your Swiss contribution record and Irish PRSI record are combined to qualify for a state pension in either country, and each country pays its share when you retire. If your employer is posting you to Ireland temporarily, an A1 certificate keeps you in the Swiss system. Occupational and private pensions can generally stay where they are.

Your credit history does not follow you. Irish lenders only see the Central Credit Register, so expect to build a record from scratch before a mortgage or car loan. Moving money from the Swiss franc into euro is cheapest through a specialist transfer provider rather than a bank; open the Irish account first, because you need an Irish IBAN to receive salary.

Healthcare

Your European Health Insurance Card covers you as a visitor, not as a resident. Once you are ordinarily resident (living in Ireland or intending to for at least a year) you use public hospitals as a public patient, and inpatient charges were abolished in April 2023. The HSE is not free at the point of use the way many Swiss services are: a GP visit costs roughly 50 to 70 euro unless you qualify for a medical card or GP visit card on income grounds (children under 8 and people over 70 get GP visits free), and prescriptions are paid for up to a monthly cap under the Drugs Payment Scheme. If your employer is posting you here on an A1, an S1 form registers you with the HSE at Swiss expense.

Around half the population holds private health insurance from VHI, Laya or Irish Life Health, mainly to shorten waiting lists. If you are 35 or older, buy it within 9 months of arriving to avoid a Lifetime Community Rating loading. Register with a GP as soon as you have an address; practices in Dublin often have closed lists, so ask several.

Bringing your things and your pet

Goods move freely inside the EU, so a removals van from Switzerland clears no customs. A car registered in Switzerland must be registered for Vehicle Registration Tax within 30 days of arrival; VRT relief applies if you owned and used the car for at least 6 months abroad and are moving your normal residence to Ireland, and you then need Irish insurance, motor tax and an NCT.

Pets travel on an EU pet passport: a microchip, a rabies vaccination given at least 21 days before travel, and for dogs a tapeworm treatment by a vet 24 to 120 hours before arrival, which Ireland requires because it is free of the tapeworm. Ferries and airlines carry pets on set routes, and the animal is checked on arrival.

Settling in: community and daily life

The Swiss community in Ireland is small and mostly professional, based in Dublin with a few in Cork and Galway. People connect through the embassy's national day and cultural events, German-speaking and francophone Facebook and WhatsApp groups, Stammtisch meetups and the wider German, Austrian, French and Italian circles that Swiss people slot into.

You will miss the mountains and the crisp winters, and the grey mild dampness can wear on you. Renting is expensive and less regulated than at home, though groceries and eating out are cheaper than in Switzerland. Cards are used everywhere, shops open on Sundays and late evenings, tipping is light, and the pub replaces the mountain hut and the long Sunday walk as the place to meet people.

Getting home is straightforward: there are direct flights between Dublin and Switzerland, and Cork and Shannon add more routes in summer.

First 30 days checklist

• Apply for a PPS number through MyWelfare.ie with your passport and proof of Irish address.
• No IRP is needed. Register with Revenue myAccount once you have a PPS number so your employer can tax you correctly.
• Open an Irish bank account; a utility bill, tenancy agreement or employer letter usually counts as proof of address.
• Register with a GP and, if you want it, buy private health insurance within 9 months.
• Get a Leap card for public transport and book your licence exchange at the NDLS before the 12 months are up.

★ Useful links

• Citizens Information: residence rights of EU nationals
• Immigration Service Delivery: family members of EU citizens
• National Driver Licence Service
• Revenue: moving to Ireland
• Bilateral social security agreements and EU rules
• Department of Agriculture: bringing your pet to Ireland
• Health Insurance Authority