Looking for work in or around Zurich

[b16a2_VTi]

Hi All,

A little background as much as we every other person wants out of the UK but in reality is easier said then done. Luckily my older brother has secured a 12 month contract (already been extended by another 6 months in his first month of employment) in Zurich. I went over with furniture etc (what a drive that was) i love the place, the people the night life etc etc...

Accommodation is not a problem but finding work is! so i need some help! Off course the language barrier will be a problem but I’m happy to attend German courses at the college but like anything i will only pick up a certain amount and the rest comes through practice!

In a nut shell my skills are sales, field sales, account management, recruitment, and currently working in the Training industry getting unemployed people into work (recruitment side). I’m 26 and as bad as i feel for saying this i hate the uk now for various reasons i want out!

I’ve been considering a move to a number of other cities but Zurich seems spot on! plus the fact i can share with my brother.

Anyone know of any recruitment agencies or work in any companies that can accommodate my skills? Can send a c.v if required.

Thanks

[WelshBoyo]

Not sure what the visa status is like in Switzerland at the moment, I know at the end of last year it was almost impossible especially for non EU (and even EU was tricky).

A couple of IT recruitment agencies I've used and the contacts I've spoken to have been English speakers from UK/Canada (not sure if they spoke German):-
Xenar.ch
mbaswitzerland.com
swisslinx

There are also 2 large companies moving to Zug (close to Zurich) in the next few months that seem to be heavily recruiting:-
Icelandic pharmaceutical giant, Actavis and another medical company called Cytori so might be worthwhile keeping an eye open?

Good luck with the search, it is a great place to live.

[Whitean3]

Yep, the residence permit is the biggest issue- you'd need to sort the job out first, BEFORE moving out here. Larger companies should be able to fix the residence permit for you. There are plenty of multinational companies that would also operate in English- these should be the ones for you to concentrate on- if you are not fluent in German, there will be plenty of applicants that are, and also speak good English.

Good luck!

[eyebeebe]

What's all this talk of visas and residence permits for EU citizens?

If Imran is a UK citizen he is guaranteed a 5 year Swiss B-permit if he can find a job (on a permanent contract. Contracting will likely get an L-permit). There's no visa or any other application process to go through. Simply rocks up to the community office with a signed work contract, signed rental contract, a couple of photos and CHF 80 and a couple of weeks later the permit turns up in the post.

Have a look on www.englishforum.ch for lots of useful info, but if you plan on talking cars watch out for the treehuggers.

Edited by eyebeebe on Monday 29th November 18:48

[Whitean3]

eyebeebe said:

What's all this talk of visas and residence permits for EU citizens?

...

Have a look on www.englishforum.ch for lots of useful info, but if you plan on talking cars watch out for the treehuggers.

As Ian says- as an EU citizen, it SHOULDN'T be too much of a problem to get a residence permit, although each Kanton is limited to the number of permits they can issue each month or year- (I was issued a temporary L-permit when I first arrived, even though I had a permanent contract- had to wait 2 months before I got the B-permit (which was back-dated to my arrival in CH).
BUT- you HAVE to have the job contract FIRST.

The English Forum is very useful, especially when you arrive, but the Transportation/Driving section can be comical and/or frustrating as there are many lentilists and people with absolutely no clue on there!

[eyebeebe]

Whitean3 said:

eyebeebe said:

What's all this talk of visas and residence permits for EU citizens?

...

Have a look on www.englishforum.ch for lots of useful info, but if you plan on talking cars watch out for the treehuggers.

As Ian says- as an EU citizen, it SHOULDN'T be too much of a problem to get a residence permit, although each Kanton is limited to the number of permits they can issue each month or year- (I was issued a temporary L-permit when I first arrived, even though I had a permanent contract- had to wait 2 months before I got the B-permit (which was back-dated to my arrival in CH).
BUT- you HAVE to have the job contract FIRST.

The English Forum is very useful, especially when you arrive, but the Transportation/Driving section can be comical and/or frustrating as there are many lentilists and people with absolutely no clue on there!

Andrew when did you come over? As I understand it the rules changed in 2008 and there are no limitations for EU citizens (from the core countries at least - there are restrictions on people from the newer members of the EU but that is changing for all but Romania and Bulgaria next year and those final 2 in 2013). As a UK citizen you are guaranteed an unrestricted B-permit if you have an open ended employment contact. I agree that there are limitations on permits both L and B for non-EU and new-EU.

[dicktracy]

eyebeebe said:

Whitean3 said:

eyebeebe said:

What's all this talk of visas and residence permits for EU citizens?

...

Have a look on www.englishforum.ch for lots of useful info, but if you plan on talking cars watch out for the treehuggers.

As Ian says- as an EU citizen, it SHOULDN'T be too much of a problem to get a residence permit, although each Kanton is limited to the number of permits they can issue each month or year- (I was issued a temporary L-permit when I first arrived, even though I had a permanent contract- had to wait 2 months before I got the B-permit (which was back-dated to my arrival in CH).
BUT- you HAVE to have the job contract FIRST.

The English Forum is very useful, especially when you arrive, but the Transportation/Driving section can be comical and/or frustrating as there are many lentilists and people with absolutely no clue on there!

Andrew when did you come over? As I understand it the rules changed in 2008 and there are no limitations for EU citizens (from the core countries at least - there are restrictions on people from the newer members of the EU but that is changing for all but Romania and Bulgaria next year and those final 2 in 2013). As a UK citizen you are guaranteed an unrestricted B-permit if you have an open ended employment contact. I agree that there are limitations on permits both L and B for non-EU and new-EU.

I think it is right that Switzerland are now following the EU rules regarding free mobility of labour, which should allow someone from old EU to come over to look for work and in principle get a residence permit. But you'd obviously not qualify for unemployment benefits etc etc and you'd have to take out private health care insurance. In reality I guess the route 90% follow (unless they come as a spouse or a student) is to look for jobs from the home country. Switzerland is a pretty expensive place to be without any income.

[Whitean3]

eyebeebe said:

Andrew when did you come over? As I understand it the rules changed in 2008 and there are no limitations for EU citizens (from the core countries at least - there are restrictions on people from the newer members of the EU but that is changing for all but Romania and Bulgaria next year and those final 2 in 2013). As a UK citizen you are guaranteed an unrestricted B-permit if you have an open ended employment contact. I agree that there are limitations on permits both L and B for non-EU and new-EU.

Maybe things have changed quite a lot- I arrived almost 5 years ago- so will get my C-permit in 2011

But Dick Tracy is right- Switzerland is a very expensive place to live if you have no income!

[b16a2_VTi]

thanks for the replies.

Yes ive got a British passport, just to add my older brother started his new job there abouts two months ago. I drove over (what a drive) a few weeks ago to drop his bedroom off lol.

Must say its a nice part of the world to live in for sure!

I'll give that forum ago.

Anymore input would be great!

Imran