Driving licence exchange in Switzerland – the 12-month rule, the CHF 40 vignette and Halbtax
Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →
You may drive on your foreign licence for 12 months, then it has to become Swiss – with or without a test, depending on where it was issued. Here is how the driving licence exchange in Switzerland works, what the vignette and car import cost, and which rail and city passes to compare.
The driving licence exchange in Switzerland runs on a 12-month clock. If you live here, you may drive with your foreign licence for 12 months, then you must exchange it for a Swiss one – later is still possible, but you may be fined. Under the Traffic Licensing Ordinance (VZV), the clock runs out once you have lived here for twelve months without spending more than three consecutive months abroad.
The rules have tightened. Since 15 July 2023, the control drive (Kontrollfahrt) that many non-EU drivers must pass cannot be repeated: fail it, or miss it without an excuse, and your foreign licence is no longer recognised in Switzerland. Since 1 July 2025, professional drivers with a non-EU/EFTA licence who drive Swiss-registered lorries or buses need a Swiss licence straight away. Returning Swiss take note: old blue paper licences lost their validity on 1 November 2024 and must be exchanged for the credit-card format.
When must you exchange your driving licence in Switzerland?
Apply to the road traffic office (Strassenverkehrsamt) of your canton well before the 12 months are up. In every case you need your original foreign licence and an eye test. Fees vary by canton, but exchanging a foreign licence costs more than CHF 100. The FDFA advises returning Swiss to register with the cantonal road traffic authority within 14 days of their return.
Until then, your licence covers only the categories shown explicitly and in Latin script; otherwise, carry an international driving permit with it. The Swiss licence may come on probation – for categories A and B, three years minus the time between the issue of your foreign licence and the regular exchange date – unless it was issued before 1 December 2005 or had been valid for at least a year when you moved here.
Do you need a control drive to exchange your licence?
As a rule, the exchange requires a control drive, a practical driving test. The Federal Roads Office (FEDRO/ASTRA) lists the exemptions:
| Licence issued in | Control drive | Additional theory test | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| An EU/EEA country (including Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) | No | No | The foreign licence is returned to the issuing authority |
| Great Britain | No | No | – |
| Andorra, Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, Monaco, Morocco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, San Marino, Singapore, Taiwan, Tunisia or the USA | No | Yes | – |
| Any other country | Yes | – | One attempt only; failing means your foreign licence is no longer recognised in Switzerland |
Source: Federal Roads Office (FEDRO/ASTRA), Traffic Licensing Ordinance (VZV) and the Swiss authorities' official portal, read 23 September 2026.
Do you need a vignette for Swiss motorways?
Yes, for cars, motorbikes, trailers, caravans, vans and campers up to 3.5 tonnes on motorways and expressways. The motorway vignette (Autobahnvignette / vignette autoroutière) costs CHF 40, and the 2026 vignette is valid from 1 December 2025 to 31 January 2027. There are no daily, weekly or monthly vignettes. Vehicles over 3.5 tonnes pay the heavy vehicle charge instead.
Since 1 August 2023 you can buy an e-vignette, also CHF 40, through the Via portal of the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS). The sticker is tied to the vehicle, the e-vignette to the number plate – so with interchangeable plates, one e-vignette is enough. Driving on a motorway without either costs a CHF 200 fine, and you still have to buy the vignette.
Driving into Geneva? During pollution peaks, the canton's Stick'AIR scheme (since 15 January 2020) admits only vehicles with the right sticker to a central perimeter – almost all of the City of Geneva and parts of Carouge, Cologny, Lancy and Vernier – between 06:00 and 22:00, foreign-registered cars included. The sticker costs CHF 5 and lasts for the vehicle's lifetime; the French Crit'Air sticker is also recognised. Breaking the rules can cost up to CHF 500.
How do you bring your car to Switzerland?
Your car travels duty-free as removal goods (Übersiedlungsgut / effets de déménagement) if you move your residence here and have used it personally for at least six months – and keep using it. You have two years from your move to bring it in. Clear it at a staffed customs office the first time it crosses the border, with the car and form 18.44; no appointment is needed, but clearance takes place on working days during commercial office hours, in the lorry lane.
| Situation | What applies | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Used by you for at least six months, residence moving to Switzerland | Duty-free as removal goods; form 18.44 at the border | No duty |
| Removal-goods conditions not met | A customs permit (form 15.30) may let you drive it duty-unpaid for up to two years; Swiss plates after one year at the latest | Ask customs |
| Car imported otherwise | Automobile tax and import VAT; CO2 certification before first registration, plus any CO2 penalty | 4% of the vehicle value, plus 8.1% VAT |
| Proof of customs clearance | Test report form 13.20 A for registration | CHF 20 for a customs clearance certificate |
| Swiss registration at the cantonal road traffic office | Proof of third-party insurance, customs clearance and foreign registration, form 13.20A, ID and proof of residence; official inspection | Generally CHF 50–100 for document and plates, by canton |
Source: Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS/BAZG), Traffic Licensing Ordinance (VZV) and the Swiss authorities' official portal, read 23 September 2026.
The CO2 rules exclude cars registered abroad more than 12 months before the customs declaration, or more than six months and over 5,000 km. Swiss plates are compulsory once you have been here for more than a year, without a break of over three consecutive months, and use the car here for more than a month; every owner also needs third-party motor insurance. Customs information: +41 58 467 15 15, Monday to Friday 08:00–11:30 and 13:30–17:00. Commuting by car? The federal tax deduction rises to CHF 0.75 per km from tax year 2026, with commuting costs still capped at CHF 3,300 (part 7).
Halbtax or GA – which Swiss travelcard do you need?
SBB's national passes are the alternative to a car. The Half Fare Travelcard (Halbtax / demi-tarif) renews automatically; the GA Travelcard (Generalabonnement / abonnement général) gives unlimited travel on trains, buses, boats and urban transport nationwide.
| Pass | 2nd class | 1st class | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half Fare Travelcard, aged 25 or over | CHF 190 first year, then CHF 170 | – | Renews automatically |
| Half Fare Travelcard, aged 16–24 | CHF 120, then CHF 100 | – | – |
| GA Travelcard, adult | CHF 3,995 a year, or CHF 355 a month | CHF 6,520 a year | Minimum term six months; renews automatically |
| GA Travelcard, youth 16–24 | CHF 2,780 | CHF 4,450 | – |
| GA Travelcard, seniors | CHF 3,040 | CHF 4,950 | – |
| 1-month GA Travelcard, adult | CHF 440 | CHF 695 | – |
Source: SBB (Swiss Federal Railways), read 23 September 2026.
If you mostly travel within one city, compare a local adult pass (2nd class):
| City | Monthly | Annual | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich (ZVV, zone 110) | CHF 88 | CHF 813 | City counts as 1–2 zones |
| Geneva (unireso Tout Genève, zone 10) | CHF 70 | CHF 500 | Adult rate from 25 to AHV/AVS pension age |
| Basel (TNW U-Abo, all zones) | CHF 86 | – | If registered in the TNW area |
| Bern (Libero, zones 100/101) | CHF 82 | CHF 738 | No Half Fare discount; not renewed automatically |
| Lausanne (Mobilis) | CHF 71 (1 zone), CHF 78 (2 zones) | Price of 9 monthly passes | Check how many zones you need |
Source: ZVV, tpg, TNW, Libero tariff network and Mobilis Vaud, read 23 September 2026.
What to do now
| Step | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Note the date you took up residence | On arrival |
| 2 | Check if you need a control drive; get an eye test | In your first months |
| 3 | Exchange your licence at the cantonal road traffic office | Before 12 months are up |
| 4 | Buy the vignette or e-vignette (CHF 40) | Before your first motorway trip |
| 5 | Clear your car at customs with form 18.44, then register it | On first import; plates within a year |
| 6 | Compare Halbtax, GA and your city's pass | Before your first commute |
Source: the Swiss authorities' official portal, FEDRO/ASTRA, FOCBS/BAZG and SBB, read 23 September 2026.
Official sources
The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.
- ch.ch (Confederation/cantons portal) – Exchanging your driving licence · ch.ch
- Traffic Licensing Ordinance (VZV) Art. 42 Abs. 3bis lit. a, Fedlex ( · fedlex.data.admin.ch
- Federal Roads Office FEDRO/ASTRA – ASTRA-Blog 'Umtausch ausländischer Führerausweise unter der Lupe' · blog.astra.admin.ch
- ch.ch – Motorway vignette · ch.ch
- Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS/BAZG) – E-Vignette and adhesive vignette; Federal Council… · bazg.admin.ch
- FOCBS/BAZG – Moving (household effects); ch.ch – Moving to Switzerland · ch.ch
- FOCBS/BAZG – Relocation: vehicles · bazg.admin.ch
- FOCBS/BAZG – Permanently importing (vehicles) · bazg.admin.ch
- ch.ch – Registering and deregistering a car or motorbike · ch.ch
- État de Genève – Stick'AIR: dispositif et périmètre · ge.ch
- État de Genève – Acheter mon macaron Stick'AIR; Questions particulières ( · ge.ch
- État de Genève – Stick'AIR Questions particulières · ge.ch
- SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) – GA Travelcard for Adults · sbb.ch
- SBB – GA Travelcard overview · sbb.ch
- SBB – Half Fare Travelcard · sbb.ch
- Libero-Tarifverbund (official Bern-region tariff network) – Libero Abo Bern · mylibero.ch
- Libero-Tarifverbund – Einzelbillette; Kurzstrecke; Tageskarte Bern · mylibero.ch
Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.