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Childcare and school in Switzerland – Kita costs, starting school at four, university fees

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

In Switzerland, children usually start school at four, and each canton runs its own system, from enrolment to childcare subsidies. Here is how school in Switzerland works for newcomers – starting dates, language support, what a Kita place costs in Zurich, Basel-Stadt and Bern, and what universities charge.

Teacher giving a high five to a pupil in a primary school classroom
Photo: Home-stock/Adobe Stock

If you move with children, school in Switzerland will probably start earlier than you expect: in Zurich, Basel-Stadt and Geneva, at four. Under the Federal Constitution, schooling is the cantons' responsibility, and basic schooling at public schools is compulsory and free. Childcare before school is different – parents pay for much of it, and subsidies depend on your canton and commune.

The biggest change is federal, and not yet in force. On 19 December 2025 Parliament adopted the Federal Act on support for institutional childcare (UKibeG); the referendum deadline passed unused on 2 July 2026, so the Kita initiative was withdrawn and no vote will take place. The law creates a childcare allowance (Betreuungszulage) of at least CHF 100 a month for a child in paid institutional care one day a week, plus CHF 50 per extra half-day, until the end of the month the child turns eight. The Federal Council sets the start date, and none had been announced by 23 September 2026.

Two other changes: childcare vouchers in the canton of Bern became more generous on 1 August 2026, and ETH Zurich has charged many foreign students a threefold fee since the autumn semester 2025.

When do children start school in Switzerland?

Under the HarmoS concordat, the intercantonal agreement of 14 June 2007 on harmonising compulsory schooling, children start school once they have turned four, with 31 July as the cut-off date. Primary level, including kindergarten, lasts eight years, followed by lower secondary (Sekundarstufe I), usually three: eleven years in all. The cantons set the details.

CantonSchool startsStructureGood to know
ZurichKindergarten from age four2 years kindergarten, 6 primary, 3 lower secondarySchool is compulsory from 4 to 15
Basel-StadtAt four; a child turning four between 1 August and 31 January only if clearly ahead2 years kindergarten, 6 primary, 3 secondaryEarly entry needs an assessment (apply by 31 March); entry can be deferred a year
GenevaFirst year of primary (1P) if four by 31 July – no exceptionsSchool to 15, then education or training until 181P runs four days a week; mornings only at first is possible

Source: EDK (HarmoS concordat), Canton of Zurich, Canton of Basel-Stadt and État de Genève, read 23 September 2026.

How do you enrol your child at a Swiss school?

Enrolment runs through your commune, so register your address first (part 3). In the canton of Zurich, contact the local authority (Gemeinde) or the head of your local school. In Basel-Stadt, phone for an appointment and register the child in person, with an official ID for the child and one parent and the permits of parents and child. In Geneva, the child and one parent must both attend registration for 1P, with proof of the child's health insurance.

Private schools are at your own expense, and the canton of Geneva notes that most private establishments are neither subsidised nor recognised by the canton or the Confederation – check before you pay.

What if your child does not speak German or French yet?

Schools are set up for it. Every school in Basel-Stadt offers Deutsch als Zweitsprache (DaZ, German as a second language) at all ages and levels, and an interpreter can join parents' evenings. In Geneva, newly arrived pupils aged 12 to 15 who do not speak French join reception classes (classes d'accueil) at the cycle d'orientation, the lower secondary school; registration is open from mid-August to the end of June.

Support can start earlier. In Basel-Stadt, children with little or no German must, in the year before kindergarten, attend a playgroup with German support on at least three half-days a week, or a German-speaking Kita for at least 40 per cent. It is compulsory, and the canton pays for the three playgroup half-days. In the City of Zurich, the programme Gut vorbereitet in den Kindergarten (well prepared for kindergarten) teaches German in over 150 Kitas; the German support is free, and you pay only the income-dependent Kita fee.

How much does childcare cost in Switzerland?

Demand for daycare places is high, the canton of Zurich warns, so register early; Basel-Stadt advises starting six to eight months ahead. The City of Zurich has over 300 Kitas (Kindertagesstätten, day nurseries; crèches in French-speaking cantons), taking children from three months until kindergarten. Subsidies are cantonal or communal:

WhereWhat parents payConditions
Basel-StadtAt most CHF 1,600 a month for a full-time place in a subsidised Kita, all-inclusive; care for the third and further siblings free, though up to CHF 100 a month per child may applyChild lives in the canton and attends at least 40 per cent; parents work, seek work or train. Above CHF 150,000 household income (two people), only the minimum contribution
City of ZurichFrom CHF 48 a month per weekly care day (CHF 240 for five days)Kita with a subsidy contract; low to middle income and assets
Canton of BernVouchers up to CHF 157.50 per Kita day for babies up to 18 months, CHF 105 for toddlers (from 1 August 2026)Income limit CHF 170,000, up from CHF 160,000, according to the City of Bern
City of BernUp to CHF 31 per Kita day on topFull amount up to an income of CHF 43,000; nothing from CHF 140,000

Source: Canton of Basel-Stadt, City of Zurich and City of Bern, read 23 September 2026.

Basel-Stadt puts the cost of a full-time place at CHF 2,934 a month; its Childcare Act, in force since 1 January 2022, gives parents a right to contributions, not to a place. In Bern, request vouchers by the month before care starts – they cannot be backdated. For federal tax, you can deduct up to CHF 25,800 per child in third-party childcare costs for 2026 (part 7).

What do Swiss universities charge?

Tuition is charged per semester. ETH Zurich's simple fee covers Swiss and Liechtenstein citizens, people who obtained a Swiss entrance qualification while resident, and some EU/EFTA nationals and refugees already living here; since the autumn semester 2025, other foreign students pay three times as much. Students enrolled earlier keep their old fees.

UniversityPer semesterExtras
ETH Zurich, simple feeCHF 730–
ETH Zurich, threefold feeCHF 2,190All other foreign students
University of ZurichCHF 720Foreign students add CHF 500 (Bachelor) or CHF 100 (Master, PhD); semester contributions CHF 59; CHF 150 application fee with foreign qualifications (since 1 January 2025)

Source: ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, read 23 September 2026.

Most programmes have no enrolment limit – medicine, with its aptitude test, is an exception – and you apply directly to the institution. Non-EU students need a permit before arrival and proof of funds set by the canton, such as CHF 21,000 for twelve months in Zurich (part 2). During post-compulsory education, family allowances continue as an education allowance of at least CHF 268 a month, up to age 25 (part 9).

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Register at the Einwohnerkontrolle / contrôle des habitants (residents' office)Generally within 14 days of moving
2Insure each child – Geneva asks for proof at 1P registrationWithin three months of arriving
3Enrol your child through your commune or local schoolOnce you have an address
4Find a Kita and apply for subsidies or vouchers6–8 months ahead in Basel-Stadt; in Bern, by the month before care starts
5Ask about DaZ, reception classes or early German supportAt enrolment
6Check university fees and apply directlyBefore committing to a programme

Source: the Swiss authorities' official portal, Federal Office of Public Health, Canton of Basel-Stadt, City of Bern and État de Genève, 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.

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.