You are a cross-border worker and you want to open a Swiss bank account? Find the best deal with our comparison of the accounts available on the market.
Banking is Switzerland's specialty. However, it's quite complicated (and sometimes costly) to open a bank account if you live abroad. Many workers from France, Germany, and Italy face these kinds of problems as they cross the border every day to work in Switzerland.
Between special conditions and different rates, the choice of a Swiss bank account has to be made carefully so you can benefit from the best possible deal and avoid unnecessary costs.
If you live abroad and work in Switzerland, this guide will help you to compare the different opportunities so you can manage at best your money from both sides of the border.
For the vast majority of cross-border workers, the basic needs in terms of money comes down to two things:
In order to collect your salary from your employer, you must give them a Swiss IBAN (starting with CH), or in other terms Swiss banking coordinate. Most Swiss companies will not accept to pay your salary directly to a bank account abroad, because they obviously don't want to take in charge the exchange and transfer fees.
To obtain a Swiss IBAN, French cross-borders have 3 options:
This can seem counterintuitive, but it's possible!
If you already have a bank account where you live, and all that matters to you is to receive you Swiss salary converted in euros, why bother getting another bank account and pay the costs that come with it?
Sometimes you can also be refused the opening of a Swiss bank account, particularly in cases with temporary workers coming to Switzerland for contracts of too short duration for the liking of a bank.
To receive a dedicated Swiss IBAN (which is specific to you) without opening a Swiss bank account, you can simply go through ibani (that’s right, that’s us!). This service will let you generate transit IBANs, on which the money received is directly converted and sent to the bank account with the indicated destination.
The advantage of this setup is to be able to automatize the collection and the exchange of your salary and to save money in the process on all the expenses that come with a bank account.
Another advantage is that a transit IBAN isn’t a bank account, so you don't have to declare it for your taxes!
You can obtain your Swiss IBAN for free, by using the ibani mobile app.
Revolut, Transferwise, N26 and others have seen immense success these last few years thanks to better experience and service offers than traditional banks.
Even though their offers are probably unbeatable as a main bank account to deposit money, they aren't adapted to perceive a salary upon.
Contrary to what you might believe, these companies are usually not banks but payment institutions. One of these differences is that they do not propose unique IBANs or banking coordinates to their clients, as would a standard bank. Without these unique coordinates, it’s quite complicated (but possible) to make arrangements with your employer to receive your salary directly on a neo-bank account.
Even if these companies aren’t banks, it’s important to note that one must report these accounts in your tax filling. Beware the oversights and bad surprises that may come with them!
For people who want to preserve a part of their salary in Swiss francs for their daily spending, a bank account is necessary and choosing a Swiss bank account could be the best solution for your needs.
This chart compares the best offers from the banks of Swiss Romande for a bank account that a cross-border worker can open:
Bank | Product | Account Cost | Foreign Resident Fees | CHF Account | EUR Account | SEPA Transfers | ATM Withdrawals | Maestro Card | Visa/Mastercard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UBS | Individual EUR | CHF 10 / month (free for the first 6 months) | CHF 0 | Yes | Yes | Free | Free at UBS, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | Free | Free |
Crédit Agricole next bank | EssenCiel | CHF 15 / month | CHF 0 | Yes | No | Free | Free in Switzerland | Free | Mastercard free the first year |
Crédit Agricole next bank | EUROmobility | CHF 29 / month | CHF 0 | Yes | Yes | Free | 5 free withdrawals / month in Switzerland | Free | Mastercard free the first year |
BCGE | BCGE Privé | CHF 3 / month | CHF 6 / month | Yes | Yes | Free in Switzerland, CHF 1 / payment SEPA abroad | Free in cantonal banks, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | CHF 30 | CHF 100+ / year |
BCJ | Compte Revenu | CHF 2 / month | CHF 10 / month | Yes | No | CHF 1 / payment | Free in cantonal banks, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | CHF 40 | CHF 100+ / year |
PostFinance | Compte privé plus | CHF 5 / month | CHF 25 / month | Yes | Yes | Free | Unlimited in Switzerland and abroad | Free | CHF 50+ / year |
BCV | Directe | CHF 3.50 / month (free the first 6 months) | CHF 20 / month | Yes | No | Free | Free in cantonal banks, CHF 5 in Switzerland, CHF 5 + 0.5% abroad | Free | CHF 50+ / year |
BCN | PACKBCNSOLO | CHF 17 / month | CHF 10 / month | Yes | No | CHF 0.50 / payment | Free in cantonal banks, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | Free | Free |
Banque Cler | Pack Classic | CHF 11 / month | CHF 20 / month | Yes | Yes | Free | Free at the banque Cler, CHF 2 in Switzerland | Free | Free |
Banque Cler | Compte privé | CHF 2-5 / month | CHF 20 / month | Yes | No | Free | Free at the banque Cler, CHF 2 in Switzerland | CHF 40 / year | CHF 100+ / year |
Raiffeisen | Compte privé sociétaire | CHF 0 / month | CHF 25 / month | Yes | No | CHF 1 / payment | Free at Raiffeisen, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 4.5 abroad | Free | CHF 50+ / year |
Banque Migros | Compte privé | CHF 3 / month | CHF 25 / month | Yes | No | CHF 0.30 / payment | Free in Migros banks, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | Free | Free |
Credit Suisse | Compte privé | CHF 5 / month | CHF 40 / month | Yes | No | Free | CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 4.75 + 0.25% abroad | CHF 50 / year | CHF 15+ / mois |
Valiant | Set tendance | CHF 6 / month | CHF 40 / month | Yes | No | Free | Free at Valiant and Entris, CHF 2 in Switzerland, CHF 5 abroad | Free | CHF 50+ / year |
Banque Cler Zak | Do not accept foreign residents. | ||||||||
Neon | Do not accept foreign residents. |
Note: The information presented above is for guidance only. They come from the publicly available information of each company listed above and presented from the point of view of a person residing outside of Switzerland. The information contained may be incomplete, contain errors, or be outdated.
It should be noted that practically all the banks offer free accounts starting from a certain amount deposited, which can vary significantly from one bank to another. If you have a 5 digit or more amount to deposit, make sure to ask about it!
Most banks will ask for an employment contract in Switzerland in order to open an account and some cantonal banks require that the place of employment is located in their canton.
Some French banks offer solutions for cross-border including a swiss and french bank account allowing you to manage your currencies between both countries. These all-in-one offers can be attractive, but information may be harder to get and often can only be made available on request. In any case, pay attention to the exchange rates that are often higher and lack transparency since they are directly integrated into the cash-flow between the accounts within a same bank.
Bank | Product | Account Cost | CHF Account | EUR Account | SEPA Transfers | ATM Withdrawals | Maestro Cards | Visa/Mastercard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crédit Mutuel | Eurocompte Tranquillité | € 6.30 / month | Upon request | Yes | Free, € 3.50 if not denominated in EUR | Free at Crédit Mutuel and CIC, € 1 in the eurozone, no withdrawals in Switzerland | Free | € 42+ / year |
Crédit Mutuel | Eurocompte Confort | € 11.95 / month | Upon request | Yes | Free, € 3.50 if not denominated in EUR | Free at Crédit Mutuel and CIC, € 1 in the eurozone, free in Switzerland | € 21.20 / year | Free |
CIC | - | € 2 / month | Upon request | Yes | Free | GrFree at Crédit Mutuel and CIC, € 1 in the eurozone, 2.9% in Switzerland | € 0+ / year | € 21+ / year |
Note: The information presented above is for guidance only. They come from the publicly available information of each company listed above and presented from the point of view of a person residing outside of Switzerland. The information contained may be incomplete, contain errors, or be outdated.
Congratulations, you now have a great solution to collect your Swiss salary!
What's next?
Changing CHF to EUR is a step where many hidden fees can be charged. By paying attention, you can easily save a significant amount of money each month.
To find the best currency exchange service for your needs, have a loot at our CHF-EUR currency exchange guide:
Read the guideIf you work in Switzerland but live abroad, opening a Swiss bank account isn't a trivial choice. And finding the best deal possible can take a lot of time and efforts.
That is why avoiding altogether a Swiss bank account is an increasingly popular option. With services providing Swiss transit IBAN numbers like ibani, it becomes possible to easily collect your salary from your employer straight on your French, German or Italian bank account. All while getting a much better currency exchange deal that your usual bank.
Money flows are clearly getting from the historical monopoly of banks in the benefit of consumers, so... why not start saving today?
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