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Usually not. In most Swiss apartment buildings the shared laundry room is closed on Sundays and public holidays. The house rules set the hours, typically Monday to Saturday, 7:00 to 21:00. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep01.mp4 64 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/flush-toilet-at-night 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep02.jpg Can you flush the toilet at night in Switzerland? Yes. No Swiss law forbids flushing the toilet at night; the famous ban is a myth. What is real are the quiet hours: in Zurich, 22:00 to 07:00. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep02.mp4 61 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/why-switzerland-is-expensive 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep03.jpg Why is Switzerland so expensive? Because wages and prices are both high. Swiss prices were 58.8 percent above the EU average in 2024, and housing and energy more than twice as high, while the median full-time wage is CHF 7,024 a month. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep03.mp4 58 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/one-guinea-pig 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep04.jpg Is it illegal to own one guinea pig in Switzerland? Yes. Swiss animal welfare law says guinea pigs may not be kept alone: you need at least two. A human or a rabbit does not count as company. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep04.mp4 49 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/swiss-bunkers 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep05.jpg Why do Swiss homes have bunkers? Because Switzerland aims to have a shelter place for every resident. There are about 370,000 private and public shelters, and the goal is almost reached. In peacetime a shelter may be used as a storeroom, but it must be ready within five days. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep05.mp4 51 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/change-the-constitution 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep06.jpg Can anyone change the Swiss constitution? Swiss voters can. With a popular initiative, a Volksinitiative, 100,000 valid signatures collected within 18 months force a national vote on a change to the federal constitution. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep06.mp4 76 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/making-friends 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep07.jpg Why is it so hard to make friends in Switzerland? It is slow, and the numbers agree: in the Expat Insider 2026 survey, expats ranked Switzerland 28th of 31 countries for making local friends. The classic way in is a Verein, a club: join one and keep showing up. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep07.mp4 56 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/swiss-punctuality 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep08.jpg Are Swiss people always on time? Mostly, and the trains prove it. In 2025 a record 94.1 percent of SBB trains arrived on time, and SBB counts a train as on time when it arrives less than three minutes late. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep08.mp4 54 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/register-when-you-move 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep09.jpg Do you have to register when you move to Switzerland? Yes. You register with the commune where you now live, in general within 14 days of moving. If you move within Switzerland, you also tell your old commune that you are leaving. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep09.mp4 60 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/what-is-znueni 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep10.jpg What is Znüni in Switzerland? Znüni is the Swiss mid-morning snack, eaten at about nine. The word comes from “zu nüni”, at nine; the Duden calls it a second breakfast. Its afternoon partner is the Zvieri, at about four. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep10.mp4 71 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/benis-gspaenli 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep11.jpg Can a guinea pig live alone in Switzerland? No. When one of two guinea pigs dies, the other may not stay alone under Swiss animal welfare rules. Near Zurich, a woman became known for renting out guinea pigs for exactly this. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep11.mp4 49 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/sausage-vote 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep12.jpg Did Switzerland really vote on sausages? In a way, yes. On 22 September 2013 Switzerland voted on a change to the Labour Act that lets shops on motorway service areas and busy main roads sell their whole range all night. It was accepted with 55.8 percent. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep12.mp4 65 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/cow-horn-vote 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep13.jpg Did Switzerland really vote on cow horns? Yes. On 25 November 2018 Switzerland voted on the cow-horn initiative, which wanted to support farmers who let their cows keep their horns. It was rejected with 54.7 percent no. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep13.mp4 55 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/who-runs-switzerland 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep14.jpg Who runs Switzerland? Seven people, together: the Federal Council. Parliament elects its seven members for four years, and each December it elects one of them as President of the Confederation for one year, first among equals. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep14.mp4 61 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/switch-health-insurance 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep15.jpg Swiss health insurance: when can you switch? Every year for 1 January: your cancellation letter must reach your current insurer by 30 November. Basic insurance covers the same at every insurer, and every insurer must accept you. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep15.mp4 67 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/swiss-neutrality 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep16.jpg Why is Switzerland neutral? Swiss neutrality was formally recognised by the international community in 1815, at the Congress of Vienna. Switzerland is in neither the EU nor NATO, and it joined the UN only in 2002, after a popular vote. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep16.mp4 46 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/rubbish-bag-fee 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep17.jpg Why does the rubbish bag cost money in Switzerland? Because the bag is the fee. Household rubbish goes into an official fee bag, the Gebührensack, and part of its price pays for disposal. In Zurich, a 35-litre Züri-Sack carries a city fee of CHF 1.30. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep17.mp4 60 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/win-an-apartment 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep18.jpg How do you win a Swiss apartment? With a complete application, sent fast. Landlords often ask for an extract from the debt collection register, the Betreibungsauszug, to see that you pay your bills. You order it from the debt collection office; it usually costs CHF 17 plus postage. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep18.mp4 53 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/swiss-german-vs-german 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep19.jpg Swiss German vs German: can you understand it? Reading, yes; listening, often not at first. In German-speaking Switzerland people speak Swiss German but write Standard German, and the gap between the two is large. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep19.mp4 54 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/health-insurance-three-months 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep20.jpg Do you need health insurance in Switzerland? Yes. Anyone who settles in Switzerland must take out health insurance within three months of taking up residence. If you do, cover goes back to the day you arrived. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep20.mp4 56 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/samichlaus 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep21.jpg Who is Samichlaus? 6 December in Switzerland The Samichlaus is the Swiss Santa Claus. On 6 December he visits children, who recite a little poem, a Versli, and he gives out mandarins, nuts and chocolate. He comes with his helper, Schmutzli. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep21.mp4 56 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/du-or-sie 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep22.jpg Du or Sie at a Swiss office? Traditionally Sie, until the more senior person offers the Du. That is changing: more and more Swiss companies use Du for everyone. When the Du is offered, the Swiss call it Duzis machen. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep22.mp4 64 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/office-apero 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep23.jpg The Swiss office apéro: what are the rules? An apéro is drinks and snacks, usually standing, often among colleagues after work. If there is a speech, the custom is to wait: usually nobody touches the food until it is over. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep23.mp4 55 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/feierabend 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep24.jpg When does the workday end in Switzerland? When your contracted hours are done: that is Feierabend. The law caps the working week at 45 hours for office staff, and overtime beyond your contract is paid with at least 25 percent extra unless your written contract says otherwise. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep24.mp4 61 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/13th-salary 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep25.jpg Do the Swiss really get a 13th salary? Many do, but it is not a law. You get a 13th monthly salary only if your contract or a collective agreement provides it. About three in four employees in Switzerland receive one. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep25.mp4 57 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/ueli/episodes/moving-day 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/img/ueli/poster-ep26.jpg Do you get a day off to move house in Switzerland? Usually, yes. Swiss law gives employees the usual free hours and days for personal matters, and moving house is one of them. The law sets no number; usually it is one day, and for monthly salaried staff it is customarily paid. https://www.swissexpatguide.com/media/ueli/ep26.mp4 49 2026-10-17 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-work-culture-guide 2025-08-15 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-banking-expats 2026-10-15 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-tax-system-expats 2026-10-15 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-housing-rental-guide 2026-10-15 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-social-integration-tips 2025-02-08 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/swiss-health-insurance-three-month-deadline 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/english-speaking-daycare-zurich 2026-10-17 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/why-switzerland-quiet-power 2025-05-05 monthly 0.7 https://www.swissexpatguide.com/blog/is-x-salary-enough-switzerland 2026-10-15 monthly 0.7 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