Almost half of Swiss abroad reside in a neighbouring country
Neuchâtel, 31.03.2026 — At the end of 2025, 838 600 Swiss citizens lived abroad. Their numbers have continued to grow since 2024 (+11 900 people or +1.4%). Almost half of Swiss abroad reside in a country bordering Switzerland. These are some of the results of the Statistics on the Swiss Abroad published by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
On 31 December 2025, 838 600 Swiss citizens were registered with an official Swiss representation abroad, 1.4% more than in 2024. This increase is slightly lower than the year before (+1.6%) partly owing to an improved system for reporting the deaths of Swiss citizens in certain countries since 1 January 2025 (see box). Among the Swiss abroad, 21% of people are under 18, 55% are aged 18‒64 and 24% are aged 65 or over.
Compared with 2024, their number has increased on all continents: in Asia (+3.0%), in Europe (+1.5%), in North America (+1.1%), in Oceania (+1.0%), in Africa (+0.6%) and in Latin America and the Caribbean (+0.3%). In addition to migration by Swiss citizens, trends in the numbers of Swiss abroad are influenced by changes in the existing populations (births and deaths) and acquisition of Swiss nationality by foreign citizens.
Many Swiss abroad live in Europe, above all in Switzerland’s neighbouring countries
Of the 838 600 Swiss abroad, 64% (538 600) live on the European continent and 47% (392 200) in a country that shares a border with Switzerland. A quarter of the Swiss abroad (212 400) live in mainland France, while 12% (102 100) live in Germany, 6% (53 100) in Italy, 2% (19 100) in Austria and 1% (5 600) in Liechtenstein. These 5 600 Swiss citizens represent 14% of the total population of Liechtenstein (Eurostat data). Elsewhere in Europe, other large Swiss communities reside in the UK (41 400) and Spain (28 200). Between 2024 and 2025, the number of Swiss citizens increased in all these countries, particularly in Liechtenstein (+6.4%), Spain (+3.1%) and Austria (+2.1%).
Some 300 000 Swiss citizens live in other parts of the world: 16% in North America, 7% in Asia, 7% in Latin America and the Caribbean, 4% in Oceania and 2% in Africa. The 85 900 Swiss citizens residing in the United States make up the largest community of Swiss abroad outside Europe. The second and third-largest communities are in Canada and Australia with 42 000 and 27 000 Swiss citizens respectively.
More than 50 000 Swiss citizens reside in Haute-Savoie
Most of the Swiss citizens living in neighbouring countries (13% or 50 800 people) reside in the French department of Haute-Savoie. Swiss citizens make up 6% of the total population of this department (Eurostat data). Other French border regions, including Ain (18 100 people), Haut-Rhin (17 000) and Doubs (14 500) also have sizeable Swiss communities. Many Swiss citizens also settle in certain large cities in neighbouring countries. Around 3% (11 800) of Swiss citizens who reside in a neighbouring country live in Paris.
In Germany, 8 000 Swiss citizens live in Berlin, 2% of all Swiss citizens who reside in a neighbouring country. German regions close to the Swiss border, such as Lörrach (5 100), Waldshut (4 300) and Constance (3 000), are also popular places to live. Further afield, sizeable Swiss communities are found in large cities such as Munich (4 400) or Hamburg (3 100).
In Italy, the largest Swiss community lives in the Province of Milan (6 800 people, or around 2% of all Swiss citizens living in neighbouring countries). Border provinces such as Como (4 400) and Varese (3 900) also attract many Swiss citizens, as does Rome (3 700). The province of Lecce, at the southern tip of the country, also has 1 300 Swiss residents.
Just over one percent (4 500) of Swiss citizens living in neighbouring countries live in Vienna. Around 3 700 live in the Austrian Rheintal-Bodenseegebiet, which is close to Switzerland. The regions around Innsbruck (800), Salzburg (800) and Graz (700) also have several hundred Swiss citizens. Around 1% (5 600) of the Swiss citizens living in a neighbouring country reside in Liechtenstein.
This press release and further information on the topic can be found on the FSO website.