Tag Archives: Personal finance

Swiss Rail plans to test a new smartphone app that will charge you when you arrive. The app will automatically search for the cheapest fare once the journey has ended, promising users the lowest possible fare. David Schweizer © SBB CFF FFS The new app, which will be added to Mobile Preview, will be tested in 2018. Two companies, Lezzgo and Fairtiq, already offer a similar service. Their apps track your phone and require you to check in and check out when you reach your final destination. If...

Swiss Rail plans to test a new smartphone app that will charge you when you arrive. The app will automatically search for the cheapest fare once the journey has ended, promising users the lowest possible fare. David Schweizer © SBB CFF FFS The new app, which will be added to Mobile Preview, will be tested in 2018. Two companies, Lezzgo and Fairtiq, already offer a similar service. Their apps track your phone and require you to check in and check out when you reach your final destination. If...

The Swiss government announced plans to reduce the discounts offered to those willing to risk paying the first chunk of their annual medical bills. It also plans to adjust deductibles in line with shifts in medical costs. This will be discussed until 19 October 2017. © Scanrail | Dreamstime.com Switzerland’s compulsory basic health insurance can be bought from a range of private insurance companies, however these companies must work within rules set by the government, who set both the size of...

Few who have visited or lived in Switzerland will be particularly surprised to hear that Switzerland is the most expensive place in Europe. However the price differences are quite eye opening. The recently published Eurostat price level study ranks Switzerland as the most expensive overall, well ahead of second and third placed Iceland and Norway. © Ginasanders | Dreamstime.com Overall Switzerland is 61% more costly than the EU average. Second placed Iceland is 47% and Norway 40% above the EU...

Few who have visited or lived in Switzerland will be particularly surprised to hear that Switzerland is the most expensive place in Europe. However the price differences are quite eye opening. The recently published Eurostat price level study ranks Switzerland as the most expensive overall, well ahead of second and third placed Iceland and Norway. © Ginasanders | Dreamstime.com Overall Switzerland is 61% more costly than the EU average. Second placed Iceland is 47% and Norway 40% above the EU...

From 15 June 2017, there are no EU roaming charges for most of those with a mobile phone on an EU contract. The new rules compelling operators to axe the charges, announced in September last year, are now in force. Countries outside the EU, but within the European Economic Area (EEA), including Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland’s neighbour Liechtenstein, are included, but Switzerland isn’t. While technically EEA countries, which include Liechtenstein, Norway, the Channel Islands, the Isle of...

From 15 June 2017, there are no EU roaming charges for most of those with a mobile phone on an EU contract. The new rules compelling operators to axe the charges, announced in September last year, are now in force. Countries outside the EU, but within the European Economic Area (EEA), including Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland’s neighbour Liechtenstein, are included, but Switzerland isn’t. While technically EEA countries, which include Liechtenstein, Norway, the Channel Islands, the Isle of...

Swiss pensions have three parts. The first is a standard payment based on the number of years you have paid social security taxes (AVS / AHV). The second (2nd pillar) is based on a personal pot of money built up from compulsory salary deductions. And the third is a personal pot derived from optional tax deductible savings, known as a 3rd pillar. All three are designed to come together to provide enough income in...

Yesterday, the price comparison website Verivox published a study comparing mobile phone costs across 13 european countries. On most measures Switzerland was the most expensive, and by a wide margin. A plan including 100 minutes of talk and 1 Go (gigaoctet1) of data per month costs an average of CHF 25 per month in Switzerland. The same thing was significantly cheaper in Spain (CHF 20.70), Denmark (CHF 19.30), France...

Every three months the rate of interest used to set Swiss rents is reviewed. If it goes down some renters have the right to request a decrease in rent. This time it dropped 0.25% to 1.50%. - Click to enlarge The interest rate used to set the reference rate was the average rate on Swiss mortgages at 31 March 2017 of 1.61% which rounds to 1.50% under the rounding rules, which round to the nearest quarter of a...