1. Persons residing in Switzerland

1.1 Holders of a B, C, D, E or P-type "carte de légitimation"

For holders of a B, C, D, E or P-type "carte de légitimation" issued by the Swiss Federal Department for Foreign Affairs (DFAE), current non-Swiss national driving licences are valid in Switzerland.

If they so wish, holders of such driving licences may apply to the relevant road licensing authority in the canton where they live (for Geneva: Office cantonal des véhicules (OCV), +41 22 388 30 30, vehicules@etat.ge.ch ; for Vaud: Service des Automobiles et de la Navigation (SAN), +41 21 316 82 10) to exchange their driving licence for an equivalent Swiss licence. They must pass a test if they are not citizens of countries with which Switzerland has concluded an agreement on this matter, e.g. Member States of the European Union, the United States and Japan. Beware : in case of failure to the test, the foreign driving license is automatically cancelled and withdrawn and a Swiss driving license must be obtained under the regular procedure. Moreover, such an exchange is not possible if the driving licence was issued in a foreign country during a stay there of less than six months while the person concerned was officially resident in Switzerland, or if the foreign driving license was obtained less than one year before taking up residence in Switzerland. In such cases, a “learner-driver” permit (permis d'élève-conducteur), respectively a "probation license" (permis à l'essai) may be requested.

Holders of driving licences issued in a language other than one of Switzerland’s four official languages (French, German, Italian, Romansh) or English are recommended to obtain an international driving licence from the relevant road licensing authority in the canton where they live.

Drivers who cease to hold a B, C, D, E or P-type "carte de légitimation" must obtain a Swiss driving licence within 4 (Vaud) to 6 (Geneva) months following the end of their functions.

1.2 Holders of other documents

Persons who do not hold a B, C, D, E or P-type "carte de légitimation" are not exempted from the exchange and must proceed to it within twelve months following their arrival in Switzerland.

For further information, please contact the relevant road licensing authority in the canton where you live (see Paragraph 1.1 above).

2. Persons residing outside Switzerland

For those who do not live in Switzerland but drive there on an occasional basis, current national or international driving licences are valid in Switzerland. Further information can be obtained from the Swiss consulates abroad (see the DFAE website: https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home/representations-and-travel-advice…).

Relations with the Host States Service
www.cern.ch/relations
relations.secretariat@cern.ch
Tel. 72848