Are you thinking of expanding your business in or to Europe? The Greater Zurich Area in Switzerland is a region you will want to have a closer look at:

Greater Zurich Area is the name of the economic region of Zurich in Switzerland which is made up of several Cantons (states). At its center lie the city of Zurich – Switzerland’s largest city – and the international airport of Kloten which is Switzerland’s most important and best connected. The Greater Zurich Area covers a region around one-third the size of the whole of Switzerland and is home to 45% of its inhabitants (3.2 million). 1.6 million are employed in approximately 140,000 companies, producing an aggregated national income totaling CHF 170 billion. In what is a cosmopolitan, multicultural region where 20% of the community are foreign nationals, most people are able to speak at least one foreign language and frequently use English in their day-to-day work.

What makes our region attractive:

Taxation levels that are amongst the most attractive in the world. Paying taxes in the Greater Zurich Area is less painful than in most other regions and European countries. Swiss taxation rates for companies and natural persons are among the lowest in Europe, ranging from 8 to 31% for companies and 7 to 23% for individuals. The Swiss taxation system is unique insofar as federal tax (state tax) only makes up 8.5% of the total tax burden. The largest component of taxes is charged by the cantons and municipalities, leading to fierce tax competition.

Quality workforce with an upper management that has a very high international experience level + unique language skills and cultural understanding

Switzerland is famous for its strong work ethic and the high productivity of its workforce. There are virtually no strikes and, at around 3%, the unemployment rate is extremely low by international standards. Swiss managers have extensive international business experience. A multicultural approach and the foreign language capabilities of a large proportion of the Swiss population means that human resources in the Swiss labor pool are highly skilled. Labor costs are roughly the same as in the US and Japan.

Acknowledged test market. As a small country that is home to four different languages and a wide variety of customer attitudes, Switzerland reflects the heterogeneity of Europe superbly. In the Greater Zurich Area you will find a representative population, a multicultural environment, tough demands on the quality of products and services, innovative local companies and openness towards new offerings. An efficient infrastructure facilitates the introduction of your products and services to the market.

Switzerland – particularly the Greater Zurich Area – has excellent financial services and is one of the world’s leading banking and stock exchange locations. Of global private assets invested abroad, almost 30% is managed by Swiss banks. The Swiss stock exchange – which is located in Zurich – (SWX Swiss Exchange) plays an important role in Europe and is one of the world’s technologically leading stock exchanges.

Zurich has been selected as the best city to live in by this year’s Mercer report on quality of living in over 215 cities. Zurich has consistently been rated the number one city in the last three years as a region with an outstanding quality of living. As far as cultural activities and diversity is concerned our region has an amazing amount of options.

The best and most international connections of all Swiss airports are to be found at Kloten – Zurich’s International Airport. It is currently possible to fly to Zurich from around 200 cities in 80 different countries. Three-quarters of Swiss air freight is processed via Zurich.

Recruiting options in the Greater Zurich Area are the best in Switzerland – because of our regions emphasis on the service sector (banks / IT) and the fact that the largest part of the Swiss workforce lives and works in our region.

Quality International and bilingual schools are available throughout our region. There is a list of the great variety of choices on our website.

Impressive number of Bio- and Medical Technology companies. With around 300 companies in this industry the Greater Zurich Area has one of the largest clusters of Bio- and Medical Technology companies in Europe.

High Tech is an important Industry in our region. Swiss high-tech companies have their strengths in micro- and nanotechnology with a strong focus on sensors, photonics and applications of materials.

The IT / New Media capital of our country is the Greater Zurich Area with well over half of all IT / New Media companies of Switzerland (Switzerland has about 4’000) located in our region.

On our website you can find online databases for all three mentioned industries!

Our offices in San Francisco are looking forward to your requests. We can help you with various information and contact needs. Since we are a not-for-profit foundation our services are free of charge.

Greater Zurich Area, Inc.
730 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94111
Tel. (415) 912-5909
www.greaterzuricharea.ch