Moving to Dübendorf: Registration, Schools, Tax

Dübendorf lies right next to the city of Zurich – with a lower tax burden than the city, the Lycée Français International and a tram that runs to the airport without changing. If you are moving to Dübendorf from abroad, you will find the key steps here, with the official deadlines and figures.

1. Registration: within 14 days

After arriving, you have 14 days to register – and in any case before your first day at work. In the canton of Zurich, foreign nationals also register with their municipality of residence; in Dübendorf, you do this in person at the Residents' Services (Einwohnerdienste) in the Stadthaus at Usterstrasse 2. Among other documents, the city requires your passport, tenancy agreement and health insurance card, depending on your situation your employment contract, for married couples the marriage certificate or family record book, and for children their birth certificate. The registration fee is CHF 40 per adult; the fees under the law on foreign nationals are charged in addition, according to the cantonal tariff.

You receive the tenancy agreement for our residence at Three Point directly from us as the owner.

2. Residence permit L or B

EU/EFTA citizens with an employment contract of 3 to 12 months receive the L permit; with a contract of one year or more, or of unlimited duration, they receive the B permit, valid for 5 years. The application is made when you register; the Residents' Services forward it to the Migration Office of the canton of Zurich (Migrationsamt). For all other countries, the employer submits the application to the cantonal Office for Economy (Amt für Wirtschaft); one of the requirements is suitable housing.

After registering, you receive an appointment at the Migration Office in Zurich to have your photo and signature taken – and, for people from countries outside the EU/EFTA, also two fingerprints. The permit card is then sent by post to your residential address.

3. Health insurance: within 3 months

Basic health insurance is compulsory and must be taken out within 3 months of registration. If you take it out in time, you are covered retroactively from the date of registration. In the canton of Zurich, the average premium for adults in 2027 is CHF 477.00 a month, just below the Swiss average of CHF 487.60.

Dübendorf, Lake Greifensee and Zurich

4. Schools

All children are entitled to free basic education at the state school. Kindergarten is compulsory and lasts two years: all children who are four years old on 31 July attend from the start of the school year in mid-August. For children with little or no German, Dübendorf primary school (Primarschule Dübendorf) provides introductory lessons in German as a second language (DaZ); after three weeks at the latest, they attend some of their lessons in a mainstream class. Three Point itself is home to the Three Point school building of Dübendorf primary school.

The Lycée Français International de Zurich is 7 minutes' walk from our residence: around 1'150 pupils from maternelle to terminale, the only school in the canton of Zurich accredited by the French Ministry of Education, with a bilingual French–German track up to 5th grade (CM2) and support for children with no French. Admission is decided by a committee according to available places, at the start of each month from April, and from February for the maternelle – register your child early.

Teaching in English is offered by the International School Zurich North in Wallisellen (British curriculum up to A levels) and the Inter-Community School in Zumikon (all three IB programmes). For children of primary-school age at a private school, the Dübendorf primary school administration needs written confirmation from the school.

5. Taxes

Dübendorf is more tax-friendly than the city of Zurich: in the two examples below, you pay around CHF 2'400 to 3'500 less per year. Foreign employees with an L or B permit generally pay tax at source (Quellensteuer): the employer deducts it directly from their salary. From a gross salary of CHF 120'000 a year, a subsequent ordinary assessment follows; the tax already deducted at source is credited. Both examples are above this threshold.

Tax burden 2026 (federal, cantonal and municipal, excluding church tax; calculator of the Swiss Federal Tax Administration):

	Single, CHF 150'000	Married, 2 children, single earner, CHF 250'000
Dübendorf	CHF 21'543	CHF 35'988
City of Zurich	CHF 23'926	CHF 39'534

In both examples, only 24 of the 160 municipalities in the canton of Zurich have a lower tax burden than Dübendorf. The examples are for guidance only; what counts is your personal situation.

6. Everyday costs

Radio and television licence fee (Serafe): CHF 335 per household per year (from 2027: CHF 312)
GA travelcard for public transport: CHF 3'995 a year (2nd class; from 13 December 2026: CHF 4'095)
Health insurance: see point 3

7. Living in Dübendorf

On 1 June 2026, only 0.52% of homes in the canton of Zurich were vacant, and 0.11% in the city of Zurich. At 1.09%, Dübendorf was above that – but even here, only about one home in a hundred is available. According to the canton, demand remains high and supply is not keeping pace. If you search locally, you can view apartments and decide quickly.

For anyone staying 3 months or more, or for good, there is our residence at Three Point: 5.5 rooms and 166 m² on the 33rd floor, unfurnished, available from February 2027 – the Lycée Français International is 7 minutes' walk away, and tram 12 stops 3 minutes' walk from the building. If you are looking for something else, we support you through our network in finding your new home. And if you would rather arrive in a furnished apartment first, you will find our furnished apartments in Zug and Pfäffikon SZ.

Three Point, Dübendorf

Frequently asked questions

Can my company sign the contract?

Yes, on request the contract and invoice can be in your company's name – see Corporate housing.

Is there a parking space?

Yes, a double parking space at extra cost. The apartment also comes with a 14 m² cellar storage room.

How quickly can I get to the airport?

In 10 minutes by car, or in around 25 minutes from your front door by tram 12, without changing.

Useful links

Sources

As of September 2026. State Secretariat for Migration (sem.admin.ch), City of Dübendorf (duebendorf.ch), Dübendorf primary school (schule-duebendorf.ch), Migration Office, Department of Education, Cantonal Tax Office and Office for Statistics and Data of the canton of Zurich (zh.ch), Federal Office of Public Health (bag.admin.ch), Swiss Federal Tax Administration (swisstaxcalculator.estv.admin.ch), Serafe (serafe.ch), Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (wbf.admin.ch), Lycée Français International de Zurich (lfiz.ch), International School Zurich North (iszn.ch), Inter-Community School Zurich (icsz.ch).

Moving to Dübendorf