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Canton Bern
Living in Biel/Bienne as an expat
3 providers in and around Biel/Bienne, by category and language. Every listing is checked by hand.
In short
Biel/Bienne is a town of 57,462 people in the canton of Bern, officially bilingual in German and French since 1996. At the end of 2025, 35.2% of residents had foreign citizenship. EU/EFTA citizens moving from abroad register with the city's migration office within 14 days, and direct trains reach Bern in 26 minutes.
More services nearby: living in Bern.
Biel/Bienne in figures
Checked
- Residents
- 57,462
- permanent resident population
- 31 Dec 2025 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO), STATPOP (opens in a new tab)
- Foreign residents
- 35.2%
- 20,244 residents without Swiss citizenship
- 31 Dec 2025 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO), STATPOP (opens in a new tab)
- Communal tax multiplier
- 1.63
- Steueranlage, times the simple tax (canton: 2.975)
- 2026 · Finanzverwaltung des Kantons Bern (opens in a new tab)
- Vacancy rate
- 1.42%
- 464 empty homes (Switzerland: 0.84%)
- 1 June 2026 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO) (opens in a new tab)
- Monthly pass, zones 300/301
- CHF 78
- Libero fare network, adult, 2nd class
- 2026 · Libero Tarifverbund (opens in a new tab)
- Registration deadline
- 14 days
- after arrival, at the city's migration office
- 2026 · Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne (opens in a new tab)
Services in Biel/Bienne
3 providers in 3 categories
Relocation agencies
Immigration & permits
Movers & storage
Doctors & dentists
- Dentists (1)
Tax & finance
Insurance advisors
Lawyers & notaries
Schools & childcare
Language schools
- French (1)
How do you register when you move to Biel/Bienne?
Foreign nationals register with the city's migration office (Dienststelle Migration), Neuengasse 28, within 14 days. EU/EFTA citizens arriving from abroad send the signed registration form and the listed documents by post. EU/EFTA citizens already living in Switzerland can also register online through eUmzugCH. Swiss citizens use the residents' office at the same address.
The city asks EU/EFTA citizens to register within 14 days, with the registration form for foreign nationals, the list of enclosures and, for people without a job, a form on sufficient financial means. The forms go to the population department's migration office (Abteilung Bevölkerung, Dienststelle Migration), Neuengasse 28, 2501 Biel(biel-bienne.ch, checked ).
Swiss citizens register with the residents' office (Einwohnerkontrolle), also at Neuengasse 28(biel-bienne.ch, checked ). The general steps are in registering at your commune and the permit types in Swiss permits B, L and C.
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What is Biel/Bienne like to live in?
Biel/Bienne has had German and French as equal official languages since 9 June 1996, when bilingualism was written into the city's constitution. It had 57,462 residents at the end of 2025. The city names watchmaking and precision industry as its main sectors, and direct trains reach Bern in 26 minutes.
Bilingualism has been part of the city's constitution (Stadtordnung) since 9 June 1996, with French and German as equal official languages. The city administration holds the bilingualism label of the Forum for Bilingualism, renewed on 9 June 2026(biel-bienne.ch, checked ). From kindergarten to upper secondary school there are projects for bilingual classes(biel-bienne.ch, checked ).
The city lists the watch industry, with Omega, Rolex and Swatch, and small and medium-sized firms in precision fields such as microtechnology; Rolex has concentrated all its movement production in Biel since 2012(biel-bienne.ch, checked ). On 1 June 2026, 464 homes stood empty, a vacancy rate of 1.42% against 0.84% for Switzerland(FSO vacancy count, checked ). Search services are listed under home search in Biel/Bienne, and course providers under language schools in Biel/Bienne.
Direct IR trains reach Bern in 26 minutes and the S-Bahn in 36 (October 2026 timetable)(Swiss timetable, checked ); the Bern page covers the capital region. The Libero pass for zones 300 and 301 is valid without restriction in both zones and costs CHF 78 a month or CHF 702 a year for an adult in 2nd class(Libero, checked ).
For 2026, the communal tax multiplier (Steueranlage) is 1.63 times the simple tax, and the canton's is 2.975(FIN Bern, checked ).
What else do people ask about living in Biel/Bienne?
When do I have to register in Biel/Bienne?
Within 14 days of arriving. Foreign nationals register with the city's migration office at Neuengasse 28, Swiss citizens with the residents' office at the same address.
Is Biel/Bienne German- or French-speaking?
Both. German and French have been equal official languages of the city since 9 June 1996.
How long is the train from Biel/Bienne to Bern?
26 minutes on the direct IR train and 36 minutes on the S-Bahn, according to the October 2026 timetable.
Sources
Last checked by the expat-services.ch editorial team
- Federal Statistical Office (FSO), STATPOP Permanent and non permanent resident population by year, canton, district, commune, population type, citizenship (category), sex and age (opens in a new tab)
- Federal Statistical Office (FSO) Leer stehende Wohnungen am 1. Juni, in den Gemeinden mit mehr als 5000 Einwohnern (opens in a new tab)
- Finanzverwaltung des Kantons Bern Steueranlagen der Gemeinden und Steuersätze der Kirchgemeinden für 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Libero Tarifverbund Libero Abo für Biel: Infos & Preise (opens in a new tab)
- Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne Biel: Zuzug von EU-/EFTA-Staatsangehörigen (opens in a new tab)
- Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne Zuzug, Umzug, Wegzug (opens in a new tab)
- Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne Gelebte Zweisprachigkeit in Biel (opens in a new tab)
- Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne Stadtporträt: Unvergleichliches Biel (opens in a new tab)
- Stadt Biel / Ville de Bienne Wirtschaftsstandort (opens in a new tab)
- transport.opendata.ch (Swiss public transport timetable) Connections Biel/Bienne to Bern, 22 Oct 2026 from 08:00 (opens in a new tab)
Guides for this
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Checklist
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