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Canton Fribourg
Living in Fribourg as an expat
4 providers in and around Fribourg, by category and language. Every listing is checked by hand.
In short
Fribourg is the capital of the canton of Fribourg, which has two official languages, French and German. The city had 39,599 residents at the end of 2025, 40.3% of them foreign nationals. Newcomers from abroad declare their arrival to the cantonal migration office and register with the commune within 14 days; Bern is 23 minutes away by train.
More services nearby: living in Bern.
Fribourg in figures
Checked
- Residents
- 39,599
- permanent resident population
- 31 Dec 2025 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO), STATPOP (opens in a new tab)
- Foreign residents
- 40.3%
- 15,952 residents without Swiss citizenship
- 31 Dec 2025 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO), STATPOP (opens in a new tab)
- Communal tax rate
- 80%
- income and wealth, in % of the cantonal base tax
- 2026 · Federal Tax Administration (ESTV) (opens in a new tab)
- Vacancy rate
- 0.95%
- 214 empty homes (Switzerland: 0.84%)
- 1 June 2026 · Federal Statistical Office (FSO) (opens in a new tab)
- Monthly pass, zone 10
- CHF 71
- Frimobil fare network, adult, 2nd class, one zone
- 2026, until 12 Dec · Frimobil, Communauté tarifaire fribourgeoise (opens in a new tab)
- Registration deadline
- 14 days
- after arrival, cantonal law on residents' control
- 2026 · État de Fribourg, Recueil systématique (opens in a new tab)
Services in Fribourg
4 providers in 4 categories
Relocation agencies
- Destination services (1)
- Orientation tours (1)
- Settling-in support (2)
Immigration & permits
- Permit applications (1)
Movers & storage
Doctors & dentists
Tax & finance
Insurance advisors
Lawyers & notaries
Schools & childcare
Language schools
- French (1)
Featured in Fribourg
Premium listings
ReloNest
Destination services · FribourgReloNest is a Zurich-based relocation company, founded in 2023, that provides home search, school search, permits and settling-in help through consultants in nine Swiss cities.
How do you register when you move to Fribourg?
Foreign nationals arriving from abroad or from another canton declare their arrival to the cantonal Service de la population et des migrants (SPoMi). EU/EFTA citizens send the form and documents by post or email, then register in person with the City of Fribourg's residents' office within 14 days, the deadline set by cantonal law.
Fribourg's law on residents' control sets a deadline of 14 days after arrival, both for people who settle and for people who stay longer than three months. Foreign nationals arriving from abroad or from another canton announce themselves to the cantonal service for population and migration, which passes their data to the commune(LCH Art. 5 and 6, checked ).
For EU/EFTA citizens, the Europe sector of SPoMi (Route d'Englisberg 11, 1763 Granges-Paccot) receives the arrival declaration and permit application with a passport photo, a copy of the passport or identity card and proof of the purpose of the stay, such as an employment contract stating the start date, duration and workload. At the commune, the residents' office then asks for the passport or identity card, a health insurance confirmation for each family member, the AHV card if there is one, and the lease(fr.ch, checked ). The general steps are in registering at your commune, the permit types in Swiss permits B, L and C and insurance in Swiss health insurance for expats.
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What is Fribourg like to live in?
Fribourg is the capital of a canton whose official languages are French and German. Each commune's official language is French or German, and both can be official where a significant native language minority lives. The city had 39,599 residents at the end of 2025, and direct trains reach Bern in 23 minutes.
The cantonal constitution makes French and German the official languages of the canton and applies them by territory: each commune's official language is French or German, and communes with a significant native language minority may use both(Cst. FR Art. 6, checked ). The University of Fribourg describes Fribourg as a bilingual city; it teaches in French, German or both, with some courses in English, to about 10,000 students(unifr.ch, checked ). The railway station is signed Fribourg/Freiburg(Swiss timetable, checked ).
On 1 June 2026, 214 homes stood empty, a vacancy rate of 0.95% against 0.84% for Switzerland(FSO vacancy count, checked ). Search services are listed under apartment search in Fribourg, and course providers under language schools in Fribourg.
Direct IC and IR trains reach Bern in 23 minutes, the S-Bahn in 32 (October 2026 timetable)(Swiss timetable, checked ); the Bern page covers the capital region. City buses belong to the Frimobil fare network, where zone 10 covers Fribourg(Frimobil, checked ). A monthly adult pass for one zone costs CHF 71 in 2nd class, at prices valid until 12 December 2026(Frimobil, checked ).
For 2026, the city's tax rate on income and wealth is 80% of the cantonal base tax, and the canton's rate on income is 96%(ESTV, checked ).
What else do people ask about living in Fribourg?
When do I have to register in Fribourg?
Within 14 days of arriving. Foreign nationals first declare their arrival to the cantonal migration service (SPoMi), then register in person with the commune.
Which languages are official in Fribourg?
French and German are the official languages of the canton. Each commune uses French or German, and communes with a significant native language minority may use both.
How long is the train from Fribourg to Bern?
23 minutes on direct IC and IR trains and 32 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) Logements vacants au 1er juin, dans les communes de plus de 5000 habitants (opens in a new tab)
- Federal Tax Administration (ESTV) Steuerfüsse in den Kantonshauptorten 2026, natürliche Personen (opens in a new tab)
- Frimobil, Communauté tarifaire fribourgeoise Abonnement adulte de bus et train Fribourg · Frimobil (opens in a new tab)
- Frimobil, Communauté tarifaire fribourgeoise Tarifs / Preise (grille tarifaire Frimobil) (opens in a new tab)
- État de Fribourg, Recueil systématique Loi sur le contrôle des habitants (LCH), RSF 114.21.1 (opens in a new tab)
- État de Fribourg, Service de la population et des migrants Si j'arrive dans le canton de Fribourg pour un séjour de plus de 3 mois (depuis l'étranger ou un autre canton) et si je suis ressortissant UE/AELE (opens in a new tab)
- État de Fribourg, Recueil systématique Constitution du canton de Fribourg, RSF 10.1 (opens in a new tab)
- University of Fribourg About us | University of Fribourg (opens in a new tab)
- transport.opendata.ch (Swiss public transport timetable) Connections Fribourg to Bern, 22 Oct 2026 from 08:00 (opens in a new tab)
Guides for this
Moving to Fribourg
The first steps, deadlines and offices anywhere in Switzerland.
Checklist
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Register within 14 days, get health insurance within 3 months, then deposit, tax at source and Serafe: a sourced checklist for your first 90 days.
How it works
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How to get a Swiss B permit: EU/EFTA and non-EU rules, steps, documents, and the fees and processing times in seven cantons, from the migration offices.
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