Settling-in support in Genève

The resident parking permit, the macaron, costs CHF 200 a year from the Fondation des parkings and lets a resident park in the blue zones of the quarter without a time limit. Without it, blue-zone parking is free for 60 minutes with a disc, Monday to Saturday from 8:00 to 11:30 and 13:30 to 19:00 (City of Geneva, checked 21 Oct 2026).

In the City, household waste goes into sealed bags of the OKS standard and then into containers that the building owner provides. Bins are put out from 19:00 the evening before until 6:00 on collection day, and the “Déchets Genève” app shows the collection days (City of Geneva, checked 21 Oct 2026). Excessive noise is prohibited in residential buildings from 21:00 to 07:00 (ge.ch housing, checked 21 Oct 2026).

The seven municipal libraries lend free of charge to the public (City of Geneva, checked 21 Oct 2026). Billing data for the household radio and TV fee, CHF 335 in 2026, come from the cantonal residents’ register that the OCPM keeps (Serafe, checked 21 Oct 2026) (ge.ch housing, checked 21 Oct 2026). For conflicts with neighbours or a caretaker, the canton points to two mediation bodies (ge.ch housing, checked 21 Oct 2026).

Newcomers announce their arrival to the cantonal population and migration office (OCPM), route de Chancy 88 in Onex (ge.ch OCPM, checked 21 Oct 2026). Most procedures run online through an e-démarches account on ge.ch, and the counters open by appointment only. The deadline after arrival is 14 days (2026) (ge.ch arrival, checked 21 Oct 2026), and a first B or L permit costs an EU/EFTA adult CHF 65 (Canton of Geneva, checked 21 Oct 2026). The steps are in registering at your commune.