Just Landed in Liechtenstein? Your First 7 Days

Mobile coverage runs on Swiss networks and is excellent nationwide, including deep in the mountain valleys and up at Malbun. Prepaid SIMs are easy to buy without a local address, though a passport is required at registration under identity rules. Home broadband is fast and widely fibre-based, delivered mainly through FL1 (Telecom Liechtenstein).

Typical cost: A prepaid SIM with data starts around CHF 20-30; monthly contracts with generous data run roughly CHF 30-60, and a home fibre broadband package is typically CHF 50-90 a month.

Liechtenstein uses the Swiss franc and shares Switzerland's banking and payment systems entirely. Card and mobile payments including TWINT are accepted almost everywhere, but cash is still common for small purchases, markets and parking. Prices sit at Swiss levels, meaning high wages but a high cost of living to match.

Opening an account: Open an account at Liechtensteinische Landesbank (LLB), VP Bank or LGT; a residence permit, passport and proof of address are normally required, and some private banks focus on wealth management rather than everyday accounts. Cross-border commuters often keep a Swiss account with PostFinance or a cantonal bank such as St. Galler Kantonalbank instead, which works seamlessly on both sides of the border.

Cash: Cash remains widely used for bakeries, cafes, farm stalls, weekly markets and vending machines, and is essential for parking meters and public toilets. Keep a small stash of CHF coins in your pocket and glovebox at all times.

Tipping: Tipping is not expected as service is included by law; rounding up to the nearest franc or leaving roughly 5-10 percent for genuinely good restaurant service is a normal courtesy rather than an obligation. In taxis you simply round up the fare.

New residents must register their address with their local Gemeinde (municipality) and formalise their residence with the Ausländer- und Passamt in Vaduz. Because immigration is capped and permit-controlled, you generally cannot simply move in without an approved permit and a quota place, so registration is the moment your legal residence becomes official. Bring your passport, rental contract, employment contract and passport photos, and expect to visit both the municipal office and the migration office. EEA and Swiss nationals face lighter requirements than third-country nationals, but everyone must be registered to work, bank and access services.

Deadline: Register promptly on arrival, typically within the deadline stated on your permit approval; compulsory health insurance must be in place within three months of taking up residence.

Where: Your local Gemeinde office plus the Ausländer- und Passamt (Migration and Passport Office) in Vaduz.

The country is small enough to cross in under half an hour by car, and most journeys are a matter of minutes rather than hours. Public transport means the LIEmobil bus network, which links every village along the Rhine valley and connects to Swiss and Austrian train stations at the border. Cycling is popular, safe and genuinely practical given the flat valley floor and short distances, with well-marked bike paths throughout.

From the airport: Liechtenstein has no airport of its own. Most people arrive via Zurich Airport (ZRH): take an SBB train to Sargans or Buchs (SG), which takes roughly 70-90 minutes, then a LIEmobil bus into Vaduz or Schaan, a further 15-30 minutes. St. Gallen-Altenrhein and Friedrichshafen in Germany are smaller regional alternatives, and a taxi from Zurich is possible but expensive at well over CHF 300.

Housing is scarce, expensive and tightly regulated; supply inside Liechtenstein is so limited that a large share of the workforce commutes from Switzerland or Austria instead. Listings appear on Swiss portals such as Homegate, ImmoScout24 and newhome.ch as well as local classifieds, and personal contacts and word of mouth help enormously in a market where good flats never reach the open market.

Typical rent: A one-bedroom flat typically runs CHF 1,300-1,900 a month in the valley communities, more in central Vaduz; family-sized homes are considerably more expensive and genuinely hard to find. Many newcomers rent just over the border in Buchs, Sargans or Feldkirch, where rents are noticeably lower.

Deposit norm: Deposits usually equal one to three months' rent, held in a dedicated blocked tenant deposit account (Mietkautionskonto) in the tenant's name, from which neither party can withdraw without agreement.

Liechtenstein has a compulsory health insurance system tied closely to Switzerland's, and care quality is high. The national hospital is the Landesspital in Vaduz, which handles general and emergency care, while major surgery and specialist treatment are routinely referred to Swiss hospitals in Grabs, St. Gallen or Chur under cross-border arrangements. Waiting times are short by international standards.

How to access it: Choose a family doctor (Hausarzt) and book appointments directly; there is no gatekeeping referral wall for seeing most specialists. For emergencies call 144 for an ambulance or go to the Landesspital in Vaduz, and use a pharmacy (Apotheke) for minor ailments, advice and prescriptions. An emergency medical on-call service covers nights and weekends.

Insurance: Basic health insurance (obligatorische Krankenpflegeversicherung, or OKP) is mandatory for all residents within three months of arrival, from insurers such as CONCORDIA, SWICA or Balzner Krankenkasse. You pay a monthly premium plus an annual deductible (Kostenbeteiligung), and cover is backdated to your registration date, so do not delay signing up.

• Be punctual; arriving on time for appointments, work and even social visits is taken seriously and lateness reads as disrespect.
• Greet with a firm handshake and eye contact, and use the formal 'Sie' with anyone you do not know well until invited to switch to 'du'.
• Respect quiet hours (Ruhezeit) in the evenings, over lunch and on Sundays, when mowing, drilling, loud music and DIY are frowned upon.
• Sort and recycle your rubbish carefully; separating glass, paper, PET, aluminium and compost is expected, and household waste often needs official bags or stickers.
• Greet people with a friendly 'Grüezi' or 'Hoi' when entering small shops, waiting rooms and lifts, and say goodbye on the way out.
• Keep noise down in flats and on public transport, and respect communal laundry-room rota rules, which many buildings take very seriously.
• Learn at least basic German courtesies; even a little effort at the Gemeinde counter or with neighbours goes a long way in a small community.

• This is a very small, close-knit society where word travels fast, so discretion, honesty and good neighbourly conduct genuinely matter to your reputation.
• Sundays and public holidays shut nearly all shops entirely, so stock up on Saturday or you will go without.
• Cross-border differences in VAT, speed limits, motorway vignettes and insurance apply the moment you drive into Austria or Switzerland, so know the rules on each side.
• Duty-free and import limits apply when you bring goods back from cheaper shopping trips across the border, and customs do check.
• The strict quota system means residence and even some jobs are tightly rationed; do not assume you can upgrade a commuter arrangement to residency easily.