Carved chalets and boutiques on the Promenade, Gstaad
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Living in the Alps

The agencies, private banks, schools and rules for those who make a home in the Alps.

Last checked October 2026.

Carved chalets and boutiques on the Promenade, GstaadPhotograph: Pexels

Prime real estate

Switzerland limits sales to foreigners. Under the federal law known as Lex Koller, a foreign national living outside Switzerland needs a cantonal permit to buy a home. Holiday homes may be bought only in designated tourist municipalities, under an annual quota (1,500 units nationwide), with a cap of 200 square metres of net living space and 1,000 square metres of land, and only one holiday home per person; it may be let only on a temporary basis. EU and EFTA citizens living in Switzerland, and other foreigners holding a C (settlement) permit, buy on the same terms as Swiss citizens. Separately, the Second Homes Act stops new second homes being built in any municipality where more than 20 per cent of homes are already second homes, which covers most of the leading ski resorts; this applies to Swiss and foreign buyers alike.

  • BARNESMegève (France)

    The international luxury agency runs a Megève office on Route Edmond de Rothschild, with sister offices in Chamonix, Saint-Gervais and the Aravis, covering chalets and apartments around Mont Blanc. Visit website ↗

  • John TaylorMegève (France)

    A high-end property agency with an office on Route Nationale in Megève handling chalets and apartments for French and international buyers. Visit website ↗

  • Knight FrankFrench and Swiss Alps (France, Switzerland)

    The London firm's annual Ski Property Report tracks prime prices across 24 resorts in France and Switzerland, and it has dedicated specialists for the French Alps and for Switzerland and Austria. Visit website ↗

  • SavillsVerbier (Switzerland)

    Savills Ski runs six branded offices and two associates across the Alps; its Verbier office opened in 2018 and was joined by a rentals and property-management arm in 2024. Visit website ↗

Private banks

Boarding schools

  • Institut Le RoseyRolle and Gstaad (Switzerland)

    Founded in 1880 for ages 8 to 18; the whole school moves from its main campus at Rolle on Lake Geneva to its Gstaad campus each winter, from January to March. Visit website ↗

  • Aiglon CollegeVillars (Switzerland)

    A co-educational boarding school founded in 1949 above Villars-sur-Ollon for ages 9 to 18, teaching the International Baccalaureate, with expeditions and skiing part of every pupil's programme. Visit website ↗

  • Collège Alpin International Beau SoleilVillars (Switzerland)

    Founded in 1910 at 1,350 metres in Villars-sur-Ollon, it teaches the International Baccalaureate to about 300 boarders aged 11 to 18 from some 50 countries. Visit website ↗

  • Leysin American SchoolLeysin (Switzerland)

    A family-owned, co-educational boarding school founded in 1960 in the Vaud Alps, with about 300 students aged roughly 12 to 18 from over 60 nationalities. Visit website ↗

  • Collège du LémanVersoix, Geneva (Switzerland)

    Founded in 1960 on the shore of Lake Geneva in the canton of Geneva, a day and boarding school for ages 2 to 20, now part of Nord Anglia Education. Visit website ↗

  • Lyceum Alpinum ZuozZuoz (Switzerland)

    Founded in 1904 at 1,750 metres in the Engadin near St. Moritz, with about 300 students, some 220 of them boarders from more than 30 countries. Visit website ↗

Residency and tax

  • Lump-sum taxation (Switzerland)

    Foreign nationals who move to Switzerland and do no paid work there may be taxed on their living expenses instead of their worldwide income and wealth. For the federal tax the base is at least CHF 435,000 for 2026 (CHF 400,000 in the law, indexed for inflation) and at least seven times the annual rent or rental value of the home; each canton sets its own minimum, often higher. Zurich, Schaffhausen, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft and Appenzell Ausserrhoden have abolished it; it remains available in Alpine and lake cantons including Vaud, Valais, Graubünden, Ticino and Geneva. Visit website ↗

  • Flat tax for new residents (Italy)

    People who move their tax residence to Italy can pay a fixed annual substitute tax on all foreign income instead of ordinary income tax. For those who move from 2026 it is €300,000 a year, plus €50,000 for each family member included. Earlier entrants keep the tier in force when they arrived: €100,000 for those who moved before August 2024, and €200,000 for those who moved from then to the end of 2025, with €25,000 for each family member under both. Visit website ↗

  • Settlement permit for people of independent means (Austria)

    Austria has no lump-sum tax for the wealthy; non-EU nationals with independent means can apply for a settlement permit that bars any paid work. It requires a regular monthly income of twice the standard reference rate (about €2,620 a month for a single person at the 2026 rate), is usually issued for 12 months, and depends on a limited annual quota allotted first come, first served. Visit website ↗

That makes 20 entries in all.

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