Renting in Switzerland with a B, C, L, G or Ci permit

The permit is your identity document

In Swiss applications the residence permit counts as proof of identity — an additional passport is usually not required. A legible copy, front and back, is generally enough.

If the card has expired or expires soon, attach it anyway — together with the renewal confirmation from the migration office. An expired card on its own raises questions; with the confirmation beside it the matter is closed.

The permit types in brief

• B — residence permit: the most common case for newcomers; entirely ordinary in rental applications.
• C — settlement permit: permanent; agencies read it as the strongest stability signal.
• L — short-term permit: time-limited; attaching the employment contract that explains the duration helps.
• G — cross-border permit: relevant when a weekday residence or a move is planned.
• Ci — for family members of employees of international organisations, with gainful employment.

What agencies actually read from it

The permit is read as a signal of duration and stability — together with income and the debt-register extract. The more clearly those three are evidenced, the less weight the permit category carries alone. An L permit next to a permanent employment contract reads differently from an L permit by itself.

Wohnera asks for your residence status because it belongs in the dossier. It does not ask for your nationality — not because it stays hidden: it is printed on the permit you attach anyway. But it deserves no form field of its own — income, stability and documents should do the talking.