Address change within Canton Vaud (move between communes)

Last checked: 5 Oct 2026. Unofficial student guide, not EPFL or government advice: confirm on the linked official pages before you act. Unfamiliar abbreviation? See the Glossary.

Companion to Permit & commune registration. Orientation only, not immigration advice. Confirm every step with your communes’ Contrôle des habitants / Office de la population and, when needed, Service de la population (SPOP).

What this page is for

You already live in Canton Vaud with a student permit, and you are moving to another Vaud commune (or changing address inside the same commune) while staying in Switzerland.

First registration, visa, and “usually required documents” for arrivals from abroad stay on Permit & commune. Full leave / temporary absence abroad stay on Leaving / deregister.

Canton baseline (deadlines)

Vaud’s Loi sur le contrôle des habitants (LCH) and the canton’s Changement d'adresse page set the frame; your commune page can be stricter or worded differently.

Sources: État de Vaud, Changement d'adresse · LCH (lexfind) · EPFL, Residence permit · Lausanne, changement d'adresse · Lausanne, départ

Departure fees: ordinary intra-Switzerland departure announcement on Chavannes, Saint-Sulpice, Lausanne and Epalinges pages/forms prints no CHF for the announcement itself. Saint-Sulpice and Epalinges quote CHF 15 only for a departure attestation when leaving abroad (not for a Vaud-to-Vaud move). Confirm your old commune before move-out day for exact “sans délai” / same-day wording.

To verify: exact departure “sans délai” / same-day wording on your old commune’s form (LCH: sans délai; Lausanne: immédiat; Saint-Sulpice departure page: sans délai). Ordinary intra-CH departure announcement: no CHF found on checked forms/pages; abroad-attestation CHF 15 is a different product.

Step-by-step (move between two Vaud communes)

1. Tell the old commune you are leaving (date + full new address). Use eDéménagement if eligible, or the commune’s departure form / counter / contact channel.
2. Tell the new commune you have arrived within that commune’s deadline (table above). Bring what that commune lists for “arrival from a Vaud commune” (not the first-arrival-from-abroad pack).
3. Do not double-file the same move online and at the counter unless the commune asks (vd.ch eDéménagement warning: longer processing and possible extra cost).
4. Keep a copy/PDF of what you filed and any domicile attestation the new commune issues.

Typical documents named on EPFL-area “arrival from a Vaud commune” lists (confirm live):

• Commune arrival / change-of-address form (or eDéménagement online path)
• Valid passport or (EU/EFTA) national ID
• Current permit card
• Recent EPFL enrolment attestation when the commune asks (Ecublens students page)
• Lease, or landlord / logeur attestation if you have no lease in your name
• Payment of the commune / foreigners fee they quote

Examples of published “arrival from a Vaud commune” student fees (not a Vaud-wide tariff):

Sources: Ecublens, Étudiants · Chavannes-près-Renens, Arrivée / Départ · Saint-Sulpice, Étudiants · Epalinges, Arrivée · Renens, Annonce d’arrivée ou de départ · Lausanne, étudiants formalités

Re-check your destination commune the week you move; other EPFL-area communes may differ.

To verify: live CHF for any other destination commune not listed in the fee table above.

Cantonal fee for a foreigner moving within Vaud: recording an address change in the federal migration register, with no new permit card, costs up to CHF 30; Vaud applies the federal maximum and passes CHF 10 of it to the commune (Oem-LEI art. 8 para. 1 let. j · BLV 142.11.1 art. 5 and 10). To verify: whether Renens adds any other item under “other cantonal taxes” (its hub names them without amounts).

Same commune (still announce)

If you only change street / building / flat inside the same commune, LCH art. 5 still requires an announcement within 8 days (Lausanne: 14 days on its change-of-address page). Renens has a dedicated accordion for “changement d’adresse dans la commune”. Lausanne offers eDéménagement, contact form, or post for same-commune moves.

This is not a departure for abroad and not a canton change.

eDéménagement (online)

Cantonal online change of principal residence when the departure commune (and ideally the arrival commune) has joined the system.

• If both communes participate: often one online file covers departure + arrival.
• If only the departure commune participates: announce departure online, then finish arrival at the new commune’s counter.
• Do not file twice (online + in person) unless asked.

Who may use it (vd.ch prestation): Swiss nationals; EU/EFTA with B/C/Ci/L for a cantonal or intercantonal move; third-country holders with B/C/Ci/L only for a move within Vaud (cantonal), not to another canton.

Who may not: arrivals from / departures to abroad; third-country intercantonal moves; holders of F/N/S or FDFA cards; minors alone; people whose permit must be renewed within 3 months (go to the arrival commune counter for a combined tariff; no retroactive refund); people on social assistance (arrival commune counter); other exclusions on the prestation page.

EPFL-area communes listed as participating on the live vd.ch pages include Ecublens, Renens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Saint-Sulpice, Lausanne, Epalinges (list grows; re-check before you click).

Online form typically asks for personal data, AVS number (NAVS13), lease data for EGID/EWID, logeur attestation for sublet/colocation, and electronic payment (card / PostFinance / TWINT). The prestation page quotes a processing window of 3–10 days from the effective arrival date (that is processing time, not your legal announcement deadline).

Sources: vd.ch eDéménagement prestation · vd.ch Changement d'adresse

Permit card vs register address

Update the residents’ register at the commune. That is the step that makes SPOP, the new commune, and mail routing know where you live.

• SEM (EU/EFTA FAQ, geographic mobility): EU/EFTA L/B/C authorisations are valid throughout Switzerland. You do not need a new authorisation when you move within a canton or within a commune, but the new address must be recorded (present your title when you announce arrival). The same rules apply to a move inside a canton or commune.
• Plastic credit-card titles (Vaud / SPOP): since the card reform, the home address is no longer printed on the permit card (SPOP directive to communes, May 2021: “L'adresse de domicile n'est plus mentionnée sur le permis”). The Vaud FAQ field list for the UE/AELE card likewise has no address line. So an intra-Vaud address change is usually a commune register update, not an automatic new plastic card.
• Cards are still mailed to your domicile (registered mail). Keep the address current so renewals, avis, and any new card can arrive. See B-permit renewal only if your card is near expiry (do not restart a full renewal checklist here).
• Moving to another canton is a different track (EU/EFTA: announce arrival; third-country B: often prior SPOP authorisation). Not covered as a how-to on this page.
• Commune voting rights (foreigners): a move between Vaud communes keeps your domicile in the canton continuous, which is what the 3-year rule looks at. Keep your registration current so the right commune has your file: see Voting as a foreigner in Vaud.
• Moving with a dog: announce the dog to the new commune as well (a move within Lausanne needs no separate dog notice): see Dogs in Vaud.

Sources: SEM FAQ, Changement de poste ou de domicile · Vaud FAQ titres format carte · SPOP directive PA19 (PDF via UCV) · vd.ch biométrie hub

Permit-related fee when no prolongation is due (examples printed live): Epalinges lists a separate permit “frais” (CHF 30 adult / 20 child UE/AELE; CHF 30 third-country) on top of the CHF 30 inscription for arrival from a Vaud commune. Ecublens, Chavannes-près-Renens and Saint-Sulpice students pages publish a single Vaud-arrival line without prolongation (CHF 50 / 50 / 45). SPOP directive PA19 (May 2021) cut the UE/AELE address-change émolument to Frs 30 / Frs 20 child. Renens still names “other cantonal taxes” without a CHF figure.

To verify: whether any remaining paper UE/AELE titles (valid until expiry; not exchanged for cards) still get a wet address stamp at the commune.

What else to update (after the commune)

Pointers only. Confirm each with the issuer. This is not the LAMal subside page.

Leaving Switzerland (cancel LAMal, definitive commune departure, abroad Post forwarding) is on Leaving / deregister, not here.

Quick checklist

• Confirm you are staying in Vaud (not leaving Switzerland, not changing canton without the right SPOP path).
• Announce departure to the old commune without delay; announce arrival to the new one within 8 or 14 days as that commune publishes.
• Prefer eDéménagement when eligible; otherwise counter / contact / post. Do not double-file.
• Bring ID, permit, lease or logeur attestation, enrolment if asked; pay only the fee printed or quoted by that commune.
• Update Post, LAMal insurer, electricity supplier, EPFL address, bank; optional Post third-party notify.
• Tell the landlord / agency under the lease (no scam/deposit content on this page).

Still unclear

The four open points are marked with the inline verify badges above (departure wording; other-commune CHF; Renens cantonal taxes; paper-title stamp).

Unofficial student project. Always re-check both communes and SPOP before you move.