First-weeks checklist

Print / PDF: use your browser’s Print dialog (Ctrl/Cmd+P) → Save as PDF. Aimed at one A4 page; hide headers in the dialog if needed.

Same steps as Start here. Deadlines are only those stated by official sources. Unofficial student guide.

Each step links to its page. Deadlines are only those stated by official sources.

Stuck on a word? Open the Glossary (B, L, FRAC, LAMal, SPOP …).

Before you travel

• Housing: apply to student halls and the UNIL-EPFL portal early, and watch for scams. Student-hall deposits are usually 1 to 3 months' rent. → EPFL housing
• Health insurance plan: EU/EFTA/UK students, bring your EHIC. Non-EU students, ask your home insurer to stamp Vaud's equivalence control form before you leave, or plan to take out Swiss LAMal. → LAMal
• Pack your commune documents: passport, passport photos, birth certificate (marriage certificate if applicable), lease or landlord attestation, about CHF 200 cash. EU students also need proof of funding (EPFL states CHF 2,000 per month). → Permit & commune · Foreign certificates: Apostille & translations

Days 1–3

• Get a prepaid Swiss SIM (often only a passport is needed; confirm in-store). → Mobile phone
• Move in, and check which commune your address is in (often not Lausanne). → Permit & commune
• Plan your commute and buy tickets or a pass from official sources. → Getting around

First week (EPFL)

• Matriculation Days: get your CAMIPRO card and validate it at a terminal. Attend Welcome Day (compulsory for new Bachelor's and Master's students). → CAMIPRO · Semester dates
• Log in to IS-Academia and print an enrolment certificate (less than 3 months old). → EPFL first, then commune

Within days of arrival (use your commune’s deadline)

Commune registration deadlines (official pages; follow the commune on your lease):

• Ecublens, Renens, Chavannes-près-Renens: 8 days
• Lausanne: mostly 14 days (Swiss students: 8 days on the student page)
• St-Sulpice: 8 days (commune arrival form + canton; the web page itself gives no number)
• EPFL guidance: 14 days; Vaud canton: 8 days

• Register at your commune's Contrôle des habitants, use your commune’s deadline in the callout above (not a site-wide number). Lausanne: online only. Ask for the attestation, but don't travel abroad on it alone: it is not a travel document. → Permit & commune (checklist / commune sections)

By the Friday of week 2 (18 Sep 2026 / 5 Mar 2027)

• Submit the FRAC and register for every course on IS-Academia. → Semester dates

First month

• Open a bank account with your passport, enrolment proof and the commune attestation. Many Swiss bills then arrive as QR-bills: how to pay them → Bank · Paying bills
• Non-EU students: go to the SPOP biometric-data appointment when the letter arrives. → Permit & commune
• Want French classes? EPFL students take Language Centre modules for free. Next registration windows: 15 Nov to 11 Dec 2026 (winter intensive) / 15 Jan to 23 Feb 2027 (spring); late registrations are not accepted. → Language Centre

Within 3 months of taking up residence

• Take out Swiss LAMal or apply for the Vaud exemption (dispense). → LAMal

Later / only if it applies

• Serafe bill (private flats; in a student hall the establishment pays), the AVS invoice in spring (send your B permit for studies to be exempt), tax if you work, and the driving-licence exchange within 12 months if you will drive. → Serafe · AVS · Student tax · Driving licence

Lost your passport or permit card? Police declaration first, then your embassy (passport) or commune (permit duplicate). → Lost passport, ID or permit card

Shipping your belongings? Furniture, boxes or a car you have used for six months can come in duty free with customs form 18.44 and an inventory. → Customs: moving your belongings

Install Alertswiss, add Vaud: the official app for sirens and public alerts. → Alertswiss, sirens and public alerts

Starting in February 2027? The same steps apply. Spring classes start on 22 Feb 2027, and the FRAC and course registration are due on 5 Mar 2027. → Semester dates

Not official advice. Confirm on the linked official pages.