Does anyone have an idea of the proportion of Brits who try CH and go home because it doesn't suit, compared to those who stay and fall in love with CH?

And is there a difference between the numbers of Brits who go to Suisse Romande and German Switzerland and then go home with homesickness or disillusion or whatever?

A pure guess, but I reckon that most of the people on EF are in Switzerland for work purposes and expect/plan to return to the UK or elsewhere.

I'm here till I die ...... all EF members at the time are welcome at the wake.

10 years here, know plenty of ex pats who have come from the UK and other countries and know of only two that went back to the UK.

Yes I'm here for the duration too...

Funnily enough though, if someone from HMRC asks the same question then nobody says they expect to return...

I thought I'd last a couple of years max but after 3 years or so, the idea of returning to the UK has no appeal for me whatever.

Whenever I go back I enjoy the ale and the.... er, there must be something else.... what was it?

Ah, yes, fish & chips. And proper sausages and bacon (blah blah), but other than those nostalgic treats, I can think of little there to tempt me back.

Of course, if I lost my job, it would be a different story. But for as long as they want me here, I'm staying put.

Sorry, I'm being thick. What's the advantage of saying you've left for good? Am I missing a trick?

I know 2 couples who returned ( and they had been here 10 years plus)for the reason that they could not stand appartment living any longer. They had young families and were not on huge salaries and in the end wanted a house and garden.
One returned and bought a beautiful place that they could only dream of owning if they had stayed in Switzerland and the other built their own house!!

Why would you go back? ...... Just to put it in perspective:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk...p-8501329.html

It's a bit technical, but basically in order to not pay UK tax you have to be "not resident" in the eyes of the HMRC. However, having a provable intent to return to the UK can be taken as evidence of being "resident" in the UK, even if you never set foot in the place for an extended period of time - to the point where they may try to reclaim tax retrospectively

See this post: http://www.englishforum.ch/permits-v...rd#post1802159

Any joke you have to explain is a bit dead, and I guess any joke based on UK tax regulations is doomed to failure from the outset

Slightly biased here (as we're possibly being forced to return to the UK due to husband's job situation); but... I have been here for 33 years; so most of you are wet behind the ears compared to me.....

The majority of the Brits I've met here over the years have either gone home because their contacts ran out, have known they're here for two years maximum before being re-posted, or returned because they were home-sick (nb; they're often students here for six to twelve months or women whose marriages were already dodgy and being abroad has fnished the relationship).

Relationships that do survive here (and almost certainly in other countries) are the ones that have at least one partner that's native to the country in question.

I'm sure there are a few exceptions, but they're pretty rare.
Please step forward people that are a totally UK couple here for more than 5-10 years.....

Another UK couple here -
40 years and counting .. we thought we'd be staying "just for a year or two".
I guess we like the place!
UKP

Hello: I was beginning to think I was a freak.
Most couples I know are mixed.... including my both sons; ten years each (as couples obviously) and counting; having entered into partnerships/marriage with swiss-born women.

I arrived in 1980 thinking he was on a five year contract..... xyz. Loud swear words.

Not freaks - I think we're "assimilated"
UKP

But are you still based in Switzerland or is it possibly Russia? (I've been back-tracking your posts).

We arrived on a simple contract at the Geneva University and stayed. No high-flyer's job, no promise of better, just escaping from Thatcher'ish Britain as it was in the late 70's. A job was a job then. No future, just work.

Can you give me the date for my calender?

My ex boss was here with his wife for 20 years, their kids born here, it's not that unusual.

Yes, it is....both uk and both still in Switzerland?
My children are in their 30's. Not under 20.

Not really, I know lots of people in the same situation, been here 16 years myself.