Hello! I am in teh process of relocating to Zurich at the end of the year. I am visiting Zurich next week for an orientation tour. Is it possible for me to get a mobile number/contract whilst there next week? Also if so can I then get this number onto a contract when I move in Dec? Ideally I would like my number now so I can start distributing it to friends/family

Many thanks

A prepaid number yes, but a mobile contract will require a permit.

Some prepaid numbers can be ported to contracts later on.

When I first moved over here I had a prepaid number with Sunrise and then transferred it over to my mobile contract with Swisscom once my permit was sorted.

Some operators require a work permit even for prepaid numbers. Lebara sold me a number only based on my passport but Coop/Orange wouldn't allow that. I tried several times in different places and it seems even not all the salesmen knew that as the stumbling point came when they started entering my details into the Orange CRM and their PC complained or just crashed. Eventually, one of the guys said the system probably requires a valid work permit even though it's not obvious even for them.

Also, even with a permit, you could be asked for a deposit, depending on your permit type. I have an 'L' permit and Orange asked me for a 300CHF deposit for a 'domestic-calling only' contract. If I wanted Euro-roaming, I would've had to tie up 1000 CHF!