Officially the Swiss Confederation, Switzerland is a federal republic in Europe. It is a mountainous Central European country, home to numerous lakes, villages and the high peaks of the Alps.

Capital: Bern
Dialing code: +41
Currency: Swiss franc
Official languages: German, French, Romansh, Italian

Did you know:

Switzerland is one of the only two countries to have a square flag – the Vatican has the only other square flag in the world.

The Swiss flag is a red square with a white cross in the centre.

Switzerland citizens can challenge any law passed by the Swiss Parliament – provided they can gather 50,000 signatures against the law within 100 days.

Albert Einstein developed his famous formula E=MC2 in Switzerland

Switzerland is known for its ski resorts and hiking trails.

Banking and finance are key industries, and Swiss watches and chocolate are world renowned.

Switzerland is one of the world’s great exporters of chocolate.

The Swiss eat more chocolate than any other nation in the world.

There are Swiss taxes for owning a dog.

Switzerland has one of the lowest crime rates of industrialised countries despite liberal Swiss gun laws.

Switzerland has the third highest salary and job security out of all OECD countries