Domain registration Switzerland

The official domain extension for Switzerland is .CH.

Registering this domain extension is a recommended strategic move for those companies with interests in Switzerland or that are looking to protect their trademark within the country.

Switzerland is a federal parliamentary republic, consisting of 26 cantons, located in Central Europe. It is a landlocked country, bordered to the north by Germany, to the east by Austria and Liechtenstein, to the south by Italy and to the west by France.

It covers a total area of 41,285 km², with a large proportion of mountainous terrain: to the north west, the Jura Mountains; further south, the Alps and Prealps form a divide before the three big valleys of the Rhone, the Rhine and the Inn rivers; more mountain ranges can be found even further south, in the form of the Graie Alps and Pennine Alps.

The population experienced significant growth during the last century, thanks to a constant influx of immigrants (a phenomenon that continues today, though it is regulated by internal measures to combat negative effects), reaching over 8 million in 2013. A large proportion of the population lives in the biggest cities, such as Zurich, the capital Bern, Basel, Lausanne and Geneva. Linguistically, Switzerland is also very diverse, indeed, it has 4 officially recognised languages: Italian, German, French and Romansh. The local currency is the Swiss Franc.

Switzerland has a stable and flourishing economy. Primary sector activities, which receive state subsidies, include agriculture (grain, fruit, especially apples and grapes), cattle farming (especially dairy, for butter, milk and local cheeses) and timber extraction (which is strictly regulated).

The country also has an advanced manufacturing sector, despite a lack of domestic raw materials. The most developed areas are pharmaceuticals, metals, textiles and food.

The foundation of Switzerland’s wealth and prosperity, however, lies in the tertiary sector, namely in a powerful and meticulously organised banking industry. By no means least important is the country’s considerable tourist industry, which exploits the abundance in traditional Swiss holiday destinations.