For information only. This guide is an editorial orientation resource. It does not constitute legal, tax, or administrative advice, and does not recommend or encourage any specific course of action. Regulations, procedures and entitlements change; always verify current requirements with your mission or organisation, the relevant Swiss authorities, and qualified advisers before taking any decision.
Do you need a car in Geneva?
Geneva’s public transport network (TPG: buses, trams, and the CEVA suburban rail line) covers the city and many of the surrounding communes efficiently. For most postings based in Geneva itself, a car is a choice. The picture changes for families whose children attend schools in suburban locations, or for staff whose work requires regular travel beyond the city.
Parking in central Geneva is expensive and restricted. CD plates do not grant automatic parking exemptions. Before importing or purchasing a vehicle, assess whether the commute patterns of your household actually require one.
The legal framework
Vehicle registration in Switzerland is governed by the Federal Ordinance on Admission to Road Traffic (Ordonnance réglant l’admission des personnes et des véhicules à la circulation routière, OAC) of 27 October 1976. The CD plate series is defined in that ordinance and is administered jointly by the FDFA (Département fédéral des affaires étrangères) and the cantonal vehicle authorities.
For Geneva-based staff, the relevant cantonal authority is the Office Cantonal des Véhicules (OCV).
Plate categories and colour
Swiss diplomatic plates differ from French ones in a detail that matters practically: the background colour of the CD plate depends on the type of entity, not the individual’s rank.
- Blue CD plates: permanent missions to international organisations (UNOG, WTO, WHO, etc.) and international organisations themselves
- Green CD plates: embassies accredited to Switzerland, based in Bern
The series:
- CD: vehicles of persons with full diplomatic status (FDFA legitimation card type B or C), including heads of mission, diplomatic agents, senior officials of international organisations, and vehicles of the missions and organisations themselves
- CC: consular posts and career consular officers
- AT: restricted to administrative and technical personnel of diplomatic missions in Bern. This series is not available in Geneva: administrative and technical personnel of permanent missions in Geneva register their personal vehicles in ordinary Swiss plates, not AT plates.
Who qualifies for CD plates in Geneva
The obligation to register in CD plates applies to holders of an FDFA legitimation card of type B or C (full diplomatic status). Staff holding other types of FDFA cards, or no FDFA card, must register in ordinary Swiss plates.
One constraint with practical consequences: personnel residing in France cannot obtain Swiss plates of any kind, neither CD nor ordinary. If you live on the French side of the border (Pays de Gex or Haute-Savoie) and commute into Geneva, your vehicle will carry French plates. The administrative implications of this are covered in the companion guide Living in Geneva (CH·LIV·01).
The registration procedure
Requests for CD plates in Geneva pass through your mission or organisation’s administrative office, which holds the standard application form and coordinates with the FDFA Section and the OCV.
Documents typically required (confirm with your organisation):
- FDFA legitimation card (front and back copy)
- Completed CD plate application form
- Vehicle registration document or certificate of conformity
- Proof of Swiss RC liability insurance
Fee: CHF 160 for the permis de circulation and plates.
Where plates are issued: The OCV (Canton of Geneva) for vehicles domiciled in Geneva, or the SAN (Service des automobiles et de la navigation, Canton of Vaud) for those in the Vaud side of the Geneva region.
Insurance
Third-party liability insurance (assurance responsabilité civile) is mandatory for all vehicles with Swiss plates, including those carrying CD, CC or AT plates. Diplomatic status does not exempt a vehicle from this requirement. The insurer must be established in Switzerland. The minimum coverage under Swiss law is CHF 5 million per event for all personal injury and material damage combined.
Driving a CD-plate vehicle
In principle, only the registered owner may drive a vehicle on CD plates. The exception: family members who hold diplomatic status (FDFA card type B or C), are at least 18 years old, and hold a valid driving licence may also drive the principal holder’s CD-plate vehicle. Family members without diplomatic status, including Swiss nationals or those holding a B or C permit, may not drive a CD-plate vehicle.
Holders of CD plates are encouraged to drive their CD-plate vehicle in Switzerland rather than an unregistered foreign vehicle, to allow border police and traffic officers to identify their status during any control.
The Swiss motorway vignette
The annual motorway vignette (currently CHF 40) is not exempt for individual diplomatic staff on CD plates. The FDFA’s position is that it constitutes a taxe pour services rendus (usage charge, not a tax in the Convention sense) under Article 34(e) of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Vehicles of service of missions and international organisations are exempt; personal vehicles registered to individuals are not.
End of mission and change of canton
On cessation of functions, CD plates must be returned to the authority that issued them, or to the nearest Swiss diplomatic representation if you leave Switzerland. A courtesy period of a maximum three months is allowed, after which fees are charged and the matter is referred to police for plate seizure.
On a change of canton (e.g. from Geneva to Vaud), the holder has 14 days to return the plates and notify the new cantonal authority.