Privacy policy

At Welcome Service, we’re committed to protecting and respecting your privacy.

Welcome Service’s privacy policy explains when and why we collect personal information about our clients who are transferred to Switzerland or neighbouring France, how we use it, the conditions under which we may transmit it to others and how we keep it secure.

By providing your consent when transmitting your personal information, you’re agreeing to be bound by this Privacy Policy.

Any questions regarding this Policy and our privacy practices should be sent by email to info@welcome-service.ch or by writing to Welcome Service Sàrl, Rue Zurlinden 6 – 1207 Geneva. Alternatively, you can telephone +41(22)7076150.

Who are we?

Welcome Service Sàrl (CHE-107.383.671) is a relocation company, aiming at providing relocation services (home search, settling-in, schooling support, immigration, move management…) for private individuals and multinational companies. Welcome Service Sàrl is registered since November 30th 1998 at Rue Zurlinden 6, 1207 Geneva.

How do we collect information from you?

We receive your information via our WebPortal, your HR department or any emails received regarding your relocation.

What type of information is collected from you?

The personal information we collect are only in the sole purpose of assisting you and your family with your relocation with Welcome Service. We collect personal information that are to be found in our Requirement Questionnaire. We additionally receive your income information via your HR department or directly via yourself.
Personal data collected:

  • Name and First name
  • Birthdate
  • Nationality
  • Gender
  • Address
  • Email
  • Phone contacts
  • Family details
  • Salary details & employment conditions (if applicable)

Sensitive data collected:

  • Children details (under 16)
  • Biometric data – Passport & residency permit
  • Debt situation

How is your information used?

We may use your information to:

  • Contact you directly in order to discuss your criteria in the means of your relocation;
  • Create your application file for any rental/purchase properties;
  • Transfer your application file to real estate agencies or landlords;
  • Communicate with local/private schools for your children enrolment process;
  • Communicate with insurance brokers for the establishment of insurance contract;
  • Communicate with local providers (telephone, handyman, cleaning companies…) to best assist throughout the relocation process;
  • Apply for your work/residence permit in Switzerland;
  • Seek your comments on the services we provide;

We will hold your personal information on our systems for as long as is necessary for the relevant activity, or as long as is set out in the Swiss legislation (usually up to 10 years).

Who has access to your information?

We will not sell or rent your information to third parties.

We will not share your information with third parties for marketing purposes.

Your data will not be used for automated decision processing or profiling.

  • Real Estate Agencies/Landlords: We will transfer your personal information to apply for rental/purchase properties in the mean of the relocation process. These date are dully selected in order to provide only the necessary ones. Welcome Service is not responsible for the use of the data by the real estate agencies/landlord.
  • Third Party Service Providers working on our behalf: We may pass your information to our third party service providers or agent’s subcontractors for the purposes of completing tasks and providing services to you on our behalf. However, when we use third party service providers, we disclose only the personal information that are necessary to deliver the service and we have a contract in place that requires them to keep your information secure and not to use it for their own direct marketing purposes. Please be reassured that we will not release your information to third parties beyond the Welcome Service network for them to use for their own direct marketing purposes, unless you have requested us to do so, or we are required to do so by law, for example, by a court order or for the purposes of prevention of fraud or other crime.
  • Third Party Service Providers we work in association with: We work closely with various third party service providers to assist you in the relocation process (insurance broker, private/local schools…). When we use third party service providers, we disclose only the personal information that are relevant to deliver the requested service.
  • Swiss Migration AuthoritiesWe will share your personal & biometric information to the Swiss migration authorities if needed in order to process and obtain your Swiss resident permit.

When you are using our secure online WebPortal, all information are processed internally within Welcome Service. All data and files transmitted via the WebPortal are encrypted.

Will data be transferred to a third country?

Your personal information can be transferred to landlords/estate agents outside Switzerland only if it is necessary for the purpose of carrying out your orders (e.g. relocation to neighbouring France).

What data privacy rights do I have?

You can access and update at any time your data on our WebPortal by using the provided weblink and personal code.
Every data subject has in relation to their personal data:

  • The right of access – according to Article 15 of the GDPR.
  • The right to rectification – according to Article 16 of the GDPR.
  • The right to erasure – according to Article 17 of the GDPR.
  • The right to restrict processing – according to Article 18 of the GDPR.
  • The right to object – according to Article 21 of the GDPR.
  • The right to data portability – according to Article 20 of the GDPR.

You can withdraw consent granted to us at any time by contacting us by email on info@welcome-service.ch or by writing to Welcome Service Sàrl, Rue Zurlinden 6 – 1207 Geneva.
Please note that the withdrawal only applies going forward, it does not have retrospective effect. Processing that was carried out before the withdrawal was notified is not affected by it.

Security precautions in place to protect the loss, misuse or alteration of your information

When you give us personal information, we take steps to ensure that it’s treated securely. All information transmitted via our WebPortal are encrypted and protected with the following software 256 Bit encryption on SSL. All data transmitted via our WebPortal are stored within our server, located within our premises in Geneva. No data are stored on the cloud.

Non-sensitive details transmitted by emails can’t never be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk. Once we receive your information, we make our best effort to ensure its security on our systems.

Review of this Policy

We keep this Policy under regular review. This Policy was last updated in May 2018.