Guidance

Switzerland: information for victims of rape and sexual assault

Updated 21 June 2022

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If you’ve been sexually assaulted it’s important to remember that it was not your fault. Rape and sexual assault is always wrong – no matter who commits it or where it happens. It is traumatic and it can affect you both physically and emotionally. Do not be afraid to get help.

This information is provided to help British nationals overseas make informed decisions about whether and how to:

  • seek medical advice and attention
  • report to local police
  • engage with foreign legal authorities following a rape or other form of sexual assault overseas.

For information on support available in the UK, see Rape and Sexual Assault: Returning to the UK.

First steps

It is your choice about what you do next, but this information may help you in coming to a decision. The most important thing is to make sure that you are as safe as you can be. You can:

  • contact the international emergency number on 117
  • contact your tour operator if you are travelling with one
  • contact your nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate on +41 31 359 77 00. Embassy staff will be empathetic, and non-judgmental, and can provide information on local police and medical procedures. Anything you tell them will be treated in the strictest confidence. They can contact your family or friends for you if you wish.

If you want to report the incident to the police in Switzerland

  • If you have a tour operator, they should be able to arrange for someone to support you. If you are in an area where there is a British embassy or consulate, they will try to send a consular officer to support you, where timing and location allow. You will always be able to speak to trained consular staff on the telephone 24/7.
  • If you approach the police directly, you can also ask them to inform the nearest British embassy or consulate on +41 31 359 77 00 and they can offer you consular support.
  • If you choose to report the crime, try to do so as soon as possible, so forensic evidence can be retained. Washing yourself or your clothes may make it difficult for the police to obtain forensic evidence. If you change your clothes, think about taking those you were wearing to the police. You may wish to preserve evidence by retaining items such as condoms, toothbrushes, or texts.
  • Tell the police if you think you have been drugged.
  • Insist you get a police report, and request a translation in English if applicable.

If you do not want to report the incident to the police in Switzerland

  • The British embassy or consulate will be able to help you. This includes helping you to contact your insurance company, your family, making arrangements to travel back to the UK and/or provide you with information on local support in the UK
  • They can provide you with lists of English-speaking medical facilities, lawyers and translators
  • If you are travelling with one, you can also report the incident to your tour operator and ask them for assistance. If you wish, the tour operator may accompany you to the local hospital. If you wish, and depending on location and timing, a member of consular staff may be able to accompany you.
  • It is your choice on whether to report the crime. If you don’t report it, your case may not be investigated.
  • If you need more time to decide whether you want to report the incident to the police, but want forensic evidence to be secured and stored in the event you decide later that you do want the incident to be investigated, you are able to go to specific clinics for a confidential forensic examination. This procedure is called “vertrauliche Spurensicherung” (German), “Examen médicolégal confidentiel” (French) and “Esame forense riservato” (Italian). You are not required to report the assault to the police and you should not be put under pressure to report it. For details of the facilities in Switzerland offering this service please see Annex 1 to this guide.

If you want to report the incident to the police in the UK

  • The support available to you, and your access to justice may vary according to where you report the crime. In many countries, you need to report the crime before you leave the country, if you want it to be investigated and police to obtain important evidence
  • If you are staying in the country where the crime took place, you should report the crime in that country. If you are a British national and you need help to report the crime, you can contact the nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate, or the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London
  • If you do not report the crime in the country where it happened and you return to the UK, you can still report the matter to your local UK police
  • The UK police should send the information you provide to the country where the crime happened. However, it is for foreign police forces to decide whether to investigate a crime in their jurisdiction and they may not take action.
  • You can report the crime to the UK police even if you are not seeking an investigation abroad. The UK police can offer you access to victim support in the UK. They may still send some details of the crime to police in the country where it happened. This might be necessary in order to protect vulnerable people, or to stop more crimes being committed

Reporting the crime in Switzerland: what happens next?

  • If you choose to report the crime, try to do so as soon as possible, so forensic evidence can be retained. Washing yourself or your clothes may make it difficult for the police to obtain forensic evidence.
  • If you change your clothes, think about taking those you were wearing to the police. You may wish to preserve evidence by retaining items such as condoms, toothbrushes, or texts and social media messages.
  • Tell the police if you think you have been drugged.
  • Insist you get a police report, and request a translation in English if applicable.
  • You will be asked to briefly describe what happened so that immediate action can be taken to identify the alleged offender;
  • Evidence such as the clothing and underwear you were wearing and other items that the offender has touched will help the police to gather evidence and to build a criminal case;
  • You should not wash yourself or clean or alter clothing or other items;
  • If possible make notes about what happened during the assault before making the report, so that you can refer to them if necessary;
  • You can bring a person you trust with you to the police station;
  • The police officer will give you the police reference number for future reference as well as the contact details of the police officer responsible for the case;
  • The police will take you to the hospital for a medical and forensic examination.
  • You can also go directly to a hospital and describe there what happened. The hospital will in principle inform the police on your behalf if you give consent.

The medical examination: what to expect

  • The medical findings may be important evidence if the case goes to court. Therefore, if you want the assault to be investigated you will need to give consent to the doctor at the hospital to share information with the police.
  • You should not take a shower or bath before the examination, so that any evidence is preserved.
  • You will have a forensic medical examination as well as tests for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and pregnancy. This includes taking photographs to document any injuries.
  • Ask for a prescription for emergency contraception (GER: “die Pille danach”; FR: “la pilule du lendemain”; IT: “la pillola del giorno dopo”)
  • Ask to be informed and advised about what treatment is recommended in your particular case to prevent sexually transmitted diseases.

Treatment

  • HIV PEP medication (Post-exposure prophylaxis) is a treatment that can prevent HIV infection. It needs to be taken within 72 hours of the incident for it to be effective. The NHS may be able to commence or continue the 28 day treatment on return to the UK.
  • Emergency contraception needs to be taken within 72 hours of the incident for it to be effective (GER: “die Pille danach”; FR: “la pilule du lendemain”; IT: “la pillola del giorno dopo”)
  • If you have had medication administered overseas, you may wish to keep the label or make a note of the name of the medication, so that you let your local health provider know when you return home.

Police investigations in Switzerland: what to expect

  • The process of reporting an assault may differ from what you expect of UK police proceedings. Ask to be informed of what your rights are as a victim of crime.
  • Where possible a female officer will be in attendance but this might not always be possible depending on the police station or town.
  • Normally you would first speak with an officer at the nearest police station, who will record a criminal complaint (GER: “Strafanzeige”; FR: “plainte”; IT: “Denuncia per reati”). The officer then will refer the case to a criminal investigator, who will be responsible for interviewing you about the assault and for investigating your case.
  • After the police has concluded their investigations, they will refer the case to the public prosecutor (GER: “Staatsanwaltschaft”; FR: “ministère public”; IT: “Procuratore Pubblico) who needs to decide whether there is enough evidence to take the case to court. At that point another interview may be necessary.
  • If you wish to be informed of the future developments of the case, request that you wish to be informed of the result of the criminal proceedings or the court trial. Your request will then be added to the investigation file, so that the public prosecutor and judge knows that you wish to be kept informed of the future stages of the investigation and the result of the trial. You can also request to be kept informed at a later stage, by submitting a request for information to the relevant public prosecutor’s office. You should state the public prosecutor’s reference number, or court reference number, as well as the accused offender’s name, if you have those details.

Court procedures: what to expect

  • If the case goes to court, you will be required to testify again as a witness. If you do not speak the local language, you have the right to ask for an interpreter.
  • You can apply to have the public excluded from the court room during your testimony. You can also apply to have the accused offender excluded from the court room during your testimony, if they are an acquaintance, relative or friend. If you are a minor, you can have yourself represented by your parents or your lawyer. You can also request to the court if you may submit a written statement.
  • It is recommendable that you seek legal advice from a lawyer. A list of English-speaking lawyers is available on the website of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
  • Depending on the case, you may be able to join the public prosecution as a private accessory prosecutor (GER: “Privatkläger”; FR: “partie civile”; IT: “parte civile”). As a private accessory prosecutor you have the right to access criminal files including testimonies of the accused as well as medical documents and are able follow the investigation process closely. In doing so, it must be noted that the legal authorities can impose the costs of the proceedings on you if these are discontinued or if the accused is acquitted.
  • Depending on the nature of the crime, the canton in which the crime took place may fully cover the victim’s (or their Next of Kin’s) lawyer fees. This especially applies to victims of crimes against life such as murder and manslaughter, or rape and sexual assault. Each canton’s respective victim support office (GER: “Opferhilfe”; FR: “Aide aux victimes d’infractions”; IT: “Delegato per l’aiuto alle vittime di reati) is responsible for providing financial support to victims. The decisive factor for assessing a claim for financial support is whether being a victim can be made credible. Relevant evidence may be requested for the purpose of assessing your entitlement to cost contributions/exemptions.
  • If the canton does not cover the lawyer fees, and you are on a low income, you may be eligible for legal aid (GER: “Unentgeltliche Rechtspflege”; FR: “Assistance judiciaire”; IT: “Assistenza giudiziaria”). You can apply directly to the relevant court for this, either with or without the help of a lawyer.
  • You can receive psychological support from a victim support organisation during the trial. Please see below for a list of Support Organisations in Switzerland and in the UK.

When you return home to the UK

  • You may want to let your GP or a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) know what has happened to you so that you can talk about the experience and seek further support and advice where you live

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland

  • Rowan SARC Northern Ireland. Phone: 0800 389 4424

  • If you believe you may be at risk of having contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI), you should ask your local health provider to test you. You should do this even if you have been tested in the country that the assault took place in.

Support organisations in Switzerland

It is your choice whether you let people know. If you are ready to talk about it, the following organisations may be able to help you:

Basel

Berne

Geneva

Ticino

Vaud

Zurich

  • Opfer Beratung Zurich Non-profit association for men, women and children affected from domestic and sexual violence. opferberatung@obzh.ch, Tel: +41 (0)44 299 40 50
  • Castagna Consulting and information centre for children, men and women affected by violence offering counselling, victim support and referrals to doctors, lawyers and other specialists. mail@castagna-zh.ch, Tel: +41 (0)44 360 90 40
  • Stadt Zurich List of organisations and facilities in Zurich offering consultations in victim support and legal queries
  • Frauenberatung Sexuelle Gewalt Non-profit organisation offering assistance to women, children and migrants with no German skills who have been affected by sexual violence. info@frauenberatung.ch, Tel: +41 (0)44 291 46 46

Support organisations in the UK

Annex 1

Medical centres which offer confidential forensic examinations in Switzerland and in the UK

Switzerland

When you present yourself to have evidence secured confidentially, it may be helpful to use the phrases below to explain what you need to the receptionist.

German

  • “Ich brauche dringend ein Gespräch mit einer Gynäkologin” (if you are female) (I need to see a gynaecologist urgently)
  • “Ich brauche dringend ein Gespräch mit einem Urologen” (if you are male) (I need to see a urologist urgently)

French

  • “J’ai besoin de voir un gynécologue de toute urgence” (if you are female) (I need to see a gynaecologist urgently)
  • “J’ai besoin de voir un urologue de toute urgence” (if you are male) (I need to see a urologist urgently)

Italian

  • “Ho bisogno di vedere urgentemente un ginecologo” (if you are female) (I need to see a gynaecologist urgently)
  • “Ho bisogno di vedere urgentemente un urologo” (if you are male) (I need to see a urologist urgently)

Medical centres listed by Cantons (Swiss states), listed in alphabetical order

Aargau AG

  • Kantonsspital Baden, Im Ergel, 5404 Baden. Tel: +41 56 486 21 11

Appenzell Innerrhoden AI & Appenzell Ausserrhoden AR

  • Kantonsspital Appenzell, Sonnhalde 2, 9050 Appenzell. Tel: +41 71 788 75 75

Basel Stadt BS & Basel Land BL

  • Universitatsspital Basel, Hebelstrasse 32, 4056 Basel. Tel: +41 61 265 25 25
  • Frauenklinik Universitatsspital Basel (Consultations to those affected from sexual violence). Notfall Frauenklinik, Porte Klinikum 1, Spitalstrasse 21, 4031 Basel. Tel: +41 61 328 75 00

Berne BE

  • Universitatsspital Berne, Freiburgstrasse 18, 3010 Bern. Tel: +41 31 632 21 11
  • Zentrum für sexuelle Gesundheit (Consultations to those affected from sexual violence). Universitätsklinik für Frauenheilkunde, Inselspital Bern, Friedbühlstrasse 19, 3010 Bern. Tel: +41 31 632 10 10

Fribourg FR

  • HFR Fribourg Kantonsspital, Chemin des Pensionnats 2-6, 1752 Villars-sur-Glâne. Tel: + 41 26 306 00 00

Geneva GE

  • Les Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève HUG, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1205 Genève. Tel: +41 022 372 33 11
  • Lavi Centre (Consultations to those affected from sexual violence). Bvd de Saint-Georges 72, 1205 Genève. Tel: +41 22 320 01 02

Glarus GL

  • Kantonsspital Glarus, Burgstrasse 99, 8750 Glarus. Tel: +41 55 646 33 33

Graubünden GR

  • Kantonsspital Graubunden, Hauptstandort, Loëstrasse 170, 7000 Chur. Tel: +41 81 256 61 11

Jura JU

  • Hôpital du Jura, Fbg des Capucins 30, 2800 Delémont. Tel: +41 32 421 21 21

Luzern LU

  • Luzerner Kantonsspital, Spitalstrasse, 6004 Luzern. Tel: +41 41 205 11 11

Neuchâtel NE

  • Réseau Hospitalier Neuchâtelois RHNe, Maladière 45, 2000 Neuchâtel. Tel: +41 32 854 40 52

Nidwalden NW & Obwalden OW

  • Kantonsspital Nidwalden, Ennetmooserstrasse 19, 6370 Stans. Tel: +41 618 18 18

Schaffhausen SH

  • Kantonsspital Schaffhausen, Geissbergstrasse 81, 8208 Schaffhausen. Tel: +41 52 634 34 34

Schwyz SZ

  • Spital Schwyz, Waldeggstrasse 10, 6430 Schwyz. Tel: +41 818 41 11

Solothurn SO

  • Solothurner Spital, Schöngrünstrasse 36a, 4500 Solothurn. Tel: +41 32 627 31 21

St. Gallen SG

  • Kantsonsspital St. Gallen, Rorschacherstrasse 95, 9007 St. Gallen. Tel: +41 71 494 11 11

Ticino TI

  • Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Viale Officina 3, 6500 Bellinzona. Tel: +41 91 811 13 03

Thurgau TG

  • Spital Thurgau - Kantonsspital Frauenfeld, Pfaffenholzstrasse 4, 8500 Frauenfeld. Tel: +41 52 723 77 11

Uri UR

  • Kantonsspital Uri, Spitalstrasse 1, 6460 Altdorf. Tel: +41 875 51 51

Vaud VD

  • Lausanne University Hospital, Rue de Bugnon 21, 1011 Lausanne. Tel: +41 21 314 1111
  • Lavi Centre (Consultations to those affected from sexual violence). Rue du Grand-Pont 2, 1003 Lausanne. Tel: +41 21 631 03 00

Valais VS

  • Spital Wallis, Avenue du Grand­ Champsec 80, 1950 Sion. Tel: +41 27 603 40 00

Zug ZG

  • Zuger Kantonsspital, Landhausstrasse 11, 6340 Baar. Tel: +41 41 399 11 11

Zürich ZH

  • Universitatsspital Zürich, Rämistrasse 100, 8006 Zürich. Tel: +41 44 255 11 11
  • Frauen Notfall Klinik, Stadtspital Triemli, Birmensdorferstrasse 497, 8063 Zürich. Tel: +41 44 416 65 60

In the UK

Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs), find your nearest SARC by calling the NHS 111 non-emergency service, speaking to your GP or the Accident Emergency (A&E) department of your local hospital, or navigate to Rape Crisis and scroll to the bottom of the page and enter your full postcode in the search field

Disclaimer

This information has been prepared by HMG officials who are not legally or medically trained. It should therefore never be used as a substitute for professional medical or legal advice. It is intended to help British nationals overseas make their own informed decisions. Neither HMG nor any official of the Consulate accept liability for any loss or damage which you might suffer as a result of relying on the information supplied.

Medical information has been provided by The Havens Sexual Assault Referral Centres of Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and was accurate at the time of production (02/02/2022).

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