The first time I heard about the CAF (Chèque annuel de formation) I had already been living in Switzerland for 3 years. I thought it was such a shame I hadn’t learned about it before as it can come really handy for those expats and trailing spouses thinking about developing new professional skills or improving their French.
In brief, the Chèque Annuel de Formation, is a financial subsidy of 750CHF per year (for a maximum of 3 years in a row) for the professional development of adults granted by the Canton of Geneva. Since November 2011, it’s also possible to use the total max. allowance of 3 CAFs during the same year (750CHF x 3 = 2,250CHF). Obviously, this means that once you have spent your maximum allowance in the first year, you won’t receive anything else for the remaining 2 years.
There are various critieria to be met (click here for the official document) such as the course being at least 40 hours, having been a tax-paying resident in the canton or a frontalier with a valid work permit for at least one year before the course start date, being within certain annual revenue limits etc. but it is definitely worth looking into.
There are over 800 courses in Geneva that have been approved for the CAF subsidy, varying from languages, IT, management and tourism studies, health and social care, specific art and crafts courses etc.
I, for one, think this is a great initiative to promote continuing education for adults. If you’d like to find out more, check the CAF webpage here, where you can request it online, or download the official leaflet here with its clear step-by-step guide and useful contact numbers.
Let us know how you get on and if you found this info useful !
