Rental car, hire car, whatever you call it: can you take it abroad?

Yes, you can take a rental car or a hire car from Switzerland abroad, as long as you declare the trip beforehand. At DRAIV that happens right at booking: the cross-border option costs CHF 7 per commenced day, you get an electronic green card, and without declaring it, driving across the border is not covered.

Rental car or hire car, the rule does not change with the word

Rental car and hire car describe the same thing, and which word you reach for is mostly a matter of habit: rental car is the more common American phrasing, hire car the more common British one, and neither changes the underlying rule. What decides whether a trip across the border is covered is whether you declared it at booking, not which word you used to describe the vehicle. Every answer below applies equally, whichever term you use.

What the option costs and what you get for it

At DRAIV you pick the "cross-border travel" option while booking, before you pay. It costs CHF 7 per commenced 24-hour period, so it sits in your price from the start rather than surfacing as a surprise at the car or a question at a desk; what those CHF 7 actually cover if something goes wrong is explained further below. In exchange you get an electronic green card, the internationally recognised proof that your vehicle is covered outside Switzerland. Skip the option, and the trip across the border stays uncovered, even if the journey itself would otherwise be perfectly straightforward.

Why the cross-border option costs something, and what the CHF 7 covers

The CHF 7 per commenced day costs something because an incident abroad becomes considerably more complicated for DRAIV to handle than the same incident in Switzerland, and that added complexity is exactly what the fee covers. Roadside assistance within Switzerland is already a fixed part of every rental; the CHF 7 covers the added complexity when the same thing happens abroad. If the car breaks down abroad, roadside assistance no longer runs through DRAIV directly but through local partner networks in the destination country, and DRAIV pays those partners for their services. The same applies to coordinating help on the ground and, if needed, repatriating the car back to Switzerland: local partners handle that too, again billed to DRAIV. For you as the renter, all of that sits inside the CHF 7 per commenced day. You never deal with the foreign partners, their costs, or the coordination yourself, DRAIV handles it on your behalf.

Which countries are covered, and which are not

With the cross-border option booked, travel is permitted within EU/EFTA member states and other Mediterranean coastal states. That leaves out countries outside the EU/EFTA and the Mediterranean region, the United Kingdom for example, even though it is not named on the prohibited list below. Independent of the option, our terms (section 4.4) also prohibit travel to the following countries regardless: Kosovo, the Russian Federation, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine, Syria and Lebanon. Tolls, environmental stickers, vignettes and congestion charges in the destination country are yours to pay, they are not part of the daily fee. This list is deliberately specific, because "abroad" on its own says nothing about where the coverage actually reaches.

What happens if you cross the border without declaring it

Drive across the border without the cross-border option and it costs a contractual penalty of CHF 500, regardless of whether anything actually happened on the trip. If damage does occur, you are liable for that on top, since the contractual penalty does not itself cover real damage. The second, easily missed effect concerns your damage protection tier: it may be reduced or voided in proportion to fault and the causal connection between the breach and the damage. Minor breaches with no causal link to the damage do not affect your cover, but an undeclared border crossing that actually causes damage abroad is exactly the case this rule is built for. Any accident abroad must be reported to DRAIV within 24 hours regardless of whether the trip was declared.

With a classic rental company, the answer depends on the provider

Classic rental companies like Europcar generally permit cross-border travel too, but the exact countries, mileage limits and sometimes even which vehicle classes are allowed differ by provider, and occasionally by branch. There is no single rule that applies across the market. What is binding is always what the specific provider's rental terms say, or what gets confirmed to you at the desk when you book, so it is worth asking before you drive rather than at the border itself.

Frequently asked questions

Can I take a rental car abroad from Switzerland?

Yes. You declare the cross-border trip when you book, it costs CHF 7 per commenced day, and it is shown in the price before you pay. Without declaring it, driving abroad is not covered.

Can I take a hire car abroad from Switzerland?

Yes, the rule is identical to a rental car: pick the option at booking, pay CHF 7 a day, and you get an electronic green card. Skip that step and the trip across the border is not covered, whether you call the vehicle a rental car or a hire car.

Is it legal to drive a rental car across the Swiss border?

Yes, once you have declared the trip. At DRAIV that happens during booking for CHF 7 per commenced day, and driving across the border without declaring it stays uncovered no matter who is behind the wheel.

Which countries can I drive a Swiss rental car into, and which are off limits?

With the cross-border option, travel is permitted within EU/EFTA member states and other Mediterranean coastal states, not in countries outside that area such as the United Kingdom. Regardless of the option, travel is also prohibited to Kosovo, the Russian Federation, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine, Syria and Lebanon, under our terms.

What is a green card, and do I get it automatically?

The green card is the internationally recognised proof that a vehicle is covered abroad. Select the cross-border option at booking and you receive it electronically, no separate step needed.

What happens if I drive abroad without declaring it?

A breach costs a contractual penalty of CHF 500, regardless of whether anything actually happened, and you remain liable for any real damage on top of that. Your chosen damage protection tier may also be reduced or voided in proportion to fault and the causal connection, though minor breaches with no causal link to the damage do not affect your cover.

What does the CHF 7 per day cross-border fee cover?

The CHF 7 per commenced day covers roadside assistance abroad, coordinating that help on the ground, and repatriating the car back to Switzerland, all handled by DRAIV through local partner networks in the destination country that bill DRAIV for their services. For you, that is fully included in the price, you never deal with the foreign partners or their costs or coordination yourself.