Switzerland is located in the centre of Europe and shares its 1,935 km kilometres of border with five neighbouring countries: 

• France 585.28 km,
• Germany 363.71 km incl. enclave of Büsingen and Lake Constance,
• Austria 180.08 km incl. Lake Constance,
• Principality of Liechtenstein 41.28 km
• Italy 800.22 km incl. enclave of Campione d’Italia

As in every country, it is of primary importance to know the course of its sovereign territory – even in the age of globalisation and the European Union.

The national border serves simultaneously as a cantonal, district, municipal and private boundary and therefore the definition must be absolutely identical for all types of borders and boundaries in the cadastral survey. This also holds true for the neighbouring countries.

As the relevant federal authority, the Federal Office of Topography swisstopo is responsible for the maintenance and revision work on the national border in coordination with the neighbouring countries.

The more than 7000 markers along the Swiss border are periodically inspected, maintained and where necessary restored. Many of these are small historical monuments which were already established back in the 16th century. They form an integral part of our cultural heritage and as such are witnesses of our country's history.