Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Village Technologies GmbH (in formation) ("we," "our," or "us"). We are a Swiss-based company. We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our platform.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Personal & Sensitive Information

We collect the following information:

• Standard Data: Email address, profile details, and household information.
• Sensitive Personal Data: If you use our document vault, you may choose to upload sensitive documents (e.g., passports, residence permits, work contracts, or insurance policies).

Special Note on Documents: We treat these as "Sensitive Personal Data" under Art. 5 nFADP. These are stored with additional layers of security, and we process them only with your explicit consent for the purpose of helping you settle in Switzerland.

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

• Usage data and analytics
• Device information and browser type
• IP address (for security and fraud prevention)

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide personalized task guidance based on your profile
• Send you task reminders and notifications (with your consent)
• Generate email drafts in local languages
• Store and manage your documents securely
• Improve our services and user experience
• Comply with legal obligations (GDPR, Swiss DPA)

4. Data Storage and Residency

• Sensitive Data: All identity documents and your primary profile database are stored exclusively in Switzerland (AWS Zurich region via Supabase).
• Communication Data: For email delivery and automation (MailerLite), limited data such as your email address and name may be processed in the European Union or the United States under strict Data Processing Agreements and the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework.

5. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information. We share your information only with trusted service providers who process data on our behalf under strict confidentiality agreements:

• Supabase: For database hosting, document storage, and authentication (Zurich, CH).
• MailerLite: For sending emails (EU).
• Vercel: For hosting the web application infrastructure (Global/Zurich).

6. Your Rights (GDPR & Swiss DPA)

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right to Access: Request a copy of all your personal data held by us.
• Right to Rectification: Update or correct your profile information at any time.
• Right to Erasure: Delete your account and all associated data, subject to legal retention obligations.
• Right to Restriction of Processing: Request that we limit the processing of your data under certain conditions (e.g., if the accuracy is contested).
• Right to Data Portability: Export your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Right to Object: Opt-out of specific data processing activities, such as email notifications and sprint challenges.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Revoke any consent previously given for data processing at any time.
• Right to Lodge a Complaint: You have the right to contact a supervisory authority if you believe your data is not being handled correctly. In Switzerland, this is the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC / EDÖB).

How to exercise your rights:

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@expatvillage.ch.

Identification for Security:

To protect your privacy and security, we must verify your identity before fulfilling a request. In most cases, a request from your registered email address is sufficient. However, we reserve the right to request additional proof of identity (such as a copy of an ID document) if there is reasonable doubt regarding the identity of the person making the request.

7. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide services. Specifically:

• Account data: Retained until account deletion
• Email drafts: Auto-deleted after 30 days unless saved
• Audit logs: Retained for 1 year for security and compliance
• Deleted accounts: 30-day grace period for recovery, then permanent deletion

8. Cookies and Tracking

We use essential cookies for authentication and session management. We do not use tracking cookies or third-party advertising. For more details, see our Cookie Policy.

9. Children's Privacy

Our service is not intended for minors under 18. We collect household member information (including children's names and dates of birth) only to provide task guidance for families. This information is stored securely and is only accessible to the account holder.

10. International Data Transfers

Your data may be processed and stored in servers located in the European Union (EU) and Switzerland. We ensure that all data transfers comply with GDPR and Swiss DPA requirements.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date.

12. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your rights, please contact us: hello@expatvillage.ch