Campione is an Italian enclave within the Swiss canton of Ticino, separated from the rest of Italy by Lake Lugano. Its status came about when Ticino chose to become part of the Swiss Confederation in 1798, and its people chose to remain part of the Kingdom of Lombardy, which subsequently became part of Italy in 1871.

Campione (also known as Campione d'Italia), has a considerable amount of economic and administrative integration with Switzerland, using the Swiss Franc, and forming part of the Swiss customs union. Similarly, the telephone system is Swiss, meaning that calls require the international dialling code for Switzerland, e.g: 00 41 91 from Italy. Mail may be sent using either a Swiss postal code:

 via volta 3
 CH-6911 Campione d'Italia

or an Italian one:

 via volta 3
 I-22060 Campione d'Italia

However, Campione takes advantage of its status by operating casinos, as gambling laws are less strict than in Switzerland, as well as allowing residence to those seeking to avoid Swiss taxes.

External Links

Campione d'Italia