Registration

We are looking forward to welcoming you on-site and virtually at [BC]2 !

Registrations are now closed.

Registration process

Please sign in to the [BC]2 conference platform and complete your profile information to access the registration form (more information at the end of the section). If you already signed in to submit an abstract, please use the same login as before. After choosing your conference options, you will be asked to pay online via credit card. An invoice confirming your registration will be sent to your email address after successful payment.

Important dates

  • 12 May 2021 - Opening of the early-bird registration
  • 12 July 2021 - Normal registration fees apply
  • 5 September 2021 - Registration closes

[BC]2 will be organised as on-site event. Presentations and activities will be closely coordinated with cantonal and national decisions in order to ensure maximum safety for our participants, speakers and exhibitors.

More information on the current COVID-19 situation in Switzerland can be found on the webpage of the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health.

  • Student category: All students (incl. PhD students) and trainees fall into this category, independent of whether their research group is at an academic institution (e.g. a university), or in the private sector (e.g. a company).

  • Academic institution: All participants employed at an academic institution (e.g. a university) fall into this category independent of whether they are employed as Postdoc, Staff Scientists, Professor or similar. University hospitals or non-profit organisations fall into this category too.

  • Private sector: All participants working in industry fall into this category. Exceptions are made for start-ups with less than 10 employees. In this case, please contact us at bc2@sib.swiss.

1. Create an account

To register for [BC]2, you have to create an account on the [BC]2 conference platform.

There are three different ways to create an account:

  1. Are you an employee at SIB?
    Use your SIB LDAP to sign in to the [BC]2 conference platform.
  2. Are you a SIB Member, or at a Swiss university?
    Use your university account to sign in to the [BC]2 conference platform. Depending on whether your university already integrated SWITCH edu-ID or not, you will have to use your SWITCH edu-ID account or your normal university account. For security reasons, SWITCH recommends closing your browser window after the session.
  3. Neither at SIB, nor affiliated with a Swiss university?
    No problem! Create a new account to sign in to the [BC]2 conference platform.

Please note:

  • If you are already signed in another application with your SIB LDAP or university account while signing in to the [BC]2 conference platform, the system will automatically recognise you.
  • Once you created an account, you need to continue using the same login option (SIB LDAP, university account or newly created account)!
  • Creating an account does not equal a registration for the conference. You will be able to register for [BC]2 using the same account as soon as the registration is opening.

2. Complete your profile

Before you can start with the registration, you have to update your account profile with the required information.

3. Go to the "Registration portal"

As soon as your profile is updated, an alert box which is guiding you to the registration form, will appear. Please follow all instructions and chose your conference options. All payments have to be made by credit card; an invoice will be sent to your email address as soon as the payment was accepted.

4. Congratulations, you are registered!

A little closer to the conference, you will get access to the poster gallery, your personal conference planner, the integrated chat and other features of the conference platform.

Registration fees

On-site registration fees 1)

We are looking forward to welcoming all registered participants on-site in Basel, where everything will be done to enable a lively, interactive and safe environment to meet and exchange.

The [BC]2 registration fee includes access to: all conference sessions, lunch and coffee breaks as well as social events. The participation in tutorials and workshops or the Elixir Innovation & SME Forum on 13 September should be booked on top by selecting the appropriate option in the registration process.

All speakers and poster presenters will be on-site. The tutorials & workshop sessions as well as the social activities will only be available on-site.


 Early-bird registration Normal registration

12 May – 11 July 12 July – 5 September



Students (BSc, MSc or PhD student) 2) CHF 350.- CHF 450.-
Academic institutions 3) CHF 450.- CHF 550.-
Private sector 4) CHF 600.- CHF 700.-
Tutorials & workshops CHF 120.- CHF 150.-
ELIXIR Innovation & SME Forum 5) CHF 0.- CHF 0.-


1) SIB Employees and Members benefit from reduced on-site registration fees. Please follow the guidelines described in SIB’s intranet to activate the discount.

2) A valid student ID, or a certificate confirming your current inscription in an undergraduate programme, has to be shown at the registration desk to access the conference centre.

3) University hospitals and non-profit organisations are counted as academic institutions.

4) Discounts for start-ups and private institutions with less than 10 employees are available. Please contact us at bc2@sib.swiss and we will provide you with more information on how to register.

5) The ELIXIR Innovation and SME Forum is supported by the European Commission thus allowing all attendees to participate free of charge.


Virtual registration fees 1)

The [BC]2 virtual registration fee includes access to all talks during the conference sessions. Social events as well as the tutorials & workshops however, can only be joined on-site.

Knowing the difficulties the current situation poses to travelling and in an effort to increase the participation of scientists based in other continents, we have decided to provide all participants with the possibility to join virtually.


 Early-bird registration Normal registration

12 May – 11 July 12 July – 5 September



Students (BSc, MSc or PhD student) 2) CHF 150.- CHF 200.-
Academic institutions and
private sector		 CHF 200.- CHF 250.-
ELIXIR Innovation & SME Forum 3) CHF 0.- CHF 0.-


1) SIB Employees and Members benefit from reduced registration fees. Please follow the guidelines described in SIB’s intranet to activate the discount.

2) A valid student ID, or a certificate confirming your current inscription in an undergraduate programme needs to be sent to bc2@sib.swiss.

3) The ELIXIR Innovation and SME Forum is supported by the European Commission thus allowing all attendees to participate free of charge.

Please note:

It is possible to change your virtual participation registration category to an on-site participation registration category should travel restrictions applying to your situation be suddenly changed. However, you will have to pay the difference in registration fees. In case you booked your virtual registration during the early-bird registration period (12 May – 11 July), but would like to change to an on-site participation after the early-bird registration period (12 July – 5 September), you will only have to pay the difference between the early-bird virtual and on-site registration fees.

Cancellation policy

Any cancellation (COVID-19 related or not, see below) needs to be announced by email to the [BC]2 conference organisers at bc2@sib.swiss within the below mentioned deadlines. 


General cancellation

Cancellations due to non-COVID-19 related reasons are subject to the following regulations:

  • Cancellation until 12 August: 50% of the registration fees will be reimbursed.
  • Cancellation after 12 August: no registration fee will be reimbursed.


Cancellation due to a positive COVID-19 test, quarantine or travel restrictions

In case

  • you have been tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 (medical certificate needed) right before the conference;
  • you are prevented from attending due to a imposed quarantine (written proof from a local healthcare centre needed);
  • you are prevented from entering Switzerland due to changed COVID-19 travel restrictions;

it is possible to cancel your participation in [BC]2 at any time. The full conference registration fee will be reimbursed. Your cancellation needs to be announced by email to bc2@sib.swiss with the required documents attached.

Visa applications

Since 12 December 2008 Switzerland has been an associated member state of the Schengen agreement and hence part of the Schengen area. The Schengen regulations apply for the entry and a stay that is not subject to authorisation up to three months. For individuals who are required to hold a visa, Switzerland will issue a Schengen visa for a stay up to three months that are valid for the whole Schengen area.

For details about visa requirements for Switzerland, please contact your local Swiss consulate or the homepage of the Swiss Confederation.

Should you be in need of an Invitation Letter for your visa application, please have a look at the section Invitation Letter.

Invitation Letter

Should you need an Invitation Letter to prove that your abstract submission and registration are accepted by the conference organizers, please let us know. This letter can for example be helpful for applying for a visa, but does not guarantee that you will be granted one. The visa application process is independent of the [BC]2 Basel Computational Biology Conference and we are not in touch with the responsible administrations.

If you require an Invitation Letter, please provide us with the following details:

  • Your full name (as stated on your passport)
  • Your affiliation
  • A scan of your passport (if for visa)
  • Your phone number (if for visa)

The Invitation Letter will be sent in English to the email address you used to connect to the [BC]2 conference platform. Invitation Letters can only be issued, if your abstract was approved by the scientific committee or if you successfully registered to the conference.