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SWISS CITIZENSHIP

When can I start counting my residency in Switzerland towards citizenship?

The path towards a Swiss passport is generally long, but some applicants face a shorter wait than others.

Published: 22 April 2024 10:38 CEST
When can I start counting my residency in Switzerland towards citizenship?
In this case, the wait for Swiss citizenship is shortest. Photo: Pixabay

If you are newly arrived in Switzerland and your ultimate goal is to become a Swiss citizen, then you should arm yourself with patience.

Just how much patience will depend on various factors, but in all cases, be ready for this process to be rather lengthy.

Here’s what you should know.

Step one: from B to C

The official wait period begins the day you receive your C permit, the only stepping-stone for a foreigner towards Swiss citizenship (read more about this below).

However, the actual countdown starts even earlier, when you first obtain your B permit.

This means you are allowed to live and work in Switzerland for up to five years, though this can be extended further.

But the length of time before you are eligible to switch from B permit to  C depends on whether you come from the EU/ EFTA or from third countries.

If you are a citizen of the EU or EFTA (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein), and live in Switzerland on a B permit continuously for five years, you can apply for the C permit, provided you meet all the requirements, such as language proficiency and integration criteria.

If, however, you come from non-EU / EFTA states (including the UK), then your wait to ‘upgrade’ from a B to C permit is twice as long — 10 continuous years, also provided you fulfil all the above-mentioned criteria.

There are, however, some exemptions from these rules.

For instance, Americans and Canadians are on par with their EU / EFTA counterparts: they can also apply for a C permit after five years of continuous residence on a B permit.

There are other exceptions as well: if you are a non-EU / EFTA spouse or the minor child of a Swiss citizen or a permit C holder, you too can apply for a C permit after five years.

So, depending on your nationality or personal circumstances, you will be able to switch from a B to C permit after either five or 10 years.

READ ALSO: When will my Swiss B permit be switched to a C? 

Step two: C permit

Once you receive this permit, nothing stops you from advancing to the next level — you have been vetted by the authorities and cleared for citizenship.

Nothing, that is, except a wait that is more or less long, depending on your circumstances.

At this point, however, it is not your nationality that determines how long the wait will be, but rather the kind of naturalisation procedure you qualify for.

Most foreigners go through the ‘ordinary’ process, which means you will have to wait 10 years after getting the C permit before you can apply. 

If, however, you are eligible for the simplified / fast-track procedure (for instance, spouses or children of Swiss citizens, as well as third-generation foreigners), then your wait is cut in half, to five years.

READ ALSO: Five ways you can fast-track your route to Swiss citizenship 

So if you do the math, your wait under the ‘best-case’ scenario is 10 years and in the ‘worst’, 20.

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For members

SWISS CITIZENSHIP

EXPLAINED: How to speed up your Swiss citizenship application

The naturalisation process in Switzerland is quite slow as it makes its way through two levels of the government — cantonal and municipal. But can be accelerated in certain cases?

Published: 25 April 2024 14:45 CEST
EXPLAINED: How to speed up your Swiss citizenship application

You have waited a long time (more than a decade in most cases) to be able to apply for Swiss  citizenship, so when you do, you may be eager to hasten the process.

The Swiss (and that includes the government) don’t like to be rushed, and that penchant for slow deliberations includes naturalisation procedures. The usual wait time from the moment you apply and receive your citizenship is typically between 12 months and two years.

Usually, the wait time is shorter for those applying for the fast-track naturalisation — for instance, people married to a Swiss citizen, or foreigners born in Switzerland — than for people going through the ‘regular’ process.
 
READ ALSO: Five ways you can fast-track your route to Swiss citizenship

Is there a way to make the process go faster?

You can’t jump the line or ask the cantonal or municipal authorities responsible for naturalisation procedures to hurry up.

In fact, such as a move could ‘red-flag’ you as a candidate unworthy of Swiss citizenship because impatience and not following the proper due course could be seen as lack of integration.

There are, however, ways to speed up the process in other ways.

You can do so by following the application instructions to the letter, that is, knowing what documents you need to submit with your application, and making sure you have all the required  paperwork (read more about this below).

This is especially important if you apply in a canton with a high volume of citizenship applications, like Geneva, Vaud, and Zurich, because the wait there will be all that much longer if authorities inform you that such or such document is missing and you still need to send it in.

How should you apply to ensure the smoothest possible process?

This may sound evident, but many applicants may not know where to send in their application.

It should be submitted to authorities in your canton of residence.

What documents should you send in with your application?

All cantons require you to submit a copy of your C permit, and proof of language proficiency acquired from a registered language school in Switzerland.

Other requirements may vary from canton to canton, but they are also likely to include (as, for instance, in Geneva):

  • An extract from the Swiss civil status register, not older than six months
  • A certificate from the tax administration, dated less than three months;
  • A certificate from the prosecution office, less than three months old;
  • A certificate of successful completion of the test validating knowledge of history, geography, as well as Swiss and cantonal institutions.

It goes without saying that if you send in your application but one of the necessary documents is missing, then your application will be put on hold until you provide what’s needed. That will delay the whole process.

So it follows that the best way to ‘speed up’ the entire procedure is to practice the Swiss qualities or organisation and preparedness.

READ ALSO: When can I start counting my residency in Switzerland towards citizenship?

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