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Two passports: What dual nationals in Switzerland should know when travelling

Holding two citizenships can be an advantage but is also sometimes subject to some rules. This is what people with dual multi-nationalities should know when travelling from and to Switzerland.

Published: 5 September 2022 16:39 CEST
Updated: 28 June 2023 14:29 CEST
Two passports: What dual nationals in Switzerland should know when travelling
When arriving in Switzerland, this passport is best. Photo by: Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP

For many readers of The Local, gaining Swiss citizenship helps them to feel more settled – but there are also travel benefits, including avoiding the long queues reserved for foreigners when arriving in Switzerland.

Citizens of the European Union can also enter Switzerland freely, through the same quick line.

This no-hassle access has especially been an issue for British citizens. Before Brexit, they could whizz through the CH / EU passport control line at the airport. Now, however, they have to queue up with third-country nationals.

What if a UK citizen is also a Swiss national?

Then it’s much easier. They, as well as all dual citizens (of Switzerland and another country), are obviously much better off travelling with both passports — presenting the Swiss (or EU) one when arriving in Switzerland for a quicker, headache-free entry, and showing the British one when passing through immigration control into the UK – for very same reasons.

This was made clear recently when Financial Times journalist Chris Giles last year tweeted that the UK Border Force “detained” his dual-national daughter while she was travelling from France into the UK with her German passport – and not her British one. 

He went on to say that UK border guards released his daughter. According to Giles, the border staff said she should have had both passports with her “and asked why she was travelling on her German one”.

So the lesson here is clear: even though you are not breaking any laws (at least not Swiss ones), if you travel with your ‘other’ identity papers when arriving in Switzerland, presenting your country-specific passport is much simpler.

There is also another reason why a dual national is better off showing the Swiss passport when entering Switzerland.

As one reader with the America /Swiss nationality told The Local, she once inadvertently showed her US passport when arriving in Geneva from the United States.

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While there is nothing illegal about that, the immigration officer asked her how long she plans to stay in Switzerland. When she said “I live here”, he asked for her residence permit. When she replied that she is also a citizen of Switzerland, the man asked for her Swiss passport, telling her she will find it easier in the future to automatically present her Swiss ID when arriving in the country.

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The United States is an exception to the rule

While the dual US-Swiss citizen is better off, for practical reasons shown in the above example, presenting the Swiss passport when entering Switzerland, that choice doesn’t exist when travelling to the United States.

According to the US State Department, “US nationals, including dual nationals, must use a US passport to enter and leave the United States”.

The reason for this rule is not given, though the US has a conflicting stance on Americans willingly applying for another citizenship.

While it accepts that people born abroad may be automatically considered a citizen of that country, the US government balks at anyone voluntarily applying for another passport.

“A person who acquires a foreign citizenship by applying for it may lose US citizenship”, the State Department says. “In order to lose US citizenship, the law requires that the person must apply for the foreign citizenship voluntarily, by free choice, and with the intention to give up US citizenship”.

Judging by Switzerland alone (though the situation is likely similar in other countries as well), while some Americans do give up their US passports when becoming Swiss, many others don’t.

So never show any other passport than the American one when coming to and leaving the USA.

The State Department doesn’t mention what the penalty for this “infraction” could be, but it’s better not to find out.

READ: How to apply for Swiss citizenship: An essential guide

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SWISS CITIZENSHIP

Why are wealthy foreign residents far more likely to become Swiss citizens?

Getting a Swiss passport can be a lengthy procedure even under the best circumstances. But as a new study reveals, the process is even more onerous for low-income candidates.

Published: 24 May 2024 11:26 CEST
Why are wealthy foreign residents far more likely to become Swiss citizens?

The survey, carried out by researchers from the Universities of Geneva, Neuchâtel and Basel on behalf of the Federal Migration Commission, shows the effects of the law enacted in 2018 on ordinary naturalisation.

Specifically, the study report indicates that nearly two-thirds of naturalisation applications are submitted by “highly qualified and wealthy people,” the Federal Council said on Thursday.

“The share of highly skilled and affluent people has increased significantly, and the number of low-skilled and lower-income people has dropped considerably,” according to the Federal Council.

Applications from people who only had a compulsory-level education dropped from 23.9 percent to 8.5 percent.

“Highly qualified foreigners, on the other hand, represent 57 percent of naturalised citizens, compared to one-third under the old law.”

Why is this?

In 2018, new, more restrictive criteria for naturalisation were introduced.

From then on, only C-permit holders living in Switzerland for at least 10 years are eligible to apply for citizenship.

Furthermore, to be naturalised, candidates must meet new integration criteria, including tougher language skills and economic independence requirements.

“For low-skilled and less well-off people, overcoming these pitfalls is a challenge, as it is more difficult for them to acquire the necessary written and oral language skills,” the Federal  Council pointed out.

“In addition, for them the risk of having to resort to social assistance is higher.”

Receiving financial aid from the government precludes naturalisation; neither federal nor cantonal / communal naturalisation commissions will grant citizenship to foreigners who have been receiving public money, even if they meet all the other requirements.

That’s because part of the integration definition is “personal responsibility, self-sufficiency, and participation in the country’s economy.”

This means applicants should be working and earning money rather than relying on the government to support them.

The same applies to people who have active debt collection proceedings against them.

To authorities, both these cases show that the applicant is not sufficiently integrated to merit a Swiss passport — even though such conditions often cannot be met by low-earners.

In fact, many of these people may not even qualify for a C permit, which is required for naturalisation.

“People with low qualifications or those from the asylum field are increasingly excluded from the naturalisation procedure,” said Manuele Bertoli, president of the Federal Migration Commission.

“This is due to stricter criteria and because the obstacles have been clearly raised. Access to naturalization should be designed in such a way that it serves the integration of society as a whole.”

Why are only people applying for ordinary, rather than simplified naturalisation, concerned?

That’s because conditions for the facilitated (also called ‘fast-track) procedure are less strict, as  they apply mostly to spouses of Swiss citizens, people born in Switzerland to foreign parents, and children of Swiss parents — either biological or adopted.

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

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