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WORKING IN SWITZERLAND

Will non-EU graduates ever get green-light to stay in Switzerland?

Swiss MPs have been debating for months about allowing certain students from non-EU /EFTA nations to remain in the country after graduation. So what's happening with the plan?

Published: 20 December 2023 11:18 CET
Updated: 12 January 2024 11:49 CET
Will non-EU graduates ever get green-light to stay in Switzerland?
A limited number of non- EU students could be permitted to stay in Switzerland. Photo by Dom Fou on Unsplash

Under the current rules, any students who don’t come from the European Union, or Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein (EFTA) must return to their home countries after finishing their studies.

That’s because third-country foreigners are subject to quotas, the number of which is restricted, and set on annual basis depending on the needs of Switzerland’s economy.

This means that in 2024, up to 8,500 skilled workers can again be recruited from third countries: 4,500 will get a B residence permit, and 4,000 a short-term  L permit. 

UK citizens are eligible for separate quotas as part of a transitional post-Brexit arrangement: 2,100 B and 1,400 L permits are set aside just for them.

Non-EU / EFTA graduates would fall under this quota, along with ‘regular’ workers from these countries.

However, in March, 2023 MPs voted to allow these foreign students to stay on in Switzerland and work after they graduate, provided they obtain their degrees in fields that are needed — but are in short supply — in the labour market.  

But the project had hit a roadblock in September last year, when MPs realised no legal basis exists to allow foreigners subject to quotas to live in Switzerland indefinitely, on the same basis as their EU /EFTA counterparts.

Therefore, exemption clauses for third country nationals who graduate from Swiss universities with in-demand skills must be created before progress can be made on this issue.

READ ALSO: Why has the move to let non-EU graduates stay in Switzerland stalled?

What is the status of this project now?

The issue has been debated again during the current (winter) parliamentary session.

In December, the National Council decided that it is up to the Federal Council to tackle this problem from the constitutional point of view. 

The chances of success are promising though.

According to the Justice Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, exemptions from the quota system could be granted to some qualifying non-EU graduates.

That’s because such exemptions are compatible with Article 121a of the Constitution on quotas — as long as the number of people concerned is limited. 

As things stand currently, the political will to resolve this issue is gaining momentum, and it is just a matter of time before a legal  basis to allow some foreign graduates to work in Switzerland is created.

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JOBS

Which professions in Switzerland are harder for foreigners to break into?

In many sectors of Switzerland’s economy, Swiss employees prevail over foreign ones — and vice-versa.

Published: 15 May 2024 14:40 CEST
Which professions in Switzerland are harder for foreigners to break into?

In the past, the ‘division of labour’ in Switzerland was clear: foreign nationals held mostly manual (and therefore lower-paid) jobs, while the Swiss worked in managerial / executive and other middle and high positions.

Many sectors still follow these traditional roles, with some jobs held almost exclusively by Swiss citizens, and others by foreign nationals.

Which jobs are mostly held by the Swiss?

To find this out, the Basel-based consultancy firm, Demografik, surveyed professions with more than 10,000 employees.

It found that “about 60 percent of the country’s masons and flooring installers are foreign-born,” Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), reported.

The comparable figure among the country’s unskilled workers as a whole is even higher —  84 percent.

“Swiss nationals also make up only a third of kitchen assistants and cleaning staffers” — jobs typically held by immigrants with no higher education or vocational training.

On the other hand, Swiss citizens hold a number of jobs that are almost unattainable for unskilled foreign nationals, including police officers, teachers, lawyers, senior administrative staff, and social workers.

Only a small percentage of immigrants work in these professions.

However, they dominate fields such as service staff, chauffeurs, unskilled industrial workers, and construction — jobs where very few Swiss can be found.

Why is this?

“The proportion of foreign workers is highest in jobs that are generally considered unappealing – whether because of the low pay, high level of physical demands or irregular working hours,” said Demografik economist Lisa Triolo.

“Nevertheless, these professions are important for the functioning of the economy, because they are difficult to automate.”

Triolo also found that foreigners mainly work in areas where recruiting employees has been difficult.

“The longer the vacancy period in an occupational group, the higher the proportion of foreigners,” she pointed out.  “For example, construction is the sector in which companies take the longest to fill an open position.”

Is this survey objective?

It is, if you focus primarily on unskilled foreign workers, who basically take on jobs that the Swiss don’t want.

The picture is different, however, if you include skilled professionals into the mix.

Many of them hold the same positions, and earn equal or even higher wages, than their Swiss counterparts.

READ ALSO: In which jobs in Switzerland do foreign workers earn more than the Swiss? 

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