Acquiring Swiss nationality by regular naturalisation

The Confederation sets only the minimum conditions for the regular naturalisation procedure. The cantonal authorities can impose additional conditions for naturalisation.

Since 1 January 2018, under article 9 SCA, as a foreign national with a valid permanent residence permit (permit C), you can submit an application for regular naturalisation at any time after your ninth birthday if you have lived in Switzerland for at least 10 years (calculated from the date you submitted your request for residence), to include a three-year uninterrupted stay during the 5 years preceding your application.

Years spent in Switzerland between the ages of 8 and 18 count double. There is however a minimum required stay of 6 years.

In addition, years in which you held a permit N (asylum seeker), G (cross-border commuter), S (person in need of protection) or L (short-term resident) do not count. Time during which you held a legitimation card (or a similar residence permit such as a permit Ci) does count, and time spent with a permit F (temporary permit) is halved and counted (article 33 SCA).

In consequence, if you are physically living in Switzerland but are not entitled to do so under the Federal Act on Foreign Nationals and Integration (FNIA; RS 142.20), or if you hold the required authorisation but do not actually live in Switzerland, you do not meet the residency conditions laid down by federal law and are not entitled to the Swiss nationality.

So, you are required to prove that you fulfil the Swiss residency condition: that you have established a stable, long-term home in Switzerland. You must have family, professional or educational ties with the place in which you live, and specific material ties that demonstrate that this is the centre of your interests in Switzerland.

Formerly, if you made your application with your husband or wife, and only one of you met the conditions set out above, a stay of 5 years, to include the year before the application was submitted, was acceptable for the second spouse so long as you had been living together for 3 years. Unfortunately, as of 2018, this option is no longer available. To be eligible for Swiss nationality, each spouse must now meet the residency conditions individually.

However, simplified naturalisation still exists for foreign spouses of Swiss citizens, except where they have been naturalised under the regular procedure since the wedding. (Conditions: have lived together for 3 years and have lived in Switzerland for 5 years, including the year before the application is submitted.) The same rules apply if you are a foreign national in a registered partnership, but your partner will be required to apply for regular naturalisation (permit C required) and not simplified naturalisation (article 10 SCA).

Generally, your children under 18 are included in your naturalisation application, so long as they live with you (article 30 SCA). Children aged under 2 are included without any further formalities. From 2 upwards, they are included so long as they have been living in Switzerland for at least two years. In this case, the child’s naturalisation application is made by their legal representative. (Both parents’ consent is however required, except if an exception is unavoidable.) Young people over 16 but under 18 must express their intention to acquire Swiss nationality in writing. Finally, please note that for children aged 12 and over, the conditions outlined below (integration, etc.) will be examined separately as appropriate to the age of the child.

As a general rule, your child’s age when the application is made is taken into account when deciding whether they are included in a naturalisation authorisation. However, there are exceptions in some cantons (Geneva is one) if the child reaches 18 years of age before the parents are naturalised.

A child not included in a naturalisation application made by one of their parents (where the child was under 18 when the parent in question submitted their naturalisation application) can submit a simplified naturalisation application before their 22nd birthday, if they have lived in Switzerland for a total of 5 years, including the three years before the application is made (art. 24 SCA).

In addition to the conditions set out above, you must meet the other requirements for regular Swiss nationality, and in particular those set by the canton and commune.

Before the authorities grant the federal naturalisation authorisation (see XI) below), they will check that you meet the requirements for Swiss nationality (art. 11 and 12 SCA).

In particular, they will ensure that you:

• are integrated into Swiss society; (you have the ability to communicate in a national language in everyday situations, both orally and in writing, article 6 SCO);
• are accustomed to the Swiss lifestyle and Swiss customs (article 2 SCO);
• show respect for public security and order (clear criminal record both in Switzerland and abroad, no debt enforcement or insolvency proceedings in the last five years, no wages withheld, all taxes, child maintenance, rent, social charges and fines paid and you have not publicly expressed support for a crime against public order, a genocide, a crime against humanity, etc., article 4 SCO);
• show respect for the values of the Constitution (fundamental rights, military service, democracy, principle of compulsory schooling, liability to taxation, etc., article 5 SCO);
• are contributing to the country’s economy or completing your education (in employment or education, not reliant on welfare benefits, article 7 SCO);
• do not pose a threat to Switzerland’s internal or external security (terrorism, violent extremism, organised crime, espionage, etc., article 3 SCO);
• encourage and support the integration of your spouse, your registered partner and your children under 18 for whom you hold parental responsibility (article 8 SCO).

As regards familiarisation with the Swiss lifestyle, the authorities will look particularly closely at whether you have a knowledge of Swiss geography, history, politics (civil rights, political structure, legal system, etc.), society (Swiss traditions, social security, health, education, etc.), and whether you take an active part in the social life and customs of the Swiss population and are in contact with Swiss people (article 2 SCO).

Under article 7 SCO, as an applicant for Swiss nationality you must be capable of supporting yourself and your family (housing, food, taxes, travel, insurance etc.) as far as you can predict, via an income, your wealth or payments such as pensions to which you are entitled. If you are in receipt of welfare benefits during the three years before you submit your application or during the Swiss nationality procedure, you will not be judged to have met the requirement to contribute to the country’s economy or continue your education, unless you have repaid those benefits in full. It is important to note that children listed on the naturalisation application can be naturalised even if the parents are in receipt of welfare benefits.

Naturally, if you are unable to meet or have difficulty meeting the integration conditions because you are sick or disabled or for another significant personal reason, your situation will be taken into account (article 9 SCO).

Failing to comply with a provision of the law on a single occasion or committing a minor offence is not an obstacle to Swiss nationality. However, repeated minor offences are considered, collectively, as a major violation of public security and order. If you are in the process of being prosecuted for a crime, your Swiss nationality application will be suspended until the criminal justice system has closed your case. This includes any case brought abroad.

Lastly, under article 8 SCO, you are required (by your financial contributions and your practical and moral support) to encourage members of your family to mix with the Swiss population, to help them learn a national language and to support them in contributing to the country’s economy or completing their education. You are also required to encourage them to take part in cultural and social events with Swiss people (in the commune, in the canton and at federal level) and in any other activities that will help them to integrate in Switzerland (clubs and organisations – sporting, cultural, social, political or similar). Of course, there is no obligation to succeed; you cannot force members of your family to integrate. Only your behaviour, as the applicant, will be analysed.

It is important to note that the Confederation’s role, at federal level, is mainly to ensure that you comply with the rule of law in Switzerland and do not pose a threat to Switzerland’s internal or external security. Local authorities, at canton and in particular commune level, are better placed to check that you are integrated into Swiss society and have adapted to the Swiss lifestyle and Swiss customs. Consequently, the Confederation makes only a cursory assessment of the latter two conditions.

You must fulfil all the material conditions for regular naturalisation, both when you submit your application and when the Swiss nationality decision is communicated to you.