4 ms·

How was the process of obtaining a work visa / citizenship?

lukeqsee 7y ago
It took me about 10 minutes at the local city hall. However, my wife is Swiss, so I'm very much an exception. If you don't have a familial connection, you need to find a job, and the company will need to prove they couldn't find a local Swiss resident/citizen that could have done the same job, so it's a bit harder to get in than Germany or other areas of the EU. Edit: I'm on a multi-year residency visa. I'll need to renew once more before I'm eligible for citizenship (after ~5 years).
- vinay427 7y ago
  No, they need to prove that they can't find a Swiss/EU/EEA citizen (not necessarily a resident, just an applicant) that could do the same job. EU/EEA citizens are on par with Swiss citizens in every sector except for possibly civil service, at least for now, though referendums repeatedly seem to pass that would limit this freedom for both sides.
mytailorisrich 7y ago
Make sure you are knowledgeable about raclette. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180604/brit-denied-swiss-citizenship-after-failing-raclette-question https://www.thelocal.ch/20180604/brit-denied-swiss-citizensh...
- lukeqsee 7y ago
  I've heard similar stories, but all of the regulation surrounding citizenship is not so homogeneous between towns, cantons, etc. So some cantons might only require a basic understanding while others grill you like this. It'll be a few years before I discover how it is in St. Gallen. :)
  - vinay427 7y ago
    Based on the commune/canton residency restrictions in St. Gallen for naturalizing, I can't imagine they'd love to see people completing the process. :/
- krion 7y ago
  in 20th century they called it fascism
netsharc 7y ago
It's probably easier applying to a company in the EU, if you google "EU blue card program", for IT jobs, if you have a university degree and a job offer from a company, you'll get a residency permit (what you're calling a work visa). If you really want to move to Switzerland, be a taxpayer for 7 years in Germany, learn German, stay out of trouble and unemployment, and you can apply to be a German citizen. After that, moving to Switzerland is easy: show the authorities your job contract with a Swiss company, they're obliged to give you a residency permit (at least that's the arrangement they have with the EU at the moment)

It took me about 10 minutes at the local city hall. However, my wife is Swiss, so I'm very much an exception. If you don't have a familial connection, you need to find a job, and the company will need to prove they couldn't find a local Swiss resident/citizen that could have done the same job, so it's a bit harder to get in than Germany or other areas of the EU. Edit: I'm on a multi-year residency visa. I'll need to renew once more before I'm eligible for citizenship (after ~5 years).

vinay427 7y ago
No, they need to prove that they can't find a Swiss/EU/EEA citizen (not necessarily a resident, just an applicant) that could do the same job. EU/EEA citizens are on par with Swiss citizens in every sector except for possibly civil service, at least for now, though referendums repeatedly seem to pass that would limit this freedom for both sides.

mytailorisrich 7y ago

Make sure you are knowledgeable about raclette. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180604/brit-denied-swiss-citizenship-after-failing-raclette-question https://www.thelocal.ch/20180604/brit-denied-swiss-citizensh...

lukeqsee 7y ago
I've heard similar stories, but all of the regulation surrounding citizenship is not so homogeneous between towns, cantons, etc. So some cantons might only require a basic understanding while others grill you like this. It'll be a few years before I discover how it is in St. Gallen. :)
- vinay427 7y ago
  Based on the commune/canton residency restrictions in St. Gallen for naturalizing, I can't imagine they'd love to see people completing the process. :/
krion 7y ago
in 20th century they called it fascism

netsharc 7y ago

It's probably easier applying to a company in the EU, if you google "EU blue card program", for IT jobs, if you have a university degree and a job offer from a company, you'll get a residency permit (what you're calling a work visa). If you really want to move to Switzerland, be a taxpayer for 7 years in Germany, learn German, stay out of trouble and unemployment, and you can apply to be a German citizen. After that, moving to Switzerland is easy: show the authorities your job contract with a Swiss company, they're obliged to give you a residency permit (at least that's the arrangement they have with the EU at the moment)