When my boyfriend moved here we wanted to get a visa for me too eventhough I was not planning on working. We hired an attorney (who turned out to NOT be an immigration lawyer), paid him CHF2000, he turned out to be a total idiot, did not know the laws and was not interested in learning. My boyfriend and I have a "Living together agreement, he told us we needed to have that translated at the cost of CHF3500, at that point we thought why do I even need a visa since I am coming and going and not working. So we told him to forget it and that we do not want to pursue the situation. He went ahead and had the agreement translated and now he wants the money. I am furious. I want to file a complaint with the bar association, but I don't want to rock any boats until I buy a house in France and get out of here. He is so bad that it is making me wonder whether he has it all together. I really think he should be reported since he is incompetent and acting as an immigration lawyer when he is not (they don't have immigration as one of their specialties on theirwebsite which I figured out after I came here). He still has no idea that I don't need a visa. I have enough money to live here without working without my boyfriend's money so I think he just wants $$$.
Do you have any suggestion regarding reporting him?
He put such a bad impression on us that we have decided to move out of Switzerland.
Thanks.

That he gouged you a bit, there's no doubt. However in all fairness as a US national you do need a residence permit if you wish to stay here past the usual tourist stay.

Had I applied for the residence permit (which I found out later) on my own from the States, it would have been much easier and it would have cost about $100.

have u followed up your instructions (non instructions) in writing documenting your dispute by registered post?

JulieW - it sounds from your post that you somehow imagined this guy would fix your situation, but that you are in fact living in Switzerland without a permit.

Is this correct?

I strongly suggest that you browse other threads on this forum which have dealt with this kind of issue. "Lawyers", bogus or not, do not arrange permits. Employers and the authorities do this. Generally partners are not given permits unless they are married.

If you have lived in Switzerland for more than 90 days, you could be in serious trouble. Having some clown spoil your experience of Switzerland is a shame, but if the authorities get wind of this they'll deport you.

Consider your situation very carefully please.

I'm sorry if I've misunderstood your situation, I had difficulties at times trying to understand your original post.

Everything is in email. I told him what to do in an email that he never read since his answer was not relevant to my instructions. Anyway, we have decided to move and I am not here more than 180 days during the year. We are trying to dispute the charges but I am not sure what will come out of it. I will file a complaint once we move out of Switzerland with the Zurich bar association, only because I don't think he should practice immigration law since he has no knowledge of immigration laws.
Thank you all for your response, you are all very nice. I love this forum.

Mark,
I do not need a permit. I am not living here full time. I come and go to see my partner. Sorry if I did not make sense.
Thanks.

Ok, well in that case you can't work, as you already know. Remember that you are not allowed to stay more than 90 days. There may be ways to get permits, but paying a lawyer isn't one of them. You can browse / search for other threads that give advice on this topic.

Thanks for your reply.
I never did come here with the intention to work (I couldn't even I wanted to since I don't speak the language). I just wanted to be able to come and go with no problem. That's why we hired the lawyer.

There are companies specialising in helping to obtain residence and work permits - I won't plug them here because they are easily found on the internet. The usual fee appears to be around 3000 CHF.

Such firms don't appear to do anything that could not be done on your own if you're prepared to do the homework but they could be a comfort zone for some. They cannot, of course, create a magic permit so if you don't qualify you are probably wasting money.

In this case the missing part for me is the contract. It could be argued that the emails consitute a contract but whether it would be worth fighting this in court is debateable. If you gave a clear instruction to him not to proceed with the translation (3500 CHF? How big was it, my better half would do it for 75 CHF a page ) and have evidence to that effect then remind him of that fact and that you will not pay the invoice. I do not think he could win an action on this - but then I'm not a lawyer .

Sometimes permits for non-married couples are not generally given. But it is not impossible.

Julie, I would definitely dispute the charges. He must prove that you gave in directions to do this translation.

Also, I'm interested that you were able to get a permit in France easier than in Switzerland. Usually, it the other way around. You should be careful though. If you do have money to live on without working, your takes in France on your "fortune" will be quite high.

Good luck where ever you end up!