Hello!

In september my 5 year 'B' permit comes to an end. I received it when I got married to my Swiss wife.

What do I have to do - am I supposed to contact the relevant departments or do I leave everything up to them?

Does anybody know whether it will automatically convert to a 'C' permit or to a Swiss passport???

Thanks in advance!

you'll get either another B or more likely a C. When you change to C, you'll get to pay tax differently.

you will not get a passport. You need to be married 3 years and resident 5 to qualify for facilitated naturalisation (search the site, it's covered).

hallo Tony,

since you got a 5 years B permission I guess you have an EU/EFTA passport?

Then you can apply allready for swiss citizenship (since you are married to a swiss). check it out with the Einwohnerkontrolle.

as for the extension of your permit: you will receive a letter from the Einwohnerkontrolle inviting you to ..er...extend it. However if you wish to change to a C or ask for the citizenship, it is better to contact them.

This from my own experience.


tak

Actually you can just email the BFM and your community will become involved later on in this (Federal) process:
http://bfm.mit.ch/index.php?id=141&L=3

my 5 year b permit expires in august but the difference is i am not married.

can i also apply for a c permit?

krlock3

thanks guys...

Well I received the permit when I got married in February 2003, although the date of entry for the permit was september 2002 (when I first arrived in Schweiz)... so thus from september I will qualify for citizenship - non?

So it seems it will transfer to a permit C then... although tax wise it will remain the same (I already pay the same as a Swiss).

However my understanding is that rather than give out a permit C, then they would rather see full integration by granting Swiss nationality to a person rather than giving out permits...

you still have to apply for it. If you do it via email, you quickly get a reply like this:

I am not sure on the time limit

I got married in October 2001 and have been told that I cannot apply until October 2007.

Your best bet is to mail them and ask

Yes, but have you been living in Switzerland since 2001?

I arrived in Switzerland officially on the 20th september 2002. This september I will have been here for 5 years and married for over 4 years - thus I meet the criteria, or so it seems!

My greatest worry is whether they will test my language abilities or not... although I think I might just scrape by...

No, as far as I see it you have to be resident here for 12 years before you the right to be Swiss.

...however I just read this:::::::::::::

3. Article 29 Naturalization Act
A foreigner national who has lived in Switzerland for at least five years, believing in good faith that he/she was a Swiss citizen and has been, in fact, treated as such by the cantonal or communal authorities. Very rare in practice.

Might be worth trying...

12 years for normal naturalisation - localised process
5 years for facilitated with 3 years married required too - federal process

so does the fact that it would be a federal decision bare any consequence to the fact that you may face the requirement of being interviewed???

...or grilled?

hallo Tony et.al.

You can choose between a C permit or swiss nationality. Depending on bilateral agreements you might loose your original nationality/passport if you become a swiss citizen and many people do not want that-thus the choice of having a C permit.
According then to whether you are married to a swiss or not and your original nationality (EU/EFTA or other) varies the time you have to spend as a resident before you can aplly for swiss citizenship.
All this is best asked in the Einwohnerkontrolle (they have all kinds of broschures) or find all info online here:

http://www.bfm.admin.ch/bfm/en/home/...ufenthalt.html



Tak

you are still likely to have an "interview" but the process is very much shorter both in paperwork, time and cost.

you will still need to get a new permit because it will take time. But your permit is a formality.

well...i only got a phone call that lasted all of two minutes and that was it...bit of an anticlimax really.I was looking forward to an interview (grilling as you would say) I could then recount for years after...
I do like my fancy red designer passport though.

As I said

Email them and ask

.....I hope you're practising the Swiss National song....

I have it on my karaoke machine

Do you mean::::::::

"Rufst Du mein Vaterland"....?

to this tune? http://www.nationalanthems.info/gb.mid

It was like that once upon a time....

Hopefully it won't be like since the OP lives in GVA....