Hello! Yes, my process finished... years ago. I've been a Swiss citizen for several years now.

I know the thread has become huge, but there is a lot of good information here, I recommend you read it all.

Cheers,
Gonzus

Dear forum,

Long-time lurker, recently naturalized Swissie living abroad. It is time to pay back for all the guidance provided here before the process - and especially during those waiting periods that felt like they would never end

First of all, big ups to gonzus, whose post on the “six criteria” I read back in 2014 and which became my guiding light during the preparations (yes, I joined a Swiss club in my country thanks to you!). I am greatly indebted.

(from this post)

As for an addendum, “criteria zero” if you are living abroad and never had the dubious pleasure of dealing with B-permits and C-permits is: you have to know that the process exists in the first place!

I did the facilitated naturalization process under Article 28 of the old Swiss Citizenship Act (six years of marriage to a Swiss citizen, living abroad), which is now covered in Article 21, Section 2 of the new Swiss Citizenship Act. My reading of the different versions of the SCA is that, while the language requirement has become firm and the minimum duration of visits has been increased, the criteria have also become a lot more explicit and clear. While you can approach the them in a paint-by-numbers fashion, attempting to “game” them, doing so will have the beautiful side effect of actually making you form the close ties they are designed to measure.

For applicants under the new law, the text of the SCA is here (the English version given the forum language – the language can be changed in the top right-hand corner) and the very useful companion explaining the finer points of the criteria, the Bürgerrechtsverordnung (BüV), is here (for French or Italian, just change the “de” in the URL to “fr” or “it”)


The timeline of my process looked as follows (day zero = application sent):

• 7.5 years before – married my lovely wife
• 4 years before – became aware of the possibility of facilitated naturalization from abroad. Found Englishforum and read a few threads
• 2 years before – joined a local Swiss club
• 1.5 years before – got the application forms from the embassy, then life (second child etc.) got in the way
• 30 days before – called the embassy to refresh the application process and began gathering the information required (Bestätigung from the Swiss club, official documents, preparing references, mining old emails and calendar entries for details on trips etc.)
• Day Zero – hand delivered the application with appendices, about 60 pages in all
• 3 weeks – the embassy confirmed that the application documents were complete
• 2 months – interviewed at the embassy and paid the application fee
• 3.5 months – references in Switzerland received requests to send a reference letter to the SEM
• 5 months – final reference responded
• 7 months – sign not breaking law + still married sent from SEM to the embassy
• 7.5 months – sign not breaking law + still married received by me, signed and returned to the embassy
• 8 months – date of federal approval by the SEM
• 10 months – date of finalized decision (Rechtskraftsmitteilung)
• 11 months – federal approval and finalized decision received by me (in one letter). Yay Swiss!
  
  

Lessons learned (note: the process under the new law may require you to take a language test or bring a certificate of competence proving B1 speaking / A2 writing skills. You should check this.):

• Join a Swiss club and attend the events. You will have fun, learn a lot and meet interesting people!
• Practice whatever official Swiss language you know best or started learning first in life. Read, write, listen, watch television shows and YouTube clips
• Get the application forms from the embassy as soon as you are eligible for facilitated naturalization
• Having a checklist really helps – do this in Excel, including all the form data, documents needed etc.
• Don’t be afraid to ask your local embassy or consulate for help on specifics – they are generally helpful and have seen this many times while it is a first for you. Examples: exactly which version of document X should I get from the local authorities? Will an English language version of document X suffice or not?
• Ask local references / clubs for letters first, order official documents second and deal with the form items you control 100% yourself last – things dependent on others may take longer time than you think to procure
• Get the names at least three Swiss citizens living in Switzerland and speak to them beforehand to ensure they will be able to provide you with references. At least one should be outside the family of your spouse
• Make a cover sheet for all your appendices – you will give the impression of being well organized
• Study properly and practice answers to all Swiss knowledge questions you may get in the official language you know best – repetition is king and flashcards are a great tool
• Make sure you know the names, birthdays, home cantons and communes of your spouse and his/her family, as well as when and where you were married
• Dress decently for the interview, be there ahead of time, relax, smile and connect with the interviewer, and try to do as much of it as possible in an official Swiss language
• Having perused the Englishforums threads extensively, I dare speculate that the more obvious it is to the SEM that you will pass, the quicker the process will be. A complete application hitting all the buttons will be a great help in that regard, as will a stellar interview and test performance. I think the forum record is held by Rico09, who had exceptionally strong ties to Switzerland, and who got it all done in about 7 months from application to final confirmation letter
• Your Swiss references being contacted is a good sign of progress. Do make yourself useful by helping them respond to their requests for references, possibly by making initial drafts (questions will include what are your ties to Switzerland (it’s great to give qualitative examples of your interest in Swiss culture, habits, business, people etc.), can they confirm when and for how long you have visited them Switzerland in the last 10 years, which official language do you speak and how well, and finally possibly a question on your character )
• Once you get the letter to sign that you haven’t broken the law and that you are still married, you are 99% there – all you need to do is to be patient for maybe another 3-4 months before it is final

Useful study resources:

1. This brilliant summary post, including its reading suggestions
2. This great post
3. The 600+ posts thread you are currently reading
4. ”Der Bund Kurz Erklärt” (or the same pdf in French or Italian) – google to find the most recent version
5. Get a copy of ECHO (switch languages towards the top right-hand corner of the page)

Best of luck and Hopp Schwiiz!

This is a super reference list. Thank you very much, salutant.

This made my day. Thanks for the shout out!

Yes! Isn't this wonderful? Maybe this is how the process was designed...

This is a great summary, thanks!

Congratulations and welcome to the "club"!

My references just got the letter from Bern last week. 2.5 month after I sent their names to the Consulate.
Feeling positive yet anxious.

Hi I have summited my papers for facilitated naturalization on December 4 2017 for Katon Thurgau, a week later I was call to the Swiss embassy to do written exam and then a Quick interview whit a Swiss Consul. (pretty sure it was not and “A” more like a D) For the past year I have not heard from them until last week. I received A email from the same Consul who did my interview asking for a birth certificate of my wife (US national) asking what name she will like to be register in Frauenfeld also they ask for a sing letter from my wife and I to register the names of our 3 kids in Frauenfeld. Appreciate if someone could tell me what does this mean? What will be the purpose of register my wife and kids if I have not being accepted as a Swiss citizen. Any feedback will be highly appreciated.
Regards

I assume you're applying via ancestry? The Swiss keep detailed records. When I married my Swiss husband, my parents' names were also listed in our family book at the Heimatort. I presume if they're asking for this info on your family that your application is looking good, and that if you are naturalized via ancestry that your children (and possibly spouse?) could also apply later.

Yes I did apply as a Grandson (Art 31B) of Swiss natives. Both my Opa and Oma were Swiss.
My question was more about what will be the case of register my kids s ,5 7 and 10 names and the extra information about my us citizen wife. The communication whit our local Swiss embassy has being almost null. But I understand that’s the Swiss way of doing things.
Appreciate your comments.
Regards

Not later, but at the same time!

Tom

This was my experience as well. When I presented my papers, I had to include birth certificates for my kids (and wife). Since they were both underage, they both became Swiss citizens automatically when I did. The wife had to later go through her own facilitated naturalization process.

I also believe you are close to the end, with a good outcome. Have patience!

Cheers,
Gonzalo

Thanks A lot.

I understand that there is a bit of a backlog at the moment due to a large number of applications just before the introduction of the new law in January 2018.

What dos this mean ? That it will take more time than usual?

Yes I guess so, although you never know they may have taken on extra people to deal with the workload.

Hi Guys. Just an update on my wife's application. Just received an email today from the consulate, asking my wife to sign the attached forms stating she hasn't broken any laws and that we are still married.

Date of Interview: 21-12-2017

So it has taken around 13 months until this stage.

Now I guess it's another 3-4 months.

Hope this helps.

Question,
I was born and raise in the USA. Will my age (51) be a problem to get my citizenship via ancestry. My mom and her whole family are all long time Swiss. My dad is American. I do not speak any languages (I took French and Spanish in high school, but they didn't stick).
I seem to be more like my dad when it comes to languages. I have been to Switzerland over 30 times in my life and in the last 10 years 2 maybe 3x. and actually going again this May. I have 2 aunts from my mother and 3 cousins that we have kept in touch with and actually saw them last year when dad and I went back to have a memorial with them for her passing. I do not have much knowledge of the politics and history (obviously I can do my research)
Back when I was 18 or so my mom had mentioned that I could get my Swiss Citizenship, but we never did anything about it.
So basically, I am just asking if this is even a possibility

Um, it might be possible under the new equivalent of Article 58a

https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/en/home...l#Applications since 1.1.2018

but note that those categories applied up to 31st December 2017. New rules came into force on 1st January 2018 so you'd really need to check what's required with the Swiss embassy/consulate that covers your area of the States. Iirc one of those new requirements is to be able to speak a Swiss language. Also not sure of the age limit of 22 applies to Article 58a or not.

French versions of the new laws can be found here

https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/fr/home...uergerung.html

Wait, English isn't a Swiss language?

I know right? Everyone (well ALMOST everyone) in Switzerland speaks English.
Well I heard back the the consulate and they sent me the 51a packet (thank god for Google Translate). Oh my! They had asked for info first, but could not see anything on my mother. Thankfully I have everything! I have the her Kinder Card, last Swiss passport (not the coveted RED book), her birth certificate (still working on finding her immigration to USA paperwork- in case they ask). I also have paperwork from her Swiss Social Security. No the fun part of gathering all MY paperwork (receipts for hotels, criminal report, credit report, tax return)
OH and I absolutely have to speak one of the # national languages. (i took french in high school- didn't stick, i spoke very little swiss german when I was under 5- didn't stick either, did a little German a few years ago- not enough to get anywhere) So Pimsleur her I come. I got the Swiss German and will be getting the German as well (might I re-iterate....I am quite challenged when it comes to languages) hopefully by the time THE interview comes around, I can at least hold a kids level conversation.
Will it a problem that I have only been there once in the 6 years (and if they go to 7 then, 2x, or even better would be 11 years, then its 3x) I will be going again in just a few months.
They do not seem to be bothered by the fact that I am older (just turned 51). Or maybe they are and just letting me jump thru the hoops, only to deny me because they do not want me to try to get any type of assistance. I will have no problem supporting myself from my incomes here in the US (my father has set me up to insure that before he passes from pancreatic cancer) Even without out I would be ok, but he wants to make sure that myself, my grown kids and my grandchildren have something for later on.
Oh and I have to join a Swiss Club .....so far I am only finding the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce here in Los Angeles. Will it look bad that I am only joining a club now?

Don't be too sure. If you learned it in high school it is still back there in your brain and only needs to be brought out. I had one year of German in high school but after moving here and taking one class a lot of it came back. Personally, I'd consider refreshing your french instead of starting over with German.