I started a program in French and was more lost that I thought I would be....so I tried the German, and I feel much better about it (my accent has much to be desired)I guess I didn't realize how much I have heard over the years that it feels more natural. Maybe watching Man in a High Castle has been helping that too :-)

Yes, this has always been the case. Part of the interview at the embassy / consulate is held in the official language of your choice. How much of it depends, apparently, on the person holding the interview, although I have heard that these things have been standardised in recent years.

The requirement used to be at least three visits in the past ten years. The more the better.

This should not make any difference at all. From what I have learned, the only important thing is what your condition was at the moment you were born: was your mother / father Swiss then? Or did they have the right, at that moment in time, to become one?

Nope, it should be fine. Or rather, it used to be... I hesitate because I am not certain how much things have changed now with the new laws in place since 01/01/2018.

Good luck and keep us posted!

This was also the case with me. Although my family came from Schwyz canton, I decided that for the interview I would re-learn the French I had taken in high school (sacrilege!). It was much easier than trying to jump cold feet into German at the time.

No it doesn’t look bad. Just be prepared to tell them about it to show you’re actually participating. And try to think of other activities that are even remotely related to Swissness. Are you a member of a church or other organization with Swiss members? Get to know them and define that as a club. For me it was enough that I was in a band with some Swiss guys, and really that was it. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a formal club.

Hi Maia,

Here are a few thoughts from someone who recently went through the process and spent an inordinate amount of time fretting over the various laws and requirements:

It would seem to me that you should apply under Article 51, not Article 51a (which is for third generation immigrants):

"Art. 51 Acquisition of Swiss citizenship under the transitional law
1 A foreign child of a marriage between a Swiss mother and a foreign father whose mother held Swiss citizenship prior to or at the time of the child's birth may apply for simplified naturalisation if he or she has close ties with Switzerland."

(from the English translation of the new SCA currently in force)

These are all parts of the "close ties" to Switzerland. The Bürgerrechtsverordnung (BüV) spells them out clearly:

"Art. 11 Enge Verbundenheit mit der Schweiz
(Art. 21 Abs. 2 Bst. b, 26 Abs. 1 Bst. b und 51 Abs. 1 und 2 BüG)

1 Die Bewerberin oder der Bewerber ist mit der Schweiz eng verbunden, wenn sie oder er:

a. sich innert den letzten sechs Jahren vor der Gesuchstellung mindestens
dreimal für je mindestens fünf Tage in der Schweiz aufgehalten hat;

b. sich im Alltag mündlich in einer Landessprache verständigen kann;

c. über Grundkenntnisse der geografischen, historischen, politischen und gesellschaftlichen
Verhältnisse in der Schweiz verfügt; und

d. Kontakte zu Schweizerinnen oder Schweizern pflegt.

2 Die Voraussetzungen nach Absatz 1 Buchstaben a und d müssen von Referenzpersonen mit Wohnsitz in der Schweiz bestätigt werden."

Translation:

The applicant has close ties to Switzerland when she fulfils all of the following criteria:

a. The applicant has taken at least three trips to Switzerland for at least five days each during the last six years

b. The applicant can hold an everyday conversation in an official Swiss language

c. The applicant has basic knowledge of Swiss geography, history, politics and business

d. The applicant has contacts with Swiss citizens

These points a.-d. need to be certified by people living in Switzerland.

My take:

• Point a. is very clear
• Point b.: the language requirement for an everyday conversation is B1 speaking / A2 writing
• Point c.: just study using the resources linked in my previous post, which also has info on the reference process to confirm all four points
• Point d.: this is where the Swiss club comes in, as well as your Swiss references in both Switzerland and your own country (your active membership in the Swiss club can substitute for the latter but not the former)
• Your references living in Switzerland will be contacted to certify your the dates and durations of your visits, your language skills, and your knowledge of and interest in Switzerland and Swiss people

Best of luck!

Maia, one more thing to add: I am not quite sure how urgent the completion of the process is to you. You could consider giving it another six months to really get into the activities of the Swiss Chamber of Commerce, learn a Swiss language, and take a couple of more week long trips to Switzerland, where you meet relatives and friends (perhaps some uncles, aunts and cousins?).

As I am sure you have realized from reading the thread, going through the process is in any case a marathon, not a sprint. Give it the time and effort it needs and you will be successful!

Very apt description indeed.

Hi guys. Just an update on my wife’s progress. On 18.01.19 we went to the Consulate in Hong Kong and signed the papers stating we are still married. On 16.04.19, received and email stating that she’s now a Swiss national. She then went on 30.04.19 to register with the consulate and applied for her passport. Waiting for that to arrive then the whole process is over!
From the interview and handing in all the documents, it’s taken 16 months.
Thanks for all the help on this thread.

Congratulations!

One minor nitpick: the process was over when she was notified of being a newly minted Swiss national. The passport is something you do after everything is over, as any other Swiss national.

Cheers!

Or don't do, there are plenty of Swiss without a passport. I don't think that my younger daughter has one.

Tom

Congratulations. It being 16 for me to, last time they contacted me was to ask for my wife US born certificate and for how we will like the kids name register in our Katon. That was 4 months ago... no news from them since... its really tire all waiting whit no news.

Based on the stories I've read here on EF, facilitated naturalization via ancestry seems to take a bit more time as opposed to facilitated naturalization via marriage to a Swiss citizen.

Try to be patient, and if you're concerned simply contact the SEM and ask if there is additional information you can supply to help them with processing the application.

On March 13th, I received by mail the letter to sign that I haven t broken any law.
Waiting since. My process is facilitated naturalization via ancestry.
From what I read, people are receiving only the final confirmation letter, about 3-4 month after signing the not breaking the law letter.
Very anxious since It seems I m near the end.

my story about my facility naturalecion am married to a Swiss over 7 years ago and I live in Switzerland more than 5 I started my nature in April 2017 and in August I had the interview with the police in my house this day I was very nervous afterwards in 2018 bern sent me a letter with a negative response that I can not get my passport because I did not know about Swiss politic When I received the negative response I wrote a letter to Bern because I wanted to see my file
and after sending the letter saying that I do not agree with the decision because I am integrated and I pay my taxes after 2 months we receive a document to sign that I have never committed anything bad and that I am still in my marriage and we do not intend to divorce
and after sending this document 10 days later I received to collect a letter and pay 765 francs
and after 6 weeks today I received the definitive confirmation
so I can say that I am officially Swiss.my advice is that if you receive a negative response, fight for your right do not be afraid to ask to see your file

So today I received my letter of confirmation, my naturalization was accepted.
I got naturalized via ancestry, son of a mother who had swiss citizenship before my birth and lost it through marriage to a foreigner.
I have waited 27 years for this moment, since before the law changed I was not able to apply, and even when the law changed I only got knowledge years later.
My procedure took 18 month, since my interview at the Swiss Consulte in São Paulo.
So today I come here to celebrate and say thank you to all of you on this thread. Everything posted here was of great help, since my studies for the tests and for those waiting moments where you never know if something might went wrong.
Special thanks to Gonzus, who started this thread and is an expert on the timing and advices on what to study and what to expect.
Now I go celebrate!!
yeah! Schwyz!

That's great news. Congratulations!

WONDERFUL! Oh, I'm so happy for you. Congratulations, and thank you very much for sharing your good news with us.

Super! Maybe EF needs it's own celebratory party for the newly Swiss.

Belated congratulations, ALEKLABU!

Hi everyone. I'm confused about the immigration law changes in 2018. It seems I'm ready conflicting information, or maybe it's just me.
The article below talks about a law that was effective in Feb 2018 that makes it easier (not harder) for 3rd generation to get naturalised. Other articles I read say the deadline for those applications was the end of 2017. After 2017, i understood that 3rd generation ancestors have to apply the same way as any non-Swiss person wanting to be a national. Could anyone please clarify? The article I referenced from 2019 is below.

https://lenews.ch/2019/03/14/few-gra...s-citizenship/

My dad was Swiss, but because my grandma immigrated to the US from Bern and married my non-Swiss grandpa in the 1940s, he didn't get citizenship due to the law. My dad had an untimely death, and my grandma has also passed. I still have distant relatives there. I'm over 25 years of age, so I'm thinking I have to live there for 12 years in order to apply. I would love to go back to live, work, and raise my son. I'm divorced, and work in Human Resources. Thanks in advance for any feedback!