Hi All,

I hold b-permit and plan to study outside of Switzerland starting from this autumn. My B-permit is valid till July 2017.

I have got several questions:
1. Would this b-permit get cancelled if I go for studying for up to 2 years, taking into account that I own an apartment in Switzerland and pay taxes for it? That means that I will visit Switzerland 1-2 times during a year.

2. I've lived in Switzerland for 3 years and never worked here. Just recently I received a letter from SVA (AHV-Ausgleichskasse) requiring to complete certain forms and make afterwards backdated contribtions for the past periods. Would I have to make this payments taking into account my soon move to overseas? If so, do you have any idea how much it could be?

3. May I ask SVA to assign the balance of AHV contributions of my late husband to my account? My husband made AHV contributions for more than 20 years, and seems that SVA is not planning to pay them out.

Hope to hear from you soon.

If you're going abroad to study then you need to get permission from your commune/gemeinde to be out of the country for more than 6 months otherwise, yes, your B permit could be cancelled. However, unless you come from a country that doesn't need a visa to visit as a tourist this would mean you couldn't easily return to Switzerland as you wouldn't have your permit.

Otherwise, look to returning more often than once/twice a year because of the 6 month limit.

There's info on gaps in AHV here:

https://www.ch.ch/en/gaps-contribution/

and a tool for calculation is available here:

https://www.ch.ch/en/ahv-persons-not-employment/

Thanks Medea Fleecestealer for your feedback and the links.
I was thinking to visit Switzerland twice a year in order to keep the Permit valid.
However, I find it quite expensive, because during this period the health insurance, AHV, Billag should be paid. I am from the country that needs visa for entering Switzerland.

Frankly speaking I am concerned that my AHV payments also will be high. I am a bit disappointed with SVA system: my husband paid AHV for more than 20 years when he was alive. When he passed away at his 43 y.o., it became clear that his payments will never be returned or repaid. So SVA just keeps them because I was not 45 y.o., had no kid under 18y.o. and had not been married for 5 years on the date of death of my husband.

Speak with your gemeinde admin office in Chur about your plans and get their advice as they're the ones who'll have to make a decision about putting your permit on hold. Further education is one of the accepted reasons to do this.

It may be that you simply have to wait until you reach retirement age before any survivor's pension is paid out from your husband's AHV. I'm not really up on the pension side of things.

Many thanks for your feedback.

Sure, will speak with Gemeinde referring to my status during studies.

On the other hand, I read that the owners of real estate here should have at least B-permit. Hope this fact will impact the decision of gemeinde not to cancel my B-permit during my studies. In addition to this I will keep paying taxes for the apartment during my absence.

Do you know whether it would be possible to come back later and get a new permit (if this is cancelled), taking into account that I own an apartment here? If so, would gemeinde accumulate my previous years of residency toward issuance of Permit-C?

When a permit is put on hold it's effectively suspended until you return to take it up again. It's not a cancellation as such and it shouldn't be a problem to get it back again once you return from your studies.

The main point to make when you talk to them is that although you're going abroad to study you will be keeping your apartment, insurance, etc, and that your centre of life is still going to be in Switzerland. This is your home and the place you will return to once your studies are finished.

Medea Fleecestealer, thanks for your clarifications. They were very helpful.

You're welcome Elmo7. Do talk to your gemeinde office asap as they will be able to best advise you on your options. Each case is different as is each gemeinde and canton in the way they deal with these things so the sooner you have a clear idea of what your options are the easier it will be for your decision making after that.

And do let us know what they say as it's always useful to have people's experiences in dealing with these issues.

Good luck!