Hello,
I come from 3rd nation country and hold a L permit which was valid for 12 months. Now it's going to be expired in early Dec, and my employer has applied for renewal of my permit since 2 months ago, but now still waiting for the news from the government.

My question: Should I continue stay here until getting the result even though permit is expired? (as the employer said they would inform me once they get it).

Thanks for your advise.
Mimi

Hi Mimi, as you don't give many details regarding your L-permit except that you are a third-country national, perhaps this info will help:

Short-term residents are foreign nationals who are resident in Switzerland for a limited period of time, usually less than a year, for a certain purpose with or without gainful employment.

Subject to the provisions of Arts. 7-11 BVO, third-country nationals can only be granted a short-term residence permit for a stay of up to one year, as long as the ceiling for the number of third-country nationals which is fixed annually by the Federal Council has not been reached. The period of validity of the permit is identical with the term of the employment contract. In exceptional cases, this permit can be extended to an overall duration of no more than 24 months, provided the holder works for the same employer throughout this time. Employment as basic and advanced training practicals in Switzerland are also regarded as short-term residences. Permits which are granted to foreigners who are gainfully employed for a total of no more than four months within one calendar year are not subject to the quota regulation.

Trainees are also granted short-term residence permits. The period of validity of the permit is limited to one year but can be extended by another six months in exceptional cases. Trainees are persons who are aged 18-30, have completed their occupational training and want to undergo some advanced occupational or linguistic training in the context of gainful employment in Switzerland. Trainees are subject to special rules, which have been laid down in special treaties. Thus they are subject to special quotas, and the legal provisions concerning national priority are not applicable to them.

hello doktor,
thanks for your reply.

actually i didn't know in which category my employer applied with,but i was informed that the permit was for max.18 months (comply with Traineé), but the contract is permanent on the condition that I could get the permit. Now they are applying for another 6 months, i assume

So in such case, should I stay till getting the news about the renewal?

thx,
mimi

Hi mimi, it can be that as long as the application is in process, that you are covered until you get a reply. In such case, definitely stay until a reply comes. However, your application should contain a telephone number where you or your employer can call to check on the status of your application. When calling such number let them know that your current permit will expire at the beginning of December and that as your employment contract will continue in effect provided you get the extension, you would like to know where you stand. If your employer is avid on keeping you around, get him/her to make the call for you.

thank you very much !!

i find this website is really very helpful and great!! first time get on board and satified .

mimi

I think your case is similar like mine, you have a employer has no feeling of responsibility, or a very diffficult canton, which canton you are in?
for example, zug canton is one of the most racias canton i have ever seen. and the officer doesnt feel shamed to tell your face that 3rd country labor is not welcomed here. just have a look at who won the election in switzerland you will see most of the people's opinion on ''black sheep'', its incredible that end of Nov they havent reply or extend your permit which will expiry early Dec. from my point of view, you should really ask your HR to chase them instead of you calling by yourself.

For your own peace of mind go to your local town hall and ask them how the application is progressing and when you can expect to receive your new permit. Assuming your employment contract is open ended it is most likley that you will get a renewal.

My employer applied for a renewal. after 10 days i made a phone call and asked what is the status. they told me that it will be done and everything is ok because they already have all my papers from the first time when i applied. "it won't take long and you will get it" - that's what they said...now there are like 20 days since the application but i got their verbal confirmation so i think it is ok...they know what they are talking about.

and one more thing...is not that they are racist...they really have a looooot of applications so it takes time...but what can you lose if you ask?

My renewal was applied for about three months ago. I won't even think about calling unless it gets past four months like it did last time.

Zurich is particularly slow. I cannot remember a permit being issued there quicker than two months - and I think it's longer now.

My local little Frederike is extremely streamlined and it takes about two weeks
A visit to her lovely homepage tells me that my taxes have gone down again. By 20%. Bummer....

I came here on an L trainee. Max validity 18 months, but I was issued a 12 month permit. My employer wanted to hire me permanently, and this was the original contract, but we were not granted a B, so my contract had to be changed to a temporary one so I could get a trainee L. Now after 3 months, my employer wants to sign me to a permanent contract again to get me a B.
I told them that we should maybe wait till the L expires and then apply for a B. What do you people think? Is it better to wait until expiry(since I will have 1 year Swiss experience) or apply right now after only 3 months in the country?

It all depends on the grounds for denial. If there's no fundamental change to the situation, there's little chance that the permit will be approved.

The original explanation was that I, as a non EU did not have sufficient experience to warrant a B.
I find this BS, as for my employment position I had more experience and better qualifications than what was asked.

Can your position be filled by a Swiss / EU national or does it require some unique and very rare skill or qualification?

I know this question always comes up. I would say it would be difficult to fill my investment banking position (american bank) dealing with many clients in eastern europe(language skills, industry knowledge etc.) by a Swiss or EU.

Well, what were the language skills required and what industry knowledge was specified versus what you offer?

balkan languages, russian, pf/infra finance background if it makes a difference.

Of course it does. There are many Balkan languages speakers in Switzerland already, either nationals or permit holders, against which you need to compete.

Finance... Switzerland is chock-a-block with finance types... have you already operated on your target markets extensively?

Further, you must bear in mind that it is not your experience that is assessed, but that required for the position. Being overqualified for a position doesn't necessarily confer you a competitive advantage.

For instance, if you're a two-star Michelin chef who for one reason or the other applies for a waiter job, it's not the number of Michelin chefs on the market that will be assessed, but rather the number of waiters.

It is extremely difficult under the current law and will get even more difficult from 2008 onwards to land a junior position if it's not really tailored to be unique to one person.

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I know there are many here, but I haven't met many with univeristy education, especially North American university education, fluent English in addition to the other languages required and international experience.
If my employer was to apply now, and get rejected, it might hurt my chances to get my permit renewed before it expires... or does this make a difference? I think it's best to wait and apply just before the 12 month L expires.

Again, as I said - it is the position requirements that matter. Does the position require a North American university? Most likely not. Does the position require international experience? Probably yes, but if your experience is in Canada and your target market is Eastern Europe it is going to be ranked quite close to zero when the appraisal is made. Fluent in English - you'd be surprised...

I don't think there's a procedure out there applying to change an L into a B. If the position doesn't change, I'm pretty sure the application is rejected outright for lack of grounds.

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The opinions expressed above are not necessarily the opinions of management and in fact may be the opposite of that intended in order to confuse and obfuscate trolling readers.