Hi all,

I'm a non-EU living in ZH with C-permit, My mom passed away recently, hence i would like to bring my dad with me in his old age, can someone help me what are the pre-requisites to get one.

Thanks ahead.

Simple answer - you can't. Only spouses and childen under 18 are allowed.

https://www.ch.ch/en/family-reunification/

Also bear in mind, even if it were possible, you'd be dragging him away from everything he knows and plunking him down in an unfamiliar environment where, if he doesn't speak a Swiss language, he can't even communicate with others.

Sorry for your lost. I see the situation is very difficult for your father and for you and for your gemainde as well.

But I believe that there is always a solution. I am not an expert as Medea Fleecestealer but I have several ideas.

1- If you have enough money then you can start business with your father as partners. I see many times, if people have money then they can easily settle in europe countries (not sure for Switzerland). For example, some countries say that if you buy a house min 500k euro,we give citizenship or if you start a business ...
You can do something like that if you have enough money.

2- Marriage, it may be awkward but you can find an old lady.. I heard that some people do something like that.. I dont know how to arrange.. Its only an idea..

3- If your father is a christian (probably you are an indian), there may be a dirt way (not immigiration and not related with switzerland).. Before I come to switzerland, a friend told it but I am not a christian thats why it would be rejected. If your father so (I dont know they may require document for that or it has to be a christian country), write a private message to me. I do not how you can contact but at least I can say to you the way.

That all

Really unbalanced? Well, you're living up to your username at least.

1. Owning a business here doesn't grant residency rights so that won't work.

3. Religion doesn't play a part in the decision making process - sorry to disappoint you.

2. Is the only possibility with either a Swiss national or someone who already has a permit to live/work here, but a proven, long term, committed relationship is required. And I can't see that being proven at all if the wife has just died. Unless he had a long term mistress.

There are several threads on this subject - links here:

https://www.englishforum.ch/permits-...ml#post2546204

You would also have to prove that your father is already financially dependent on you and that there are no other family members who could look after him.

1- for example, if a person buys a house in greece and get a citizenship and then move to switzerland? is not possible? I said i am not sure for switzerland but I am sure that people can do a lot of things with money.. You know in switzerland there is burqa ban but some place are free because arab tourists visit there and they bring a lot of money..

2- marriage detail I do not know.. it may work or not... I saw something in fribourg.. There was an asian pregnant woman and had a swiss husband. The police said that we do not beleive your marriage and they did not approved her permit..

3- I do not want to go detail here, it may be a crime because what they do, is already illegal but I know that they do. I did not say that happens in switzerland. Its somewhere else and a friend offered me this. Because some people came to switzerland in this way.. Whatever..

Bornfree, I am sorry to hear of your loss - and I commend you for trying to find the best solution for your father. This is one of the most difficult aspects of having moved halfway around the world - how do we fulfill our family responsibilities from so far away?

We are non-EU, our parents were non-EU as well. I've written extensively about our experiences trying to bring first the ILs then FIL here. Medea has linked a post that itself links several of those threads, so I won't repeat all that here.

But I will say this: My experiences, and discussions with folks in the same boat, leads me to believe that things are not always set in stone, for a non-EU person cases seem to be decided individually. Compassion may, or may not, be a factor. Your standing in the Gemeinde may, or may not, be a factor. The hurdles we faced were different from those others faced - or did not face.

As the decision is largely local, start with an informal chat with the folks at your Gemeinde. Try to guage local attitudes, local priorities, and use those as a focus for your application.

I hope a solution is found that meets everyone's needs - your fathers, yours, and of course Switzerland's.

Wishing you all the best.

1. Buying property in Greece will get you a residency permit, but from what I can see from Wiki you'd need to be a resident for at least 7 years before you could apply for citizenship.

3. Only people I can think of who might have come this way would be ayslum seekers - and that would only grant an N, F or S permit. Whether any sort of family reunification permit would be possible I don't know.

And again I point out, should this even be possible, is it best for the father? Taking him away from everyone he knows, everything that's familiar to him and setting him down in a totally different country where he may not even be able to communicate with anyone easily. These should be serious concerns for the OP, not just whether it's possible to bring him here or not.

Bornfree, has your father made extended visits to Switzerland already?

If not, is his health such that he could travel to spend time with you here, get to know more about 'real life' here, before/as you consider future steps? He would obviously be required to return home after the tourist visa is up. (3 month is the usual max for non-EU folks.)

I suggest a trial visit if he is not intimately familiar with Switzerland (and your day to day life in Switzerland) because of the point Medea makes: Is this the right move for your father?

My first thought when we saw the crisis looming on the horizon was that of course, the best place for elderly parents must be with their only son, of course. But as we started researching, discussing, thinking it through we started to realize that several aspects of the plan gave us - not only OH and I, but also the ILs - pause.

Language issues, availability of appropriate health care, social isolation - and the kicker: leaving the home where all ILs memories were made, leaving the community where they were valued, loved, and honored, where they were currently able to bask in the glow of a life well lived.

Could the ILs re-establish themselves in a community where they had no past, where their only contact would be us, where social doors would be closed, where local folk would likely look down their noses at them, treat them with disdain, assume they were burdensom foreigners... was it fair to put them through that, could they handle that at this stage of life? Because I am sad to say that would likely have been the reality in our small village.

I spent many a night tossing and turning over these worries. As always, YMMV.

Only you know what is best for your father - and my hope for you is that you find a way to make that happen, whatever it is.

I'm sorry for your loss, OP. I've been reading EF a long time and I can't remember a single instance where a non-EU was allowed to bring a family member other than a spouse or dependent child. Sorry I don't have a simple solution.

This is a difficult situation as it is. Please do not suggest that our members try illegal approaches to get permits.

1) Gaining citizenship of an EU country could help I suppose, but OP's father would still have to prove he can support himself. Alternatively OP would have to prove he's the sole source of support for his father. See other links already provided.

2) The authorities would see right through this idea. The father has only recently become a widower and you're suggesting a fake marriage. This is absurd and insensitive.

3) As I said above, please do not suggest "dirty" and illegal activities. OP clearly cares about his father and would prefer to do things the right way, rather than risk both of them being banned from Switzerland/Shengen.

Some people.

In addition to the above. This has always been a gray area. In any case it is extremely difficult and varies from Canton to Canton and from Gemeinde to Gemeinde. I know a person who successfully did just that in Canton ZH around 2012. However, this person is quite well off, owns real estate and lawyers were involved. They got permission for both parents.

There are no pre-requisites as this situation is not provided for in legislation.
This is what people (read lawyers) work with.

Art. 28 Retired persons

Foreign nationals who are no longer gainfully employed may be admitted if:

a. they have reached a minimum age set by the Federal Council;
b. they have special personal relations to Switzerland; and
c. they have the required financial means.

Art. 29 Medical treatment

Foreign nationals may be admitted for medical treatment. Financing and return must guaranteed.

__________________
-> Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History <-
Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

(1) Yes, it is possible. Swiss authorities decide things on case by case basis. There are several Sri Lankan friends of mine who have brought their elderly parent or single parent in. The Swiss authorities interview and also ensure there is an undertaking put in place to ensure medical insurance and other financial matters are covered by the primary sponsor. The Cantonal authorities make the final decision on this matter.



(2) There is no such thing as Swiss language. There is German, Italian and French. Given Switzerland's multicultural communities in major urban areas, there are churches, mosques, community centers, and community clubs for ethnic groups. Plenty to do. My father is Swiss, my mother is an Asian. I have many Asian friends. My mother feels very much at home in Switzerland, she has both Swiss and Asian friends, there are supermarkets that sell Asian food, there are clubs and religious groups. She hardly feels isolated. So many of my sri Lankan friends also have brought in their parents. They are doing very well. In fact, they enjoy the Swiss countryside, clean air, high speed trains, infrastructure, cleanliness, safety as compared to perhaps where they lived.


(3) An opinion: Lot of corrupt Asian governments and dictators put their money and other loot collected from people into Swiss Banks. Swiss economy runs on it and benefits from it. So in a way, these elderly Asians have "contributed" if not directly, but indirectly to the Swiss economy not to mention that their children are active participants of the Swiss economy and have contributed much. Of course, they cannot collect Swiss pensions or benefits, but I feel Switzerland does owe a bit to some of the countries from where a lot of money gets stolen and put in illegal bank accounts by corrupt Asian government officials. Food for thought.


(4) Of course, it is not easy the visa process in Switzerland, but it is not impossible either. Everything depends on case by case. If there are Cantonal officials you know or are sympathy with your situation, they will also advise and help in.



Finally if one is happy or not in Switzerland depends on each person. Some are happy, some are not. Most are happy to be near their family and live in a safe and multicultural country. In a globalized world, differences are shrinking. People are people at the end of the day. Picking up French or German or Italian isn't hard for some older migrants. There are special classes catering to that in addition to their native languages already spoken in growing ethnic communities.

There are four Swiss languages, not counting dialects.

Tom

Thanks. Yes, I forgot to add Romanch. I mentioned the 3 more popular and well known ones. My point is there isn't a language called "Swiss".

Nor are there languages called American, Indian, Austrian, Canadian, etc. What does that even have to do with your point?

Whether German, French, Italian and Romansch have "Swiss" in front of them or not, they're still the official languages of Switzerland and are the languages all official documentation is done in.

If you had read the original post, you would have seen that no one said there was a language called Swiss.

Your opinions on the functioning of the Swiss immigration system are wrong and the idea that the Swiss state owes some sort of moral debt is ludicrous and slightly offensive.

I suggest you refrain from advising people on matters you don’t know anything about.

La di dah, la di dah


Points a & b, they really don't give a flying f**k, probably about 0.25% of the total equation.


Now point c, .............that's 99.75% of the equation

Your opinions on the functioning of the Swiss immigration system are wrong and the idea that the Swiss state owes some sort of moral debt is ludicrous and slightly offensive.

= They are not my opinions. They are experiences of real people who brought their parents in.


I suggest you refrain from advising people on matters you don’t know anything about.

= In Switzerland, there is freedom of speech. "I do not know anything about" is your opinion. Not mine.