Swiss Residency

For business persons and their families there are many benefits of obtaining Swiss Residency including:

• Excellent quality of life
• Excellent location for European travel
• Low Federal and Cantonal Taxes (No capital gains taxes)
• Protection of wealth & assets
• A Safe Haven – Excellent Personal and Financial Security

If you are considering establishing a company in Switzerland obtaining personal residency may be a factor to consider in your short and longer term planning.

For those persons setting up a Company in Switzerland there are several routes to obtaining Swiss residency.

Essentially for those establishing a company or business in Switzerland and wishing to be employed by that Company and take up residency there is a requirement to obtain a Residency and Work permit which are issued by the Cantonal Migration Authorities in the relevant Canton.

For EU/EFTA Citizens…

The Agreement between Switzerland and EU now entitles citizens of other EU and EFTA Countries to enter, live and work in Switzerland on the same basis as Swiss Nationals. This applies to citizens of the original EU 28/EFTA member states.

For Non-EU/EFTA Citizens…

For non EU/EFTA Citizens there are different requirements for securing residency and work permits. Generally authorisation is at the discretion of the relevant Cantonal Migration Authorities and is subject to a fixed quota system.

National employees and members of states with which Switzerland concluded a free movement agreement, have precedence on the Swiss labour market.

Third-country nationals can only be employed if there is no-one suitable from Switzerland or an EU / EFTA country to fill the post. There are conditions to be fulfilled to demonstrate this.

Assuming no personnel are available on the local market the following requirements must be met.

The following people are authorised to work:
Senior executives, specialists as well as other qualified workers, who primarily include persons with university or polytechnic qualifications and several years of professional experience.

Depending on the profession or specialisation, persons with special technical training and several years of professional experience may also be authorised to work. The issuing of residence permits is based not only on professional qualifications, but also on integration criteria. A person’s ability to adapt professionally and socially, their language skills and age should be such that there is a strong likelihood of long-term integration in the Swiss employment market and the society.

Salary and working conditions must be the same as for Swiss nationals.

Investment Route…

Alternatively many cantons will accept residency applications from non EU citizens setting up a company/business and making and investment in Switzerland. Acceptance of this type of application will depend on the size of the investment being made, the number of Swiss persons to be employed, the nature of the business, and other factors set by the relevant canton which can vary widely.

For employment the following forms of work permit are normally issued:
G Permit – For cross border EU commuters
120 Day Permit – For short term assignments
L Permit – Short-term residence permit for up to 12 months
B permit – Residence permit for 1 to 5 years when permanently employed
C Permit – Settlement permit after a stay of 5 or 10 years

Lump Sum taxation

For non-EU / EFTA citizens, there is another special permit: If their taxable income exceeds CHF 588,000 and their taxable wealth exceeds CHF 11.76 million, foreigners living in the canton of Zug can stay without gainful employment and benefit from the lump-sum taxation.

We are able to assist business owners, entrepreneurs, senior executives, and professionals and their families with all aspects of obtaining Swiss Residency and moving to Switzerland. Please call us for a confidential discussion.