Switzerland will allow foreign graduates of local universities to stay and receive residence permits

What has happened? The Swiss Council of States has approved a plan that would allow Swiss university graduates from non-EU countries to live in the Alpine country after their study visa expires. Supporters have argued that the new policy will help fill the shortage of workers in Switzerland, although many have doubted the legitimacy of the initiative.

Details. The parliament has approved the new initiative that will allow graduates of Swiss higher education institutions from third countries to continue to live in Switzerland without having to fulfill the strict requirements for obtaining a residence permit. The plan now has the full approval of parliament and will be sent to the Federal Council soon.

Under the new rules, third-country nationals - persons who are not citizens of Switzerland or nationals of an EU/EEA or EFTA member state - who have studied and graduated from any higher education institution in Switzerland will now be able to stay in the country after their visa expires.

If they have completed higher education in a field that is suffering from a shortage of workers - and this is the majority of fields at the moment - they will be allowed to stay and apply for a residence permit without the restrictions usually imposed on third country nationals, such as quotas and language requirements.

Context. Speaking to 20 Minuten, Green Party State Councillor Lisa Mazzone said that the country is facing "an acute shortage of skilled labor, and there is quite fierce European competition to attract people.” She made the point that the country needs to be “able to have easier access [to third-country graduates] to make their skills available to companies and our economy”.

However, the vote has not gone down well with some in parliament, who argued that the policy is not technically permitted by the current Swiss regulations. Article 121a of the Swiss constitution states that there must be a “maximum numbers and [a] quota for all categories of foreigners”, meaning that this “quota-free” way to residence would be breaking Swiss law.

If the arguments of the opponents are supported, the idea will require amendments to the constitution, which means that the issue will be submitted to a referendum.

Source: I am Expat

Photo by Ilia Bronskiy on Unsplash

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