Residence permits to be in credit card format 

Passport format: foreigners' residence permits before the change Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

Foreigners’ residence permits are to be issued in credit card format, replacing the old paper ones that were like passports, from November 1. 

The move will take place in stages, the government said on FridayExternal link and will be completed by the end of June 2021. Around 1.8 million paper permits will be affected. The cantons are responsible for the administrative work. 

The introduction of a new style of permit comes later than originally planned – before the idea was sent out to consultation, it was meant to take place between July 2019 and January 2021. 

According to the State Secretariat for MigrationExternal link, the new cards are not only more convenient to use, but also more modern and fraud-proof. They will not contain any biometric data.  

Eligible for the credit-card shaped permits are European Union and European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) citizens (L, B and C permits), cross-border workers, working family members of diplomats, asylum seekers during the asylum process and provisionally admitted foreign nationals. 

+ More about permits here 

Permits with biometric dataExternal link issued to foreign nationals from third countries will not be affected. These are already issued in credit card formatExternal link. 

It is not mandatory for a foreigner to carry their residence permit with them at all times in Switzerland.

Swiss law states: “Any foreigner is required, upon request, to present or immediately surrender his residence permit to the authorities. If this is not possible, a reasonable time limit shall be set for this purpose.”

The cabinet has also issued new rules concerning sanctioning cross-border workers who fail to inform Switzerland when they change jobs in time. Those who don’t tell the relevant authorities before they start their new job could be faced with a fine of up to CHF1,000 ($1,000).