German and Austrian nationals can usually get a C settlement permit after five years of lawful residence in Switzerland, not the ten years that apply to most other foreigners. Two old treaties, with Germany (1909) and with Austria (1875), were the historical source of that privilege. Since 1 June 2002, however, both groups are handled mainly as EU citizens under the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons (AFMP), and the old treaties only stand in the background.

In short

  • Two treaties, still in force: the Settlement Treaty with Germany of 31 March 1909 (SR 0.142.111.361) and the Settlement Treaty with Austria-Hungary of 7 December 1875 (SR 0.142.111.631). Neither has been repealed.
  • The AFMP comes first. Since 1 June 2002 the AFMP (SR 0.142.112.681) governs residence, work and family reunification for German and Austrian nationals. The old treaties are a fallback.
  • C permit after five years of lawful, uninterrupted residence, provided you are integrated (Art. 58a FNIA). For most German speakers the language test is not a real hurdle in German-speaking cantons.
  • No shortcut to citizenship. Naturalisation follows the ordinary rules of the Swiss Citizenship Act (SCA): ten years of residence and a C permit.
  • Dual citizenship: Switzerland allows it. Germany has generally allowed it since 27 June 2024. Austria still removes your nationality unless you get a retention permit first.

The two treaties

Switzerland agreed settlement privileges with its two large German-speaking neighbours early on.

  • Germany, 31 March 1909 (SR 0.142.111.361). Concluded with the German Empire, it replaced an earlier treaty of 1876. It has survived two world wars, the division of Germany and reunification, and its content still formally applies.
  • Austria-Hungary, 7 December 1875 (SR 0.142.111.631). After the dual monarchy broke up in 1918, the Republic of Austria took it over. It is one of Switzerland's oldest bilateral agreements still formally in force.

Both contain a national-treatment clause: nationals of the other state may settle, run a business, enter into legal transactions and own property on the same terms as the state's own nationals. Out of this clause grew the 20th-century practice of giving German and Austrian nationals the C permit after five years instead of ten.

How the AFMP changed things

Germany (a founding member) and Austria (a member since 1 January 1995) are both in the EU, so their nationals are covered by the AFMP. The AFMP offers a complete and more generous package for settlement, work and family. Where it applies, it takes precedence over the old treaties, which remain only for cases the AFMP does not cover. For German and Austrian nationals such cases scarcely occur in practice.

What this means for you:

  • First permit: a B EU/EFTA permit if you are employed on an open-ended contract or one lasting more than twelve months (Art. 6 Annex I AFMP); an L EU/EFTA permit for work of less than twelve months; a G EU/EFTA permit if you are a cross-border commuter (see the G cross-border-commuter permit).
  • If you do not work (pensioners, students, people living on their own means): a B EU/EFTA permit under Art. 24 Annex I AFMP, provided you have enough money and health insurance.
  • C permit: after five years of lawful residence, the same threshold as under the old treaties.

The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) generally handles German and Austrian nationals through the AFMP channel. Its directives on foreign nationals and citizenship, published on sem.admin.ch, decide how the authorities apply the law, so check the current version. The AFMP/free-movement glossary explains the AFMP permits, who they cover, the transitional rules and the safeguard clause.

The five-year C permit

A German or Austrian national receives the C EU/EFTA settlement permit after five years of lawful, uninterrupted residence. The legal basis is a combination of FNIA, SEM practice and, in the background, the two old treaties.

SourceRole
Art. 34 para. 2 let. a FNIAgeneral rule: C permit after 10 years
Art. 34 para. 2 let. b FNIA with the SEM directives on the AFMPC EU/EFTA after 5 years for German and Austrian nationals
Art. 6 Annex I AFMPright of EU workers to reside
SR 0.142.111.361 (Germany, 1909)historical treaty basis, still citable as a fallback
SR 0.142.111.631 (Austria, 1875)historical treaty basis, still citable as a fallback

Conditions

The full rules are on the C settlement permit page. In short:

  • Five years of lawful, uninterrupted residence on a B EU/EFTA permit. Absences of less than six months do not break it (Art. 61 FNIA). Time on an L permit counts only under strict conditions.
  • Integration (Art. 58a FNIA): respect for the law and the values of the Federal Constitution, language skills, taking part in economic life or education, and supporting your family's integration.
  • Language: the national language of your place of residence, oral level B1 and written level A1. The accepted proofs are set in the Ordinance on Admission, Residence and Gainful Employment (OASA), in particular Art. 77d OASA. If that language is your first language, proof is usually easier: German-speaking cantons often accept a school or vocational qualification from Switzerland or a German-speaking country. In French- or Italian-speaking areas you must show the local language: French in Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel and Jura and in the bilingual cantons of Fribourg, Valais and Bern; Italian in Ticino and the Italian-speaking municipalities of Graubünden.
  • Financial independence: no current social assistance, as part of taking part in economic life (Art. 58a para. 1 let. d FNIA).
  • No ground for revocation under Art. 62 FNIA (residence permits) or Art. 63 FNIA (settlement permits). These cover threats to public security and order and serious breaches, not minor breaches or open debt-enforcement proceedings as such.

Which language proofs a canton accepts (a school certificate, a fide attestation or a standard language certificate) varies. Check with your cantonal migration office before you apply.

German and Austrian residents and commuters

The German community is one of the largest foreign groups in Switzerland, behind Italians. Germans work across industry (pharma in Basel, machinery in northern and eastern Switzerland), finance and insurance in Zurich, research and universities (ETH Zurich, EPFL), healthcare, hospitality and tourism. Most live in Zurich, Basel, Bern and Zug. Austrians are a smaller but long-established group, often in healthcare, hospitality and winter tourism, with concentrations in St. Gallen, Thurgau and Graubünden. For current figures, see the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) at bfs.admin.ch.

Many cross the border daily:

  • Southern Germany to north-western and north-eastern Switzerland: a large number of commuters, mostly into Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Aargau and Schaffhausen, important for the Basel pharma and chemicals industry and the High Rhine region.
  • Vorarlberg to St. Gallen and Thurgau: a smaller flow of Austrian commuters across the Rhine.

Commuters get a G EU/EFTA permit under Art. 7 Annex I AFMP. You must return to your home in Germany or Austria, as a rule weekly, and time on a G permit does not lead to settlement.

Tax: a separate question

The settlement treaties say nothing substantial about tax. Double taxation is governed by separate agreements.

  • Germany (SR 0.672.913.62, first signed in 1971 and revised several times). It has special rules for cross-border commuters: the state where you work may tax your wages only up to a capped rate under Art. 15a, and that tax is credited in your state of residence. It also covers senior executives, German pensions and Swiss pension assets. Withholding tax on wages is a cantonal tax, based on cantonal law and the Federal Act on the Harmonisation of Direct Taxes (THA, SR 642.14), not on the federal Direct Federal Taxation Act (DFTA, SR 642.11).
  • Austria (SR 0.672.916.31, from 1974, fully revised in 2010). It follows the OECD model, with specific rules for Lake Constance commuters, Austrian pensioners in Switzerland and directors' fees.

In practice, if you move to Switzerland you are fully taxable here and only taxed in your home state on items such as local income, assets or pensions. Unlike the United States, neither Germany nor Austria taxes by citizenship. Germany can apply an exit tax on substantial shareholdings (§ 6 AStG). Swiss banks do not impose the FATCA-type hurdles they apply to US persons. For any concrete tax question, see a specialist in international tax law.

Family reunification

As EU citizens, German and Austrian nationals bring family members under the broader AFMP rule (Art. 3 Annex I AFMP), not the stricter FNIA rules for third-country nationals (Art. 43 and 44 FNIA).

These family members qualify, whatever their nationality:

  • your spouse;
  • your registered partner (under the Same-Sex Partnership Act, PartA, SR 211.231), treated like a spouse in practice;
  • your children and your spouse's children under 21, or older if you support them;
  • your parents and your spouse's parents, if you support them.

Two differences from the third-country rules matter most: the age limit for children is 21, not 18, and dependent parents and grandparents can join you.

Family members from outside the EU receive a B EU/EFTA permit marked "Family EU". They share your AFMP rights, including the right to work without a separate permit.

You need suitable housing. For family members who will not work, in particular parents, you must also show enough money and health insurance. Unlike Art. 43 and 44 FNIA, the AFMP sets no language requirement when your family first joins you.

Naturalisation: no special route

The treaties cover settlement, not citizenship. German and Austrian nationals go through ordinary naturalisation under the Swiss Citizenship Act (SCA, SR 141.0) and cantonal and communal law, with no bilateral easing.

  • Residence: ten years of lawful residence, three of them in the five years before you apply (Art. 9 SCA). Years between your 8th and 18th birthdays count double, but you must have actually lived here for at least six years.
  • C permit: required to apply (Art. 9 SCA). Because you can get it after five years, you can reach this step sooner.
  • Integration (Art. 11 let. a and Art. 12 SCA): respect for public security and order and for constitutional values, taking part in economic life or education, and supporting your family's integration. The language level, oral B1 and written A2, is set in Art. 6 of the Citizenship Ordinance (SCO, SR 141.01).
  • No social assistance in the three years before you apply, unless you have repaid it.
  • Cantonal and communal requirements come on top: minimum residence in the canton and municipality, an interview and, in some cantons, a knowledge test.

Facilitated naturalisation (Art. 21 SCA) is open to the foreign spouse of a Swiss citizen, whatever their nationality. If you live in Switzerland you need three years of marriage and five years of residence, including the year before you apply (Art. 21 para. 1 SCA). If you live abroad you need six years of marriage and close ties to Switzerland (Art. 21 para. 2 SCA).

In German-speaking cantons, a school-leaving certificate, apprenticeship or German-language degree is often accepted as language proof; the cantonal or communal authority decides. In French- and Italian-speaking cantons you must prove the local language, even if German is your first language.

More detail: Naturalisation in Switzerland and the glossary on the 2018 Citizenship Act.

Dual citizenship

  • Switzerland has allowed dual citizenship without restriction since 1992. You do not have to give up your previous nationality.
  • Germany has generally allowed multiple nationality since its nationality reform came into force on 27 June 2024. If you become Swiss on or after that date, you keep German nationality without applying to retain it. If you became Swiss before that date and lost German nationality under the old law, you may be able to apply to regain it (§ 13 StAG).
  • Austria remains restrictive. You lose Austrian nationality automatically when you acquire another one (§ 27 StbG), unless you obtain a retention permit before the Swiss naturalisation decision. It is granted for professional, economic or family reasons, among others. Practice is shared between the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the provincial governments and can vary.

These are questions of German or Austrian law. For your own case, see a lawyer who specialises in your home state's nationality law (in Germany § 25 and § 13 StAG, in Austria the retention procedure under § 28 StbG).

Common situations

  • Students: ETH Zurich, EPFL and the universities of Zurich, Basel, Bern, Geneva and Lausanne have many German and some Austrian students. You get a B EU/EFTA permit as a non-worker under Art. 24 Annex I AFMP if you show enough money and health insurance. For medicine, cantonal quotas and the EMS aptitude test make admission much harder.
  • Doctoral students and researchers: usually a B EU/EFTA permit based on the university job, and moving between universities or between grants and jobs is simple. Research stays under twelve months get an L EU/EFTA permit.
  • Seasonal tourism jobs in Graubünden, Valais, the Bernese Oberland and Ticino: an L EU/EFTA permit for under twelve months, a B EU/EFTA permit from twelve months. Extensions are easier than for third-country nationals.
  • Managers and specialists: the B permit is issued on presentation of the employment contract. There is no labour-market test giving priority to resident workers, which is the main difference from the third-country rules.
  • Cross-border commuters: the Swiss employer requests the G EU/EFTA permit, and you must return home regularly, usually weekly.

Compared with the UK after Brexit

British nationals left the AFMP on 1 January 2021. Those living in Switzerland before 31.12.2020 keep their rights under the Citizens' Rights Agreement (SR 0.142.113.672; they keep their L, B, C or G permit, with a CH-UK agreement remark). Those who arrive later fall under the third-country FNIA rules, with priority for resident workers, quotas and qualification requirements. See the UK Citizens' Rights Agreement.

German and Austrian nationals keep full AFMP rights. If the AFMP ever stopped applying to them, for example after a vote such as the free-movement initiative, the 1909 and 1875 treaties would still be in force as a fallback. They would protect far less: no AFMP commuter rules, no wider family reunification and no access to a single EU/EFTA labour market.

Where things stand

Neither treaty has been renegotiated for decades, and neither side is seeking to update or end them. What matters more is the future of the AFMP itself and the Bilaterals III negotiations with the EU, which cover the safeguard clause, dispute settlement and institutional questions. For the current state, see the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and its Directorate for European Affairs (DEA) at eda.admin.ch, and the reports of the National Council's Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC).

Whether you personally qualify for a C permit or citizenship is decided by the cantonal authority. For advice on your own case, contact a lawyer entered in a cantonal bar register who specialises in migration law.

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