Expert guidance on Swiss immigration · All 26 cantons

Swiss Immigration ProImmigration portal
Crisis

I live here · Already in Switzerland

You live here now. Here's how to keep your stay secure.

A permit isn't a possession but a standing obligation: renew on time, don't stay abroad too long, bring your family within the deadline. Know the dates and you lose nothing by accident.

How your stay worksAsk Clara
View over the city of Lugano with the bell tower of San Lorenzo cathedral, Lake Lugano, the mountains and the funicular down to the station.

Even after you arrive, your nationality decides how easily you renew, change canton or job, and bring your family over.

Two residency regimes

How your stay feels turns on the same point

The EU/EFTA-vs-third-country distinction shapes a resident's daily life as much as it shaped entry – for renewal, mobility and family reunification.

EU/EFTA

Free movement (FZA)

As long as you are employed or have sufficient means, renewal is in principle a right, not a matter of discretion.

  • The B permit is valid for five years and is renewed while your employment continues.
  • You change canton and job freely, without prior authorisation.
  • If you become involuntarily unemployed, your right of residence stays protected for a limited time.
FZA Anhang I Art. 6AIG Art. 61a

Third countries

Foreign Nationals Act (AIG)

Renewal stays tied to the original admission conditions and remains a discretionary decision of the authority.

  • The first B permit is valid for one year and is reassessed annually.
  • A change of canton must be requested in advance; with a B permit you may change employer.
  • Drawing on social assistance and a lack of integration can jeopardise renewal.
AIG Art. 33 Abs. 3 + VZAE Art. 58AIG Art. 37

Third countries are all states outside the EU/EFTA. Which track applies to you depends on your nationality – not on how long you have been here.

The recurring deadline

Renew before your permit expires

File the renewal application early. A gap between two permits can break your stay – and reset the clock for settlement and naturalisation.

Deadline

2–3months

before your permit's expiry

VZAE Art. 59 (de facto kantonale Praxis)
If missed: A break in your stay is possible; later settlement or naturalisation is delayed.
  • Cantonal practice, not fixed in statute – may vary from canton to canton.

Many cantons won't remind you. The expiry date is on your permit – put it in your own calendar. When in doubt, file 3 months before expiry — too early is never wrong.

Rights and duties

Four things that decide your stay

Four rules follow every resident, whatever the canton. Knowing them keeps you in control of your own status.

  • Away too long, and it lapses

    Leave Switzerland for more than six months without giving notice and the permit lapses on its own. If you must be away longer, sort out the departure notice and a possible retention of the permit beforehand.

    AIG Art. 61 Abs. 2

  • The family-reunification clock

    You bring your spouse and children within five years; for children over twelve, only twelve months remain. After that, reunification is granted only on serious family grounds.

    AIG Art. 47

  • Changing canton and job

    With a B permit you change job freely; a change of canton you request in advance – with a right for an employed person, absent any ground for revocation.

    AIG Art. 37 + Art. 38

  • Integration is assessed

    Language skills, participation in economic life and respect for public order weigh on every renewal and govern an early settlement permit.

    AIG Art. 58a + Art. 34 Abs. 4

These four apply to every residence permit. Asylum, F and S status follow their own, stricter rules – see below.

Family reunification in detailHow long can you stay abroad? To the absence calculator

In practice

Four habits that protect your status

  1. Note the expiry date

    Write down your permit's expiry date and file the renewal application two to three months beforehand.

  2. Report moves

    Report every change of address or residence to the municipality within the cantonal deadline; a change of canton needs prior approval.

  3. Keep the family clock in view

    If you want to bring your spouse or children, plan it within the five-year deadline – and the twelve-month one for older children.

  4. Keep your evidence ready

    Keep payslips, a recent criminal-record extract and proof of language and integration – the authority asks for them at every renewal.

Where this comes from

Last verified on 09.06.2026

General information, not lawyer-reviewed legal advice. Deadlines and conditions vary by canton and individual case; the competent migration authority prevails.

Sources

VZAE Art. 59 (de facto kantonale Praxis)AIG Art. 61 Abs. 2FZA Anhang I Art. 6

Asylum, provisional admission or protection status S?

For N, F and S permits, changing your residence, canton and job follows entirely different, stricter rules. This page does not describe them.

Help and contact points

Not sure which deadline applies to you?

Describe your situation – Clara names the applicable rule with its statutory article and says plainly when you need a professional.

Ask Clara a question

Clara is an AI. It cites the law but does not replace advice from a lawyer.