The Swiss government rejects automatic citizenship for those born in Switzerland
On June 15, 2022, a proposal by Geneva federal parliamentarian Stefania Prezioso Batou to automatically grant citizenship to those born in Switzerland was defeated in the Swiss federal parliament by a vote of 112 to 75, 20 Minutes reported.
Batou wants to see the introduction only solos where a child born in Switzerland to foreign parents who goes to school in Switzerland automatically acquires Swiss citizenship at the age of 18.
Opponents argued that being born and raised in Switzerland does not guarantee integration. In addition, automating the procedure at the federal level would run counter to the cantons’ autonomy in the naturalization procedure.
A similar proposal was rejected by the Council of States, Switzerland’s upper house, in December 2021.
Unrestricted only solos, or birthright, is rare outside of the Americas, where it remains the norm. Outside of these regions, only Chad, Lesotho, Tanzania, Tuvalu and Pakistan have it, while another 30 nations have restricted forms of it.
Obtaining Swiss citizenship is slow and difficult. It requires a minimum of 10 years of Swiss residency with the right type of permit and a long list of other requirements. The application for Swiss citizenship must be approved by the Confederation, the cantons and the municipality in which you live. After all, many who call Switzerland home never get to become Swiss, sometimes after several generations.
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