What does the law say? Facilitated naturalisation in Switzerland requires the fulfilment of numerous conditions, among them a clean criminal record. What, however, can foreign nationals do who wish to obtain a Swiss passport but have entries in the criminal register?
Facts of the case. A foreign national residing in one of the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland and married to a Swiss citizen met all the criteria for naturalisation – with one exception. As may already be surmised, this concerned the existence of criminal offences, which were, however, of a fairly minor nature.
The foreign national first consulted his attorney, who had previously represented him in criminal proceedings. That specialist initially gave a negative assessment of the prospects for facilitated naturalisation, but nonetheless recommended that his client seek out a lawyer specialising in Swiss migration law. This acknowledgement of one’s own limitations deserves nothing but praise.
Our lawyer Marad Widmer was recommended to the foreign national. Upon accepting the mandate, Mr Widmer prepared a well-reasoned application and accompanied the procedure at every stage. In May 2026, the application for facilitated naturalisation was approved, notwithstanding the entries in the criminal register.
Significance of the case. As lawyer Marad Widmer explained, the fact that facilitated naturalisation in Switzerland remains possible in certain cases involving criminal offences does not mean that criminal record entries have become irrelevant. A refusal of Swiss citizenship on this basis remains entirely possible.
A decisive role can be played by the timely and properly conducted optimisation of the client’s dossier, which can only be carried out by a Swiss lawyer specialising in migration law.
How can our firm assist you? Swiss lawyer Marad Widmer practises migration law and naturalisation law on a permanent basis (primarily in the cantons of Zurich, Zug, Vaud, Geneva, Valais, Neuchâtel and Ticino). At the federal level, our specialist represents clients’ interests before the State Secretariat for Migration, as well as before the Federal Administrative Court and the Federal Supreme Court in public law matters (including appeals relating to residence permits and the acquisition of Swiss citizenship).
Other article languages: DE / RU
Marad Widmer, LL.M. (Geneva), Managing Partner of the Widmer Strategy GmbH. Bachelor and Master in Swiss Law (Universities of Berne and Zurich). Languages: German, English, Russian and Italian. Member of the Swiss Lawyers Association (SJV/SSJ/SSG).