Switzerland and Turkey signed a settlement treaty on 13 December 1930, and it is still in force. In theory it could let Turkish nationals apply for a C settlement permit after five years instead of ten. In practice, how the authorities apply that shorter period is not published and differs between cantons, so you cannot count on it. For everything else (first permits, family reunification, naturalisation) Turkish nationals follow the ordinary rules for third-country nationals.

In short

  • The treaty is in force (SR 0.142.117.632) and ranks above the Federal Act on Foreign Nationals and Integration (FNIA) if the two conflict.
  • Five-year C permit: possible in theory, but there is no published SEM directive on it and cantons apply it unevenly. The normal period is ten years.
  • No shortcut elsewhere: first residence, work permits, family reunification and naturalisation follow the standard third-country rules.
  • Integration still counts in full: even where the five-year period is applied, you must meet every C permit condition.
  • Asylum: Turkish applications rose after the attempted coup of 15 July 2016 and are handled under the Asylum Act (AsylA).

What the treaty covers

The treaty was signed in Ankara, entered into force after ratification in both countries, and is listed in the Swiss Classified Compilation as SR 0.142.117.632. It belongs to a series of interwar treaties based on national treatment, similar to the Switzerland to Persia (now Iran) and Switzerland to Siam (now Thailand) treaties.

It deals with three things:

  • the right of each country's nationals to settle and live in the other;
  • property, acquisition and business rights on equal terms with nationals;
  • equal treatment before consular offices and courts.

For immigration today, only the first point matters, because it is the basis for the shorter C permit period.

Its place in Swiss law

Switzerland applies international treaties directly as part of its own law (Art. 5 para. 4 and Art. 190 of the Federal Constitution, Cst., SR 101). Switzerland cannot end the treaty on its own; any change or termination would go through diplomatic channels. Where the treaty and the FNIA conflict, the treaty in principle prevails.

The problem is implementation. The privilege runs through the ordinary FNIA and OASA procedures and SEM directives, and that is where practice becomes uneven. Which provisions still apply, and which have been replaced by later agreements or by the FNIA, can only be settled against the consolidated text on Fedlex. The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) is the authority responsible for the treaty.

The five-year C permit: theory and practice

Under Art. 34 para. 2 let. a FNIA, third-country nationals normally need ten years of lawful residence for a C permit, with the last five years uninterrupted on a residence permit. A settlement treaty can shorten this to five years. For US nationals, the SEM applies this along a published line (see the Switzerland to US Settlement Treaty of 1850). The shorter period gives you a time advantage only; it never creates an automatic right to the permit.

For Turkish nationals the picture is much less clear:

  • There is no published SEM directive on applying the privilege to Turkish applicants. The SEM directives on the foreign nationals area (chapter III, settlement permit) usually list the states with a shorter period, and Turkey's position there has been inconsistent. Check the current version of that directive.
  • Legal journals (Anwaltsrevue, Jusletter) report that cantons apply it unevenly, but there is no overall data.
  • Some cantonal migration offices grant the C permit after five years when you apply and fully meet the integration criteria. Others require the full ten years without addressing the treaty.
  • The SEM takes part in the approval procedure (Art. 99 FNIA with Art. 85 OASA) and has discretion. How it uses that discretion in Turkish cases is not published.
  • No leading decision of the Federal Administrative Court (FAC) or Federal Supreme Court has settled the question.

Published reports show both approvals, usually for well-integrated applicants with long residence, stable work and a clean criminal record, and refusals, usually citing the authority's discretion, unmet integration criteria or undisclosed security concerns. The available sources do not show which factors decide a case. Whether the five-year period will apply to you depends on your canton and your situation, and only a migration lawyer can assess that.

What does not change

The treaty only shortens the waiting time. You still have to meet all the conditions for a C permit: integration under Art. 58a FNIA, the language requirements under Art. 60 para. 2 or Art. 62 para. 1bis and Art. 77d OASA, financial independence and no serious grounds for revocation. See the C settlement permit and the FNIA/OASA terminology glossary.

Turkish nationals in Switzerland

Turkish nationals have for decades been one of the largest third-country groups in Switzerland's permanent population. For current figures, see the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) statistic on the foreign resident population. Italians were historically the largest group, but since the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons (AFMP, SR 0.142.112.681) of 1999/2002 they fall under the EU/EFTA rules.

Migration from Turkey came in phases:

  • 1960s and 1970s: guest workers recruited during the Swiss labour shortage, as from Italy, Spain and Yugoslavia.
  • 1980s and 1990s: family reunification, a second generation born in Switzerland, and a gradual move from B to C permits.
  • 2000s: more naturalisations, and the first politically motivated asylum claims (the PKK conflict, discrimination against Kurdish and Alevi minorities).
  • After 2016: more asylum applications following the attempted coup.
  • 2020s: more highly skilled arrivals in research, IT and medicine.

Coming to Switzerland for the first time

Turkey is not in the EU or EFTA and not a party to the AFMP, so the FNIA third-country rules apply in full. The 1930 treaty gives no advantage for a first permit.

Work

To work in Switzerland you need a residence permit under Art. 18 FNIA and following:

  • Economic interest: your job must serve Switzerland's economic interest (Art. 18 let. a FNIA). Usually the employer must show that no suitable worker from Switzerland or the EU/EFTA was available (Art. 21 FNIA) and that pay and conditions are standard (Art. 22 FNIA).
  • Personal qualifications: permits go mainly to managers, specialists and other qualified workers (Art. 23 FNIA).
  • Quotas: federal and cantonal quotas apply (Art. 19 OASA and following, SR 142.201).

In practice, the most common route for Turkish nationals is as a highly skilled worker under Art. 23 FNIA and the SEM directives: researchers at Swiss universities, IT specialists and doctors with a recognised diploma. This route has clear requirements, but it still depends on quotas and the authority's discretion.

Living here without working

Students, pensioners and people living on their own means fall under the special FNIA rules: Art. 27 FNIA (education), Art. 28 FNIA (pensioners) and Art. 30 FNIA (exceptions such as hardship cases). You need enough money of your own and, for pensioners, close ties to Switzerland and a minimum age. There is no treaty advantage here either.

Asylum

After the attempted coup of 15 July 2016 and the repression that followed, the number of Turkish asylum applications in Switzerland rose noticeably. The procedure follows the Asylum Act (AsylA, SR 142.31). Current recognition rates are in the SEM asylum statistics; they change a lot from year to year.

Based on published FAC decisions, the following groups have in principle been treated as eligible for recognition:

  • people accused by Turkey of belonging to the Gülen movement (Hizmet), who face prosecution, long prison sentences, professional bans and confiscation of assets;
  • journalists, academics and activists with documented criticism of the government;
  • Kurdish activists linked to the HDP/DEM party or civil-society movements, if they can show persecution aimed at them personally;
  • Alevis and other religious minorities in specific situations, again with individual evidence of persecution.

For case law, see the glossary on the Asylum Act and the published decisions of the Federal Administrative Court.

Family reunification

Because Turkey is not a party to the AFMP, the stricter FNIA rules apply (Art. 43 and 44 FNIA), not the free movement rules. The main conditions:

  • Your status: a C permit (Art. 43 FNIA) or a B permit (Art. 44 FNIA).
  • Living together: you must live together (Art. 43 para. 1 let. a, Art. 44 para. 1 let. a FNIA) in housing suitable for the family.
  • Money: enough income to live without social assistance (Art. 43 para. 1 let. c, Art. 44 para. 1 let. c FNIA).
  • Language: the joining spouse must as a rule show level A1 in a national language, or at least be registered for a course (Art. 43 para. 1 let. d, Art. 44 para. 1 let. d FNIA).
  • Deadlines: as a rule within five years, or within one year for children over twelve. Late applications are refused unless there are important reasons.

Visas are issued by the Swiss representation in Turkey under the normal third-country rules; there is no published post-2016 tightening. Check that representation's official page for current requirements. See also family reunification under the B permit and marriage between two foreign nationals resident in Switzerland.

Naturalisation

The treaty gives no advantage for naturalisation. The Swiss Citizenship Act (SCA, SR 141.0) applies unchanged, and the language requirements are in the Swiss Citizenship Ordinance (SCO, SR 141.01, Art. 6 SCO). The main routes:

  • Ordinary naturalisation (Art. 9 SCA): ten years of residence in Switzerland in total, including three of the five years before you apply. Cantonal and municipal residence periods are set by Art. 18 SCA and cantonal law and vary.
  • Spouses of Swiss citizens (Art. 21 SCA): if you live in Switzerland, three years of marriage and five years of residence in total, including the year before you apply. If you live abroad, six years of marriage and close ties to Switzerland.
  • Third generation (Art. 24a SCA): for people born and schooled in Switzerland who hold a settlement permit, with conditions for their parents and grandparents.

Turkey has accepted dual nationality since the 1980s, so you do not automatically lose Turkish nationality when you become Swiss, and many people hold both passports. Contact the Turkish representation before and after naturalising to secure your Turkish nationality formally. Turkish nationals are regularly among the larger groups naturalised each year; current figures are in the FSO naturalisation statistics.

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

Tax

The Switzerland to Turkey double taxation agreement (SR 0.672.976.31) is in force and has been revised several times. It decides which country taxes income and wealth and provides for exchange of information to the OECD standard, including automatic exchange. Your tax residence can differ from your residence for immigration purposes: civil domicile is governed by Art. 23 of the Civil Code (CC, SR 210) and following, and tax residence by its own rules. For tax questions, ask a tax adviser or the cantonal tax administration.

Open questions

The treaty has not been formally ended or broadly revised as far as is known, despite periods of tension between the two countries over genocide recognition, press freedom and extradition requests. The following points are not publicly settled:

  • how the SEM and the cantons actually apply the five-year C period in 2026;
  • whether any leading court decision on the privilege will be issued;
  • what security screening standards apply to Turkish applicants, which are probably internal;
  • whether either government has proposed modernising or ending the treaty, or whether Federal Council or FDFA statements have affected the five-year period;
  • whether the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) situation report feeds into background checks for Turkish applicants, as in the Russia and Belarus since 2022 context;
  • the current revision status of the double taxation agreement.

For your own case, a migration lawyer registered with a cantonal bar can assess your chances. Related pages: B residence permit.