On Friday, the government announced measuresExternal link to make it easier to hire skilled workers from such countries as India, Britain, China and the United States.
By making it simpler to award B and L work permits, Switzerland hopes that the “innovative power of the economy can be strengthened.”
Companies are usually obliged to prove that there are no Swiss people who could fill a position before it is offered to a candidate from abroad.
But the new rules sideline this requirement for industries that can prove that they struggle to recruit the best staff because there is a severe shortage of highly skilled workers.
Companies will also no longer have to prove that their desired candidate has a proscribed level of education before a permit can be issued.
A third change will make it easier for foreign workers to switch to self-employment after leaving a job.
Switzerland currently limits the annual number of B permits (up to five-year residency) to 4,500 a year and issues no more than 4,000 L permits (up to a year’s stay).
Some companies and cantons have in the past complained at the restrictions imposed by such quotas. But the government warns that a current review of the foreign worker process may not result in more visas being issued.
Last year, only 80% of available B permits were issued along with 73% of L permits that were on offer.
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The number of foreign workers in Switzerland has been at the centre of a fierce political and social debate for some time, culminating in a 2014 referendum to curb the rate of immigration. The following year, the government reduced the number of B and L permits for non-EU migrants from 8,500 to 6,500. Protests led…
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