Born in Switzerland: is your child automatically Swiss?

The short answer first

No. Being born in Switzerland does not automatically make a child a Swiss citizen. Unlike the United States, Canada or many South American countries, Switzerland follows the principle of descent, not the principle of birthplace.

In concrete terms this means: a child only becomes Swiss from birth if at least one parent holds Swiss citizenship at the time of birth. Being born in Switzerland alone does not, under Swiss nationality law, create any entitlement to citizenship.

This misconception is widespread. Many expectant parents assume that a baby born in Switzerland thereby becomes Swiss. This assumption does not hold under Swiss law.

The difference: jus soli versus jus sanguinis

There are two fundamental principles worldwide for how citizenship is passed on.

Jus soli (the birthplace principle): whoever is born on the state’s territory receives citizenship. This is how the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil and most countries in North and South America handle it. A child of German tourists born during a trip to Miami is automatically a US citizen.

Jus sanguinis (the descent principle): whoever descends from a parent holding that citizenship receives it. This is how most European countries handle it, including Switzerland, Germany, Austria, France and Italy. A child of Swiss parents born in Thailand is automatically Swiss.

Switzerland applies jus sanguinis. Being born in the country alone does not lead to Swiss citizenship under Swiss law, regardless of how long the parents have already been living here.

When your child is automatically Swiss

There are clear cases in which the child is Swiss immediately at birth:

One parent is Swiss, whether mother or father, and the parents are married. The child automatically receives Swiss citizenship. Whether it is born in Switzerland, Germany or Japan makes no difference.

An unmarried father is Swiss, and he formally recognises the child. Through recognition, the child receives Swiss citizenship. Without recognition, the child initially receives only the mother’s citizenship.

The mother is Swiss and unmarried. In that case the child receives the mother’s Swiss citizenship, regardless of who the father is or what citizenship he holds.

Adoption by Swiss parents before the age of majority leads to Swiss citizenship for the adopted child.

In all other cases the child is not automatically Swiss, even if it is born in a Swiss hospital and the parents have already been living here for twenty years.

The most common case: foreign parents, child born in Switzerland

A classic example: mother and father have lived in Switzerland for ten years or more, hold a C permit (Niederlassungsbewilligung C), the child is born at the cantonal hospital. Under Swiss nationality law, the child does not thereby become Swiss. Instead it receives the parents’ citizenship, according to the respective national law of the country of origin.

If a German couple living in Basel has a child, the child is German. An Italian couple in Lugano have an Italian child. A Turkish couple in Zurich have a Turkish child, as Turkish law provides.

What the children actually end up with is often a C permit, the same as the parents. They are legally foreigners holding a settlement permit, who grow up here, attend school, form friendships and integrate culturally. But they only become Swiss if they later pursue a naturalisation path of their own.

Paths to Swiss citizenship for children born in Switzerland

Even though the baby is not automatically Swiss, several paths later open up to the child, some of them noticeably easier than for adult immigrants.

Ordinary naturalisation with double-counting

Children who live in Switzerland between the ages of eight and eighteen benefit from double-counting. Every year between the ages of 8 and 18 counts double towards the ten years of residence required for ordinary naturalisation.

A child who arrives in Switzerland at age six and applies at eighteen has twelve calendar years of residence. Of these, ten years (8 to 18) count double, which counts as twenty-two years. The ten-year requirement is easily met.

For a child born in Switzerland who stays here, ordinary naturalisation in early adulthood is therefore usually straightforward.

Third-generation simplified naturalisation

Since 2018 there has been a special path for children and young adults whose family has lived in Switzerland for three generations. The conditions in brief:

The person is under 25 years old at the time of application. A grandparent held or holds a right of residence in Switzerland. A parent has lived in Switzerland for at least ten years and attended compulsory school here for at least five years. The person themselves was born in Switzerland and holds a C permit.

If this applies, naturalisation can proceed more quickly and cheaply via the federal government, similar to simplified naturalisation (erleichterte Einbürgerung) through marriage. The municipality and canton are only consulted; the decision lies with the SEM.

Naturalisation together with the parents

If the parents later apply for ordinary naturalisation, minor children are usually included in the application. Both parents with custodial rights must consent. In some cantons, older children may submit their own application if they wish.

What happens to the parents’ passport

Important for parents: if the mother or father is naturalised, the child does not automatically receive a Swiss passport through that parent, unless it was included in the naturalisation application or lives in the same household.

Anyone who becomes Swiss as a parent while the child is already an adult and runs their own household does not pass citizenship on to the adult child. The latter must submit their own application if they too want to become Swiss.

For minor children in the same household, inclusion is usually arranged as a matter of course and should be clarified with the relevant authority.

Dual citizenship is the norm

An important point for many families: Switzerland allows dual citizenship without restrictions. This also applies to children.

If the child automatically becomes Swiss through a Swiss parent and additionally receives a foreign citizenship through the other parent, it keeps both. Two passports, two nationalities, from day one.

Whether the other parent’s country of origin recognises dual citizenship is a separate question. Germany has fully accepted multiple citizenship since the reform of June 2024. Austria only allows dual citizenship with special permission. The exact rules can be found at the consulate of the respective country.

What you should do as a parent

Three practical steps if you are soon expecting a child or have just had one:

First, clarify the nationality. Which citizenship does your child receive through you or your partner? If neither parent is Swiss, the child receives a foreign citizenship. You can clarify the details at the consulate of your country of origin and have the child registered there.

Second, sort out the residence papers. Newborns need a residence document in Switzerland. As a rule they automatically receive the same permit status as the parents (C children of C parents, B children of B parents). Registration takes place via the residents’ registration office of your municipality.

Third, factor in later naturalisation. If you expect your child to become Swiss later on, it is worth keeping the residence years between the ages of eight and eighteen uninterrupted. Double-counting only works with a stable residence during this phase.

A special case: stateless children

If a child is born in Switzerland and, for legal reasons, does not receive either parent’s citizenship (for example because the country of origin does not pass citizenship on to children born abroad), it can end up stateless. In these very rare cases, Switzerland has mechanisms designed to prevent a child from growing up without any citizenship.

The rules are complex and the case must be clarified individually with the authorities. If you suspect that your child is stateless, contact the State Secretariat for Migration or a legal advice service specialising in immigration law.

In summary

Switzerland has no automatic rule based on place of birth. A child born here only becomes Swiss from birth if at least one parent holds Swiss citizenship. Foreign parents in Switzerland have a child with their own citizenship, not with Swiss citizenship.

The child can, however, later pursue a relatively straightforward path to naturalisation: ordinary naturalisation with double-counting of the years between 8 and 18, third-generation simplified naturalisation, or inclusion in the parents’ naturalisation application.

Anyone who keeps this in mind from the start can take the right path at the right time, as soon as the child meets the conditions. No reason to panic, but also no reason to sit back and wait for an automatic naturalisation that simply does not exist in Switzerland.