Applications by non-Swiss citizens

Enquiries by Citizens from EU Member States

The SDC can also hire citizens from EU Member States who are applying for employment in relation to a specific job opening announcement. In addition to the general criteria in force for the application procedure, the following stipulations must also be taken into consideration:

A. For job applications of foreign nationals from the old EU-15 countries including Malta and Cyprus, as well as those stemming from the EFTA member countries, the following regulations apply:

Assuming that the individual possesses the same qualifications, an applicant from one of these countries is treated the same as an applicant from Switzerland.

B. For job applications of foreign nationals from the "new" EU-10 countries (excluding Malta and Cyprus), the following regulations apply:

In the event that, among the job applicants for an opening published, there are appropriate candidates emerging from among Swiss citizens with equivalent qualifications, the Swiss candidate is accorded priority (domestic precedence).
For citizens of the "new" EU-10 countries, work permits and residence permits are subject to a quota restriction up until the year 2011.

Enquiries by Citizens from non-EU member states

Even citizens from non-EU Member States have the possibility of applying for a specific job opening. In addition to the general criteria in force for the application procedure, the following stipulations must be taken into consideration:

As a rule, citizens who belong to non-EU countries must be extremely well qualified (university graduates), or must be seeking employment in a specific sector of the economy in which there reigns a deficit of domestic job-seekers.
Furthermore, citizens hailing from non-EU Member States should, if possible, be in possession of a Permanent Residence Permit (Permit C) in order to apply for an opening at the SDC. Should they not be in possession of a Permit C, they can in principle apply for employment with the SDC just the same. The SDC, however, will be required to prove that no other appropriately qualified person with Swiss citizenship or with a Permit C has been found among the applications received.