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Swiss to allow ‘complete’ free movement of people from Croatia

Switzerland announced Friday that it will grant "complete free movement" for people in EU-member Croatia to live and work in the country from January.

Published: 22 October 2021 19:25 CEST

A Croatian flag and a European Union (EU) flag

A Croatian flag and a European Union (EU) flag. Croatia is a full member of the EU. Croatians will soon be able to come to Switzerland under free movement rules. STR / AFP

Switzerland informed the EU of the decision at a meeting on Friday of the Switzerland-EU Joint Committee on the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons.

Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, but the two economic partners signed an agreement on the free movement of people in 1999, which came into force in 2002.

EXPLAINED: What’s the difference between permanent residence and Swiss citizenship?

That deal allows Swiss nationals and those of EU member states to freely choose their place of work and residence within those nations. But the agreement includes transitional stages.

Croatia joined the European Union in 2013 and since 2017 Croatian citizens have enjoyed free movement in Switzerland, but labour restrictions have been maintained.

READ MORE: An essential guide to Swiss work permits

These restrictions will end on January 1, 2022.

“This will put Croatian workers on an equal footing with those from other EU member states or the European Free Trade Association,” an organisation that includes Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, the Swiss State Secretariat for Migration said in a statement.

“If the immigration of Croatian workers exceeds a certain threshold, Switzerland will be able to invoke a safeguard clause and limit the number of permits again from 1 January 2023 until the end of 2026 at the latest,” it added.

As of the end of 2020, 28,324 Croatian nationals were living in Switzerland, six more than a year earlier. This number represents 1.9 percent of the total number of EU and EFTA nationals living in Switzerland.

Residence permits: How EU and EFTA citizens can live, work and stay in Switzerland

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Why is Switzerland spending 300 million francs to protect Schengen borders?

Though Switzerland is not a member of the EU, it does belong to the Schengen area — not only benefitting from the access to Europe’s borderless zone, but also participating in its funding.

Financial support is especially needed in Schengen countries with particularly extensive land and sea borders or major international airports on their territories, because they bear a heavy financial burden of securing the zone’s external borders, for the benefit of all the other members.

How will Switzerland’s 300-million-franc contribution be used?

Over the period of next seven years, it will go toward the programme called Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (BMVl), which is part of the fund that ensures efficient management of EU’s borders.

The EU already allocated 6.24 billion euros to the BMVI for a seven-year period, and 300 million francs is Switzerland’s share.

Specifically, those funds will be used towards improving external border controls, investing in common large-scale IT systems in the area of borders management and visa policy, funding infrastructure and equipment, and deployment of immigration liaison officers, among other tasks.

Why is Switzerland contributing 300 million francs?

The BMVl’s goal is to “improve the protection of the external borders of the Schengen area and, therefore, to increase the effectiveness of border controls and prevent illegal immigration,” the Federal Council said.

This, along with effective and integrated management of the external borders “is also in Switzerland’s interest.”

Also, Switzerland will likely receive grants from the BMVl of around 50 million francs to be allocated mainly to the establishment of new EU information systems (EES Entry and Exit System, and European Travel Information and Authorization System ETIAS) on its territory.

Furthermore, it is planned to use part of these resources to finance the expansion of the border control infrastructure at Zurich Airport.

Benefits for Switzerland

There is no doubt that Swiss citizens benefit greatly from access to the Schengen zone.

Simply put, it allows anyone who is in Switzerland legally to enjoy hassle-free travel to and from the 26 other Schengen states, visa time limits permitting.

Travellers arriving into Switzerland for the first time from a non-Schengen state like the UK or the US will have to queue up to have their passports checked, but after that they can move freely.

That means Swiss citizens, EU nationals, non-EU international residents in Switzerland, tourists, exchange students or people travelling for business can travel on to another Schengen member state, perhaps neighbouring France or Germany by car or train, without having to show their passports. (Although occasionally checks are brought back.)

That is a definite ‘plus’ for anyone who travels within Europe. Due to Switzerland having so many land borders with other Schengen countries it would have been hugely problematic not to join.

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