Hi, I have a question regarding something is going to happen or might happen to my family.
I am EU citizen with B permit and my son is also EU with B permit. He is 6 years old. I am the only one working and my spouse is non-EU with B permit.
Apparently, after 7 years of marriage and 4 in Switzerland, she is considering separation.
From my findings, I noticed that:
Because she is non-EU and no working, her B permit might get revoked Our son might ends up moving away with her In case of stay, with only me working, we will need to split my income which will make both lifes impossible to sustain
Now I am trying to hold her until she gets a 100% job and I am wondering what would be here the best way to avoid a disaster. I am not looking for solutions on the marriage, that's not anymore an option for her (not clear why she is now looking for such a quick separation ...). I am trying to understand how to avoid that my son gets kick-out with her and also how to avoid that a judge will force us on living with a very low income (my salary split in two).
Anybody being there before which can provide some experience, lessons learned?
First question is does your wife want to stay in Switzerland? If so, then yes, she needs to find a job somehow - and I say somehow because once she loses the family reunification permit any employer will have to prove they can’t find a Swiss/EU national who could do the job. Depending on what skills she has that may be easy or impossible.
You might be able to push for your ex to be allowed to stay in Switzerland since joint custody is the default position here. If you refuse to allow the child to leave the country then a judge may agree to her continuing to live here.
Are you sure she hasn’t found someone else which is why she wants a quick divorce?
This is the most reasonable explanation. Considering that the wife has no job and might need to leave Switzerland, the father might get the child's custody if he wishes it.
It’s not absolutely necessary, but it would help. Still, with a divorce looming a C permit is unlikely to be granted under family reunification, even if she does meet the other requirements for it as iirc one of the questions asked is if you plan to stay married. And she will not get an independent C for the same reason she won’t get a B without a job.
Cannot or should not? The law is one thing, but would she be prevented from crossing out of the Schengen area with the child if she were to attempt it?
Land border might work. At airports single parents with a child get increasingly often checked whether all's fine, exactly for this reason. Trains, no idea.
You may remember the catastrophic cable car accident near the Lago Maggiore earlier this year. One of the survivors, a boy with the home in Italy who lost his immediate family in the accident, got abducted by the grandfather to Israel. He did so using a private jet to bypass the usual airport checks.
Not "we", she. It's her decision, she wants the divorce, her screwup if that's what happens.
You need to assume that she will milk you as much as she can (unless you have the contrary in writing notarised). From a monetary perspective, her losing the permit may a positive for you, because her life abroad is probably cheaper and that is likely to be considered in the divorce ruling.
Time for you to lawyer up. The cost may seem expensive, but a reduced alimony may pay that back many times over. The first question you need to answer to yourself is whether you want custody of the child (assuming he's your son).
I seem to remember that it makes a massive difference WRT alimony if a marriage has lasted less than five years. I may be wrong with this, but time may be important.
Yes the primary objective for me is to ensure my son stays in Switzerland. This 2022 he will get C permit and I am heading in giving him also Swiss nationality. I have no intention to let him leave Switzerland, I am just thinking about his future.
I will do a search then and get an advice from a lawyer. Of course the idea would be for her to get 100% employment so that it won’t hit the bank and I will keep my son here. I also read that I can buy time by opposing the request to divorce so that I can grant C to me and him and have a stronger position to ensure he stays in CH.
Regarding custody, if things go bad yes I am considering to battle to have 100% custody but I read that Swiss law is always on the mother side. That’s why I was looking for some advices.
The reasoning for divorce is a non topic because that’s absolutely fine for me, I don’t care as far as I can keep my boy near me.