I am a Chemical Engineer living in Weil am Rhein for the past 9 months, and would like to gather some information for my partner who is trying to join me here.
He is an American citizen by birth, and is a Software Programmer/Developer with a Bachelor's Degree and 5 years of work experience in the US.
Based on our initial searches, it seems as though the best jobs for him are in Switzerland rather than Germany, and more so in Basel, due to it being a Bioinformatics/Pharmaceuticals hub in the region. However, it seems as though it will be quite challenging for an non-EU person to seek and obtain employment here. Nevertheless, of course we both want to try our best to find something for him so we can live together.
I have already looked at some threads on this forum, but I feel like this is a rather special case, and would greatly appreciate any help from the members of this forum.
And I would give a lot more details on your partner. Education, experience, industry, special skills. Everything that is relevant in his field.
In general, non-EU cannot get jobs - as you have found out already - unless they have special skills in demand. You have not written anything that makes your partner stand out except for listing a generic education/experience. I work in IT and we have a lot of non-EU employed in my company, so it is for sure possible.
I terms of searching for a job, I would get your partner here first on family re-unification (or whatever it is called) if you can/want to. This will make things a lot easier.
Searching from remote as a non-EU without a valid permit is next to impossible unless you can get on board with a headhunter(s) that can open the doors for your partner.
Edit: I overlooked that you live in DE. Others have commented on that part already and pointed out that family re-unification changes nothing in terms of getting a job in CH
Sorry to dissapoint you. Non-EU/EFTA national looking for work in Switzerland is not so special. If he intends to live to live outside Switzerland than it is only slightly more special.
As you seem to be a Non-EU/EFTA/Swiss national yourself:
Your current German residence permit means nothing regarding Switzerland and neither you nor your partner can profit from the free movement of people agreement between Switzerland and the EU.
Cross border work permit for Non-EU/EFTA nationals are only issued in case they have a permanent residence permit in the neigbouring country and have had lived at least for 6 months in the border zone.
As you live just next to Basel accross the border, in a town which even has a tram line to Switzerland he might look for work and a place to live in Basel. Hard part is to get the job, the rest (visa, permit, apartement, etc.) is more or less automatic.
You can spend 90 days any given 180 days period in Switzerland.
If he lives in Switzerland he can spend 90 days any given 180 days period in the EU.
I was referring to the fact that we are both non-EU citizens and we cannot rely on each other for any kind of citizenship-based support.
To be honest, I hope this is not a special case at all, and that others have been in this situation before and were able to find a solution.
Dear CBGeneve,
Thank you for your reply. I will try to summarize his details:
He has a Bachelors in Biology, and has worked as a Software Developer for 5 years in a consulting firm with clients from different industries. He has mainly worked to create software using Java and C#, but is also fluent in WPF, Visual Studio. Proficient in SQL, Python, Lua, Git, Subversion, Eclipse, JIRA, Azure, and numerous other technologies.
We have found some job postings from companies in the Basel area which seemed to look for these skills (I am not sure if it is allowed/if it is good to name them on a public forum), but of course applying only for 2-3 jobs is not sufficient.
I hope this provides a better picture of his skill-set.
Regarding the living situation, it seems like the best initial option would be for him to live in Basel should he find a job, and we can commute until he has lived there long enough to become a "Grenzgänger". This is not ideal, but it seems for my initial research that this would be the most feasible.
Software engineering in Switzerland isn't really a special case for English speaking expats. At least not in the Zurich area. Rather, it seems to be one of the more common professions among this demographic. In addition to the multinationals in the area (Google, IBM), Swiss banks tend to use English as a working language.
That said, he's absolutely at a disadvantage, especially with just a Bachelor's degree. Basically, the firm has to make the case that they cannot find an EU/EFTA/Swiss person to do the job. A big company that is 'always hiring' has an easier time claiming that they would (and have) hired the EU persons with similar qualifications. They are also more likely to be practiced at securing permits and confident in their ability to do so. Graduate degrees and other firm professional qualifications can make the argument easier, as does tenure with the firm in other countries.
So there is no harm in trying - I'd focus on companies large enough to be well practiced at the permit application process - but the odds will depend a lot on qualifications and how any interviews go, and I certainly would try to keep the search as broad as other considerations allow.
Which would be 8 to 10 years. Why? To become a German-Swiss Grenzgänger as a Non-EU/EFTA/Swiss national without familiy ties to such a person he would need a permanent residence permit from Germany. To get a permanent residence permit from Germany he must actually have lived in Germany for at least 5 years beforehand, which is impossible if he lives in Basel. So his only options is to become Swiss, which takes at least ten years, or you become German and marry him which takes at least 8 years (o.k. 7 1/2 has you have been there already for 6 months).
" Third-country nationals will only be given a cross-border commuter G-permit, if they have a permanent residence permit in a neighboring country. They also need to have had their residence in the neighboring country’s border zone for at least six months and fulfill the labor market requirements. G-permits are usually valid for one year, and are limited to the border zone of the issuing canton. Third-country border commuters require permission to change jobs or occupations."
Plus the fact that it’s difficult to get a bank account here in Switzerland for Americans due to the FATCA taint. What it’s like in Germany I’ve no idea.
As Tom said, marry, apply for family reunification and he lives/works in Germany - that’s the easiest way for you to be together.
I think the best way forward is to get a better understanding of the Swiss job market for Software Developers, and then consider the immigration-related questions.
Would it really take that long? For him to "become" a Swiss, yes, but I was told that since I have a Blue Card and recently finished my B1 level in German, I should be able to apply for a permanent residency sooner. Is my understanding wrong?
Why would a permit for another country or B1 German level help in any way for Swiss permanent residency? The former is completely irrelevant and the latter almost a must to even be considered in the first place.
Ask yourself the reverse: if I had a residence card for Canada and spoke English to B1, would that get me a Green Card in the US any quicker?
Once again. What kind of German permit YOU have is of no relevancy. To be allowed as a Grenzgänger HE would need a German permanent residence permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis). Also an EU blue card is not a permanent residence permit.
Probably right for Germany, but does nothing for Switzerland. Switzerland isn’t part of the EU so their rules don’t apply unless there are specific agreements that have been made between the two such as the Free Movement of People for EU/Swiss nationals.
Guess she is married to a Swiss or her husband has a status that allows her as non EU to work here? Happens a lot and is different from acquiring a work permit on your own merits
she seemed like compare Switzerland to America badly, as far as I recall she mentioned what American state she was from.
I guess it's reasonable to assume she has lived in Switzerland for a long time given her ability to blend in with her accent and she very well could be naturalised but I'm not convinced.