Dear all,
My company filed my work permit application in Zurich last month. I'm aware that the application needs to be processed by 3 authorities: the cantonal labor office (AWA), SEM, and the cantonal migration office.
My questions are:
- Does the employer get a reply (in writing) each time any of the first 2 authorities have made an interim decision? Or does it get one single reply once AWA and SEM have both approved the application?
- Has anyone applied for a work permit recently and can share their experience on the waiting time?
Many thanks!
My Company has applied at the end of May. Still waiting
Rule #1 of Switzerland. Every Canton is different.
Yes, the AWA is required to inform the employer of their decision.
We're in the same shoes then. We applied early June. Please keep me posted if you hear anything from AWA!
I see, thank you! So we should expect a letter from AWA if the permit has been preliminarily approved by it and has been forwarded to SEM for further approval, correct?
I don't know about current wait times, but before Covid a standard answer here on EF was "up to 12 weeks". Some applications went faster, others slower.
A lot depends on A) the canton, B) whether the authorities need additional information from you or the employer, and C) where you're from. I have no idea why, but it seems that the checks with India (for example) take longer than with other non-EU countries.
Thank you for your reply! I've prepared myself for a waiting time of at least 8 weeks to get the final approval by both AWA and SEM. I was just wondering if the employer might receive an interim reply once AWA has made a preliminary decision after about 4 weeks.
The company will get response at each level .
You are right, there are three levels. I remember the first and the last are much faster, the second one is the main chunk.
For me, the whole process is about 6 weeks, and my time of submitting application is in August.
PS: I am non-EU, got my B Permit three years ago, in Basel-Stadt.
Thank you for sharing your experience! I guess 6 weeks is not realistic for Zurich these days, as we haven't heard anything even from the first one yet after 4 weeks...Will sit tight and wait then
Maybe your company got the update, but they did not inform you? Did you email your company to ask for any news?
Check with your employer if there are any updates. In my case, it was an internship, it took two weeks for approval from AWA back in January 2022. Approval from AWA is sent to your employer, so please check with them.
As other suggested above, asking to your employer seems a good idea. In my case, I asked and my employer called authorities and they orally confirmed that my permit will be approved (not approved but will be approved ) and we should receive the confirmation letter within few days. I don't know for sure what this all means though (like whether it is now guaranteed that I will get the approval or there are still some chances that it might not happen).
PS. I already live in ZH, so my application maybe only goes through AWA and SEM but not through the migration office (not sure though, maybe it still goes) unlike yours.
cheers
Hi, I want to share my experience.
Two weeks ago, I just received the notice from my employer that my permit is secured (all three stages completed).
I'm non-EU, but have a degree from ETH. My degree is already 4 years old (got in 2018), but it was still useful to escape the EU-priority rule (work after study is noted on my approval).
The process takes in total exactly 6 weeks. We applied in canton ZH. The employer received notice after each stage of approval, but the later two approval takes only in total 2 days, so more or less all the approval arrives simultaneously.
I also got my final approval today. Similar to the above commend, mine also took around 6 weeks in total. I am also ETH graduate - not sure if this made any difference in term of time. You will get yours soon, fingers crossed.
I am non-EU and got my B Permit for Basel-Stadt three years ago, in 6 weeks. But I had never been to Switzerland before.
Wow, 6 weeks is really indeed fast! Mine took... like 3 months because it was peak covid so I'm definitely jealous! Congrats
Yes, you are right. 6 weeks is fast and I think I was lucky.
But 3 months during peak Covid is not too bad, right?
Thank you very much everyone for sharing!! I checked with my employer and my permit has passed the first approval. It's now being reviewed by SEM.
Great. If your company is experienced in Permit application process (this type of company tends to be big and multinational), the second step will be 3-4 weeks I think. So, keep us updated.
By the way, if you not mind, is it OK to tell us your profession and level of education? These may also affect your Permit process.