Changing jobs on a B permit
Important: Swiss rules can vary depending on your canton, municipality, nationality, residence status and personal circumstances. This guide provides general information based on official sources and should not be treated as legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Always confirm the current requirements with the relevant Swiss authority.
Step by step
- 1
Work out which regime you are in
EU/EFTA nationals move under the Free Movement Agreement (AFMP/ALCP): the permit follows your right to work, not a named employer. Third-country nationals move under the Foreign Nationals and Integration Act (FNIA/AIG/LEI): the permit was granted on your employer's application for a specific role, so a new role needs a new authorisation. Mixed-nationality couples must check separately — the rules for one spouse say nothing about the other.
- 2
Before you interview: read your current contract
Check the notice period, whether it runs to month-end, any non-compete clause (Art. 340 CO, enforceable only if narrowly drawn and usually capped at three years), and how your bonus is treated if you leave before payout. In banking and consulting, a February resignation can cost the previous year's bonus outright.
- 3
EU/EFTA: accept, then notify the migration office
There is no approval step. Send the cantonal migration office (Migrationsamt / Service de la population / Ufficio della migrazione) the new employment contract and, if you are moving home, the new address. Your card stays valid until its printed expiry; the register just needs to be current for renewal and for later C-permit and naturalisation checks.
- 4
Non-EU/EFTA: the new employer applies first
The new employer files with the cantonal labour-market authority (Amt für Wirtschaft und Arbeit / Office cantonal de l'emploi) with the job description, salary, proof of the recruitment effort and your CV and diplomas. The authority runs the labour-market priority test and the salary and conditions test under Art. 21–22 FNIA, then the file goes to the cantonal migration office and, for a new authorisation, to SEM for federal approval. Budget 4–10 weeks; some cantons are faster, some are slower in Q4 when quotas tighten.
- 5
Do not resign or start work before the written decision
Sign an offer that is expressly conditional on migration approval, keep working where you are, and wait for the decision letter. Starting without authorisation is a criminal offence for the employer under Art. 117 FNIA and grounds to revoke your permit under Art. 62 FNIA. Verbal reassurance from a recruiter or an HR business partner is not a decision.
- 6
If you are also changing canton
A cross-cantonal move needs the destination canton's approval on top of the labour authorisation, and for third-country nationals it consumes quota in the new canton. Apply before you move, then re-register at the new commune within 14 days of moving in and deregister at the old one. Your tax situation, health-insurance premium and Quellensteuer tariff all change with the canton.
- 7
Update the practical admin in the first month
New employer means a new pension fund: your Pillar 2 capital transfers automatically, but confirm it landed and check the new plan's employer share and coordination deduction. Also update your Quellensteuer tariff details if your civil status or children changed, tell your health insurer nothing (cover is personal, not employer-linked), and keep the migration office's confirmation letter with your permit documents.
- 8
If you lose the job instead of changing it
Register with the RAV regional employment centre on or before your last working day, and notify the migration office within the deadline in your permit letter — often 14 days. EU/EFTA holders keep the right to reside while genuinely job-seeking, typically six months and extendable with evidence of real applications. Third-country holders face a permit review; long unemployment or social assistance is a ground for non-renewal.
EU/EFTA vs non-EU/EFTA: two completely different regimes
The Free Movement Agreement gives EU/EFTA nationals the right to take up employment or self-employment in Switzerland; the B permit is issued because you have a job, but it is not chained to that specific job. Third-country nationals fall under the FNIA/AIG/LEI, where the permit is granted on the employer's application for a specific role. Every time the role changes, the authorisation must be renewed. Confusing these two regimes is the most common cause of accidental permit breaches for mixed-nationality couples — one spouse can accept an offer on Friday and start on Monday, the other cannot.
The sequencing rule that catches people out
Under the FNIA/AIG/LEI, work may only begin once the cantonal decision is issued. In practice: sign an offer that is explicitly conditional on migration approval, keep working at your current employer, wait for the written decision from the Migrationsamt or Service de la population, and only then resign. Employers who let third-country staff start early risk fines and refusals on future applications; the employee risks revocation under Art. 62 FNIA. If the new employer pushes for an earlier start, ask them to put the request in writing — that usually ends the conversation.
Building a file that gets approved
The authority is testing two things: that the labour market was genuinely searched, and that the role and pay are real. Files approve faster when the employer includes the job advertisement and where it ran, a short summary of why the shortlisted local candidates did not fit, the full contract with salary and workload, your diplomas with translations, and a role description that matches the salary band for that profession in that canton. Files stall on vague job titles, salaries below the sector norm, part-time percentages that make the salary test fail, and missing diploma recognition for regulated professions such as medicine, law, teaching and engineering.
Losing your job on a B permit
For EU/EFTA holders, Annex I of the AFMP protects the right to reside during genuine job search — typically six months, extendable with evidence of serious effort. Third-country holders have no equivalent right: prolonged unemployment or reliance on social assistance is a ground for non-renewal, though cantons often grant a job-search extension of a few months for someone with a long, well-integrated residence. Either way, register with the RAV immediately. Unemployment insurance (ALV/AC) requires it, benefits run at 70 or 80 percent of insured earnings depending on children and salary level, and daily allowances are capped. Never let the registration date slip: benefits do not backdate.
Notice periods, garden leave and the timeline
The Swiss Code of Obligations (Art. 335b–335c) sets minimum notice: 7 days during probation, 1 month in year 1, 2 months in years 2–9, 3 months from year 10 — unless your contract lengthens them, which senior contracts often do to six months. Notice normally runs to month-end. If you are third-country, work backwards from the earliest realistic authorisation date and time the resignation so you never create an unpaid gap. If your employer puts you on garden leave, you remain employed and insured until the end of notice, which is usually the cleaner outcome for permit continuity.
Changing canton at the same time
A cross-cantonal move is a second decision, taken by the destination canton, and it can be refused independently of the job. For third-country nationals it also draws on the destination canton's quota. Practical order: get the labour authorisation, get the destination canton's approval, sign the lease, move, register within 14 days, deregister at the old commune. Everything financial changes with the canton — income tax rate, wealth tax, health-insurance premium region, Quellensteuer tariff, and childcare subsidy rules. Model the net effect before accepting a nominal pay rise; the canton comparison pages on this site exist for exactly this.
Probation in the new job — the risk window
Swiss probation is one month by default and up to three months by contract, with seven days' notice on either side. For a third-country permit holder that is the exposed period: if the new employer terminates in probation, the authorisation that justified your permit disappears with the job. Reduce the exposure by negotiating a one-month rather than three-month probation where you can, keeping enough savings for three months of costs, and telling the migration office promptly if the job ends — a permit holder who reports early and registers with the RAV is treated very differently from one whose situation surfaces at renewal.
Job change and the road to a C permit
Changing employer is neutral for the C permit as long as residence and registration stay continuous. What harms the file is a gap: an unregistered month between communes, a period of social assistance, unpaid tax or debt-enforcement entries, or falling short of the cantonal language requirement. Before a move, download a Betreibungsauszug (debt registry extract) to make sure it is clean, keep every permit and registration letter, and if you are close to the five-year mark, ask whether the canton would rather see the C application filed before or after the move.
Your next step
Turn this guide into action — run the numbers for your own situation, then work through the deadlines for your canton.
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Build my free checklistNon-EU/EFTA holders: starting a new job before the written authorisation arrives is illegal and is the fastest way to lose a B permit. No exceptions for short overlaps or unpaid onboarding.
Statutory notice periods (Art. 335c CO) are 7 days during probation, 1 month in year 1, 2 months in years 2–9 and 3 months from year 10, unless your contract is longer. Plan the resignation date around the authorisation timeline, not the offer date.
Long unemployment gaps can break the continuous-residence requirement for the C permit and for facilitated naturalisation, and can reduce your ALV entitlement.
Third-country nationals: a cross-cantonal move at the same time as a job change means two approvals and quota exposure in the destination canton. Late-year files are frequently deferred to the next quota year.
People also asked
Do EU/EFTA citizens still need any paperwork to change jobs?
There is no approval process, but you must keep the migration office's records up to date — send the new employment contract and, if relevant, the new address. Your B permit stays valid; it is not tied to a specific employer.
Does the labour market test apply every time a non-EU/EFTA holder changes employer?
In practice, yes. The new employer usually has to show again that no suitable Swiss or EU/EFTA candidate was available and that pay and conditions match the local standard. Cantonal practice varies: some cantons accept a lighter file for an existing permit holder in the same profession, others treat it as a new application.
How long does the non-EU/EFTA authorisation take?
Typically 4–10 weeks from a complete file: a few weeks at the cantonal labour authority, then the migration office, then SEM approval where required. Files landing in October to December often run longer because cantonal quotas are close to exhausted.
Can I quit before authorisation is granted?
It is a serious risk. If the application is refused or delayed you may have no job and a permit tied to employment that has ended. Wait for the written decision, then resign.
Does a job change reset the C permit clock?
No — the 5- or 10-year clock is based on uninterrupted residence, not on one employer. But prolonged unemployment, a permit downgrade or a gap in registration can break continuity. See the B-to-C upgrade guide.
Read: Upgrade from B permit to C permitWhat happens to my Pillar 2 pension when I change employer?
It transfers to the new employer's pension fund automatically once you give them your previous fund's details. Check the transfer landed and compare the new plan: employer share above the legal 50 percent minimum, and a lower coordination deduction, are both worth real money.
What if I want to become self-employed?
EU/EFTA citizens have the right to take up self-employment and convert the permit accordingly. Third-country nationals need a separate authorisation and must show the activity serves Switzerland's economic interest (Art. 19 FNIA) — a business plan, financing and expected local hiring.
Can my new employer pay me less than the old one?
For EU/EFTA holders, yes — it is a private contract. For third-country holders, a materially lower salary can fail the conditions test, because the authorisation depends on pay matching the local and sector standard for the role. A big pay cut can therefore sink the application.
Official sources for this guide
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