EXPLAINED: The biggest political issues in Switzerland this autumn

Now that the summer break is over and political life is picking up again, let’s first look at which topics of concern to foreign residents are up for debate during the autumn session of the Parliament, which will take place from September 14th to October 2nd.

Immigration tax

As proposed by the Council of States’ Committee on Political Institutions. MPs will discuss adding the obligation to pay this fee to the ‘safeguard clauses’ included within the future package of agreements between Switzerland and the European Union. 

For employed individuals, the tax – the amount of which has not yet been determined –  would be charged to employers, but adults arriving in Switzerland under family reunification provisions would also be subject to this charge, and would have to pay it themselves.

The debate is expected to be heated, as right-wing deputies from Swiss People’s Party (SVP) will argue in favour of this measure, while those from the Centre and the left are likely to oppose it.

READ MORE: Swiss MPs want to introduce new immigration tax into EU agreement 

Foreign graduates of Swiss universities

Over 35 percent of students at Switzerland’s universities are foreign nationals, with the proportion even higher at the two federal polytechnic institutes – EPFL in Lausanne and ETH in Zurich.

While those who come from the EU and EFTA nations (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) can remain in Switzerland after graduation if they find a job, nationals of third countries face a number of restrictions.

During the parliamentary sessions, deputies will tackle the issue of amending the current legislation to allow some non-EU/EFTA nationals who have graduated from a Swiss university easier access to the Swiss labour market.

The aim is to retain highly skilled talent in Switzerland.

What else is on the MPs’ agenda this fall?

They will focus on the very important – and increasingly relevant – issue of protecting Swiss jobs.

Concretely, the debate will center on prohibiting companies belonging wholly or partially to the Swiss government – and therefore financed by taxpayers – from relocating jobs abroad.

Deputies want to amend the current legal framework so that those companies can’t move any jobs from Switzerland to foreign countries in the future – as some have already have.

For instance, PostFinance bank, which is part of the Swiss Post and therefore wholly owned by the government, off-shored some of its operations and IT support to Spain and Portugal.

And the country’s largest telecom, Swisscom, of which the government owns 51 percent, moved its IT development department to Rotterdam and Riga.

Swiss neutrality

The referendum on September 27th will highlight the issue of Swiss neutrality – specifically, whether it should have a degree of flexibility or remain strict and rigid.

The ‘Neutrality Initiative’, instigated by the sovereigntist organisation Pro Schweiz – an offshoot of the populist Swiss People’s Party (SVP), seeks to better anchor Swiss neutrality in the country’s Constitution – concretely, by banning Switzerland from joining NATO (or any other military alliances), except in the event of a direct attack against the country.

Additionally, the organisation seeks to restrict Swiss government’s right to impose sanctions on rogue nations.

The government and all the other political parties are against this measure, preferring a looser definition of neutrality in order to better respond to global events.

READ MORE: The future of Swiss neutrality to be decided at the ballot box 

And then there’s an ongoing issue of new agreements with the European Union

Though nothing major is expected to happen until the referendum on this matter is held – probably sometime in 2027 – the proposed agreements continue to stir controversy, mostly driven by its sole opponent, the SVP.

Heated debates on the issue are therefore expected to continue throughout this fall, and beyond.

READ MORE: What happens next with the landmark Swiss-EU agreements?