Becoming parents is a major turning point in the life of a couple. This applies to binational couples and to all other couples. For this reason it is important to discuss in advance fundamental questions of life as a family and to define a joint path. Every family needs to clarify the rights and duties of the parents and those of the children.
Here you will find an open catalogue of questions on these topics. Discussing them can help avoid misunderstandings and surprises.
Part of this catalogue of questions has been taken from the "Questions and considerations concerning friendship and marriage between couples of different nationalities" brochure, which can be ordered free of charge from frabina, Laupenstrasse 2, 3008 Berne (in German, French, English and Spanish). Please send a stamped addressed C5 envelope.

Catalogue of questions: having children together

Shared ideas on upbringing
What ideas on upbringing do the future parents have? Are the parents' childhood experiences comparable or do they differ in fundamental points?

Future division of labour in the family
How will tasks be distributed in the planned family? Who will take on which roles? Who will take on childcare and who will take on gainful employment? Can the areas be divided up fairly?

Economic effects
What would having children mean in financial terms? Would one person temporarily give up work or reduce his/her working hours? If yes, who? Can/should the children be looked after by non-family members?

Religious affiliation of the children
Which religions will the family practise? Which religion will the children be brought up in? How important is religion in the family?

Traditions
Which traditions from their own family of origin would the parents like to experience with their children? How can various desires be combined?

Languages
Which language(s) will be spoken in the family? Will there be a language of the couple, a mother's language and a father's language, or a family language?

Contact to families of origin
How will the children maintain contact to both families of origin? What significance will the latter have in the new family?

Provisions in the case of separation or divorce
If a separation or divorce arises, how will the future be planned in these circumstances? Where would the couple's children live if one parent left Switzerland and returned to his/her native country? What would this mean for contact between the children and the parent without custody?

Legal questions: the couple's children
Child custody laws in Switzerland are regulated in the Swiss Civil Code (ZGB art. 252-327).

Citizenship
The child of a Swiss national obtains Swiss citizenship from birth on, ragardless of whether or not the parents were married at the time of the child's birth (Swiss Citizenship Act (BüG) art. 1).

Since 1 January 2006, a child acquires his father's Swiss citizenship even if the parents are not married, but only if the parental relationship is establiseh (BüG Art. 1, para 2).

Children who were born before 1 January 2006 and thus did not acquire their unmarried fathers's Swiss citizenship upon birth have the option to apply for simplified naturalisation (BüG art. 58).

Exception: The child of female Swiss national who became a Swiss citizen under prior law will not obtain citizenship upon birth but may apply for simplified naturalisation if he has close ties to Switzerland (BüG art. 58a).

Children from a binational relationship acquire Swiss citizenship through birth or adoption if their mother is a Swiss citizen or if their father is a Swiss citizen and is married to their mother or marries their mother later. (Swiss Citizenship Act (BüG) art. 1ff)

Exception: The child from the marriage between a foreign man and a Swiss woman who acquired Swiss citizenship through a previous marriage, does not acquire Swiss citizenship, but has the option of obtaining simplified naturalisation. (BüG art. 57a/58b)

If the parents are married, their child acquires the cantonal and communal citizenship of the father. If the parents are not married, their child acquires that of the mother (ZGB art. 271).

Switzerland recognises dual citizenship (see www.bfm.admin.ch). Thus according to Swiss law, a child can have the citizenship of the mother and that of the father. In each individual case, it is important to clarify whether the other state involved also recognises dual citizenship.
The appropriate consular representative will clarify whether the child also receives the citizenship of the foreign parent and how this can be requested.

In Switzerland, child law is governed by the Swiss Civil Code (arts. 252-327).

Naming
According to Swiss law, children take the family surname (ZGB art. 270). This can be the surname of the man or that of the woman, depending on what the couple decided when they got married (Matrimonial Law).
It is not possible for children to have a double surname in Switzerland. According to Swiss law, the children of unmarried parents acquire the surname of their mother.

Custody
Parents have joint custody if they are married.
According to Swiss law, if the parents of the child are not married, the mother generally has sole custody even if paternity has been determined and recognised, and the parents are living together. Since 01.01.2000, however, there has been the possibility of applying for joint parental custody at the guardianship authority (ZGB art. 298a para. 1).
If the parents separate, parental care is allocated. Parents who live separately generally still have joint custody - as long as they are married.
In the case of divorce, custody is determined by the court. According to the new divorce law, it is possible to apply for joint custody from the court if certain preconditions have been met (ZGB art. 133, para. 1-3).
After a divorce, the parent with custody has the right to decide on where the child lives, i.e. a foreign parent with custody can, for example, return to his/her country with the children.

Visiting right issues have to be decided according to the individual situation. The interests of the child, who has a right to remain in contact with both parents, are primarily taken into consideration to as great a degree as possible.

Recognition of paternity
In the case of married couples, the mother's husband is considered to be the child's father. Paternity needs to be regulated for children of unmarried parents (ZGB art. 260). In addition, a maintenance contract (ZGB art. 279 ff) needs to be concluded and - if the parents do not live together - visiting rights need to be regulated. Parents can do this of their own accord, i.e. they inform the responsible registry office of the paternity. Otherwise, the guardianship authority will establish a declaration of legal support in the interest of the child with the aim of regulating paternity and maintenance (ZGB art. 309). The interests and rights of the child are the main objective here. If a mother keeps the paternity a secret and/or forgoes maintenance, this damages the interests of the child. Keeping paternity secret and/or renouncing maintenance by a mother may be detrimental to the child's interests.

Child abduction

While married, both parents have a joint right to the custody of their children.
If you are afraid that your foreign partner may take your mutual children abroad with him or her without your consent, please contact the International Social Services (ssi) in Zurich (tel. 01 363 98 80) or in Geneva (tel. 022 731 67 00), the central authority for dealing with international child abduction in Berne (tel. 031 322 41 39) or one of the Association's advice centres. You can order the "International child abduction" brochure from the International Social Services (ssi).
A further brochure relating to the topic is under active preparation presently by SSI staff and scheduled to issue soon, title: "transnational child abduction from Switzerland by one parent".
After a separation or divorce, the court or the guardianship authorities may, in justified cases, order limited or accompanied visiting rights and, for example, have your partner submit his/her passport before visiting the child. In order to reduce risk, it is recommended that you keep the children's passports in a safe place.
If your child has already been taken abroad or in the case of specific suspicions, inform the police immediately and also contact one of the above-listed offices, which will advise you of the options in your case. If the country in question has ratified the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction of October 25, 1980, there are legal possibilities of returning the child to Switzerland.

Legal questions: Children from previous relationships
Here a distinction needs to be made between children from previous relationships for whom you or your partner have custody and children for whom you have visiting rights.

Children for whom you or your partner have custody
If the Swiss spouse has custody of children from a previous relationship, these children will probably live with him/her in the new family.

Reunification with children
If the foreign spouse has children from a previous relationship and these children have lived with him/her abroad so far, an application must be made to the responsible Cantonal Authority for reunification with family dependents if the children want to live with their parent in Switzerland.
Swiss national's foreign spouses and foreign children under 18 years of age have the right to issuance and extension of a redidence permit. If the mother or father became a Swiss citizen through naturalisation, a foreign child under age 18 will only have the right to a residence permit an will not automatically become a Swiss citizen with an original right of permanent residence. However, such a child has the option of simplified naturalisation under art 31a BüG.

In accordance with art. 1bis of the Swiss Regulations to Limit the Number of Foreigners (BVO), the group of peoble eligible for family reunification may at the authorities' discretion, be extended to include the claimants pursuant to the Freedom of Movement Agreement (FZA).

The residence status of the parents is decisive in the assessment of the application.

Parent from an EU or EFTA member country subject to the Freedom of Movement Agreement (FAZ)

Family reunification under the Freedom of Movement Agreement (FAZ) is interpreted more liberally for EU/EFTA nationals than is the family reunification of Swiss nationals.

Children or grandchildren under 21 years of age or who actually receive support from the applicant parent have the right to reside in Switzerland. The right of family reunification also applies to the parents and grandparents of the EU/EFTA national.

However, family members of nationals of an EU/EFTA member country who come from a third country may only invoke the right of family reunification if they legally and permanently resided in an EU/EFTA member country before filing the application. Otherwise, the decision whether to grant the permit is governed by the Swiss Federal Act on the Residence and Settlement of Foreign Nationals (ANAG) and the BVO. The application for family reunification must be filed at the appropriate Cantonal office and normally accompanied by the following (which will vary depending on the canton).

- documents from the home country that verify the relationship (birth certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decree with child custody decree etc.)

- if applicable, a certificate (issued by the home country or country of origin) of the existing duty of support for the person being reunified

- a copy of the lease of the apartment in which the family is to be accommodated

- a copy of the health insurance policy of all family members verifying that they are fully insured against illness and accident

- your last three pay stubs

- a copy of any credit or loan agreements

- a copy of every passport

- two passport photos per person

Parent from a third country with B permit
If the foreign parent holds a B residence permit, his or her foreign child under 18 years of age may obtain a residence permit, specifically based on the Swiss Regulations to Limit the Number of Foreigners (BVO) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). In accordance with art. 3 para. 1c of the BVO, residence may also be approved for children under 21 years of age (see www.bfm.admin.ch).

For parents with a one-year residence permit (i.e. in the first five years of the marriage), there is no legal claim for subsequent immigration of family dependents. They can still submit an application to the responsible authority for subsequent immigration of children. Decisive factors in the assessment of the application include:

• Age of the children (in general, subsequent immigration applies only to underage children)
• Custody and main family relationship of the child to the parent living in Switzerland
• Confirmed sojourn of the parent and his/her spouse
• Appropriate living conditions
• Sufficient financial means
• Secured childcare

The decision of whether the listed preconditions have been met lies with the authorities. For children who have almost reached the age of legal majority (18 years), the reunifcation of family dependents may be refused under certain circumstances.
In some cantons, staggered subsequent immigration of children is not possible.

Parent with C permit
Children under 18 years of age have a right to a C permit if they have a main family relationship to the parent with a permanent residence permit (C) and if this parent has custody.
If the children do not (no longer) have a second biological parent or if the latter agrees, the adoption of stepchildren is possible under certain conditions. If you have questions, please contact pertinent Cantonal Authorities (http://www.ofj.admin.ch/d/adoptionen-index.html Adressliste der Kantonalen Behörden) the responsible cantonal offices (youth welfare offices), the Swiss Adoption Service (www.adoption.ch) or the International Social Services (www.ssiss.ch).

Children for whom you or your partner have visiting rights
Questions that may arise through exercising visiting rights in the couple's relationship should be clarified and discussed - depending on the age of the children also with them. It is important for everyone involved that acceptable compromises can be found. It lies within the interest of all concerned to arrive at acceptable compromise solutions.

Visiting rights
If you have visiting rights for your children from a previous relationship and exercise these regularly, your marriage will change nothing here in legal terms. Basically, you can continue to exercise your visiting rights. Whether the amount of any maintenance payments can be adapted depends on the financial circumstances of the parent who is required to pay maintenance.
If the children live abroad, depending on the geographical distance, it may only be possible to exercise visiting rights to a limited degree. In this case, an acceptable solution needs to be found for everyone involved. If the parents cannot agree, a court order can be sought in terms of child law. In this case, questions need to be clarified, such as: who will cover travel costs for the children if they exercise their visiting rights? Who will accompany the children on these trips if they are still too young to travel on their own?

Maintenance payments
For maintenance payments to be made from or to other countries, international maintenance collection is an option if required. The decisive factor here is whether conventions (New York Convention of 1956 / Hague Convention on Recognition and Enforcement of 1958 and 1973) have been entered into with the individual countries. You can obtain information on this issue from the responsible cantonal authorities and the International Social Services (ssi) in Zurich and Geneva www.ssiss.ch.

For the resolution of day-to-day problems as well as answers to personal questions refer to a Call Centre of our Association.

Last revision July 2008