I hate waiting

It’s been six weeks since I submitted the application and nothing’s happened.  Well, not literally nothing.  We did receive an invoice.  I concede that we’ve had fair warning to expect no updates during the lengthy review period between application submission and invitation to the Gespräch mit der Einbürgerungskommission (Immigration committee interview) but still … couldn’t they throw us a bone?  Perhaps a “Thinking of you” postcard.  Or even just an email.  I pulled out the packet of information I’d been given when I handed in our application.  Tucked within was an invitation to information sessions for applicants.  Offered six time a year, they’re forty-five minute summaries of the process and what we can do to prepare for the interview.  I’d seen this but hadn’t originally planned to attend.  I thought I knew everything we need to do, but maybe not.   Maybe there are some tips and tricks.  And they’ll probably have cookies.   I sent in the RSVP.

Application submitted

Last week, five and a half months after kicking off the process, we submitted our application.  In mid-June the last remaining document, Paige’s birth certificate, finally arrived.  In fact, we received two.  Perhaps Pennsylvania was trying to make up for having lost our original order.  I immediately scooted down to the Zivilstandamt to submit our now complete package of official certificates.  The clerk accepted the documents and asked me how I would like to pay the CHF 116 filing fee.   After paying, I stood expectantly waiting for the promised registrar’s extract.  The remaining piece of the application puzzle.  Sensing my expectation, she told me that it would be sent by post.  What?  Couldn’t I just wait a bit and get it while there?   “Nope, we will send it.”    Astutely recognizing my limited negotiation position, I nodded acceptance and left.  In the end, I thought, what’s another two weeks.   November, 2020 is more than two years away and we’ll certainly have this worked out by then.  Sure enough, two weeks later the official document arrived so I zipped down to the immigration office at the first opportunity (open Thursdays only) to submit the full application.  Five months’ worth of form filling, certificate ordering, document collecting and signature requesting.  It felt like I was holding a summary of our very existence which, from a Swiss perspective, perhaps I was.  To my surprise, there was no line in the immigration office.  A dark thought emerged.  Maybe they weren’t open.  Worse, maybe everyone eligible had already applied.  Darker still, maybe the immigration quota had been filled and it was too late.  Not to worry, though.  No line meant simply no wait and I was immediately invited in to speak with a nice, thirty something woman of Asian descent.  She asked for my package and quickly sifted through it to ensure completeness.  After having done so she stamped a case number on the front sheet and told me we would be invited to an interview in six to eight months.  She also mentioned casually that we should expect a bill in the next few days for CHF 950.  The entire interaction took five minutes. Three days later there it was in our post box.  I’d heard that this part of the process was very efficient.  On the invoice it was noted that our assigned Ansprechperson would be Kun-Hye Suh.  Our contact person was herself an immigrant.  I smiled at the irony and immediately paid the bill.  The last thing I wanted was to be the source of another delay.

Die Geburtsurkunde

First big setback today when I learned that Pennsylvania lost our request for Paige’s birth certificate so I must re-order it.  As mentioned in my last post, I won’t whine about this but it is pretty annoying.  We won’t have to pay twice but our new order goes to the end of the queue so it’ll be another month before we get it (or more if it’s lost again).  Like I said, no whining.  Let’s just say that I’m bringing it up in hopes of helping future Schweizermachers.  Clearly, this is a workstream to initiate at the beginning of the process and as a professional project manager, I know that it’s all about identifying and addressing critical paths.  

Naturalization meeting

A few weeks ago, I wrote about an invitation that we’d received to attend an information meeting for Basel residents who’ve recently become eligible to pursue Swiss citizenship.  I mentioned a comment made by a neighbor who wondered whether the invitation was distributed only to those possessing first world passports.  Well, last night the meeting took place and I can say unequivocally that the invitation list was blind to national or socioeconomic standing.   There were over 300 people crammed into the Grossratssaal (another of the many very beautiful rooms in the various Basel government buildings) in the Basel Rathaus.  There were people in the seats.  People in the tribune.  People in the aisles and along the back wall.  There were even people sitting in the seats reserved for the members of the Cantonal Council during the bi-monthly meetings.  It was definitely not the cozy little gathering of twenty or thirty people that I expected. 

The question of whether such a turnout was expected by the organizers was settled with the first few words from Mr. Michel Girand, Head of the Migration Department, when he opened the meeting by saying how astonished they were by the crowd.  He was undaunted, however, and moved ahead with reviewing the agenda before handing over to Mr. Bashi Dürr, a member of the Cantonal Council.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t see Mr. Dürr from my seat in the balcony but I could hear him and was thankful that he and his colleagues addressed us in High German and not the Basel dialect that continues to elude me.  He welcomed us, saying a few words about what it meant to become a Swiss citizen then passed the baton to Mr. Oliver Meury (Office of Naturalization and Residency Permits) and Dr. Stefan Wehrle (Basel City Council member) who carried the ball the remainder of the meeting.  Mr. Meury began by reviewing the process, noting that it all begins with a visit to the Immigration Office, which is only possible on Thursdays.  As he said that, he remarked that this was coincidently the next day then quickly added that it would be best if not everyone in the room that evening were to stop by.  The comment was certainly not planned and resulted in a ripple of laughter which loosened up the crowd.   He then shared a video of street interviews with people who were asked whether they were Swiss and what it meant to be Swiss.  Most of them spoke in pretty heavy dialect so I couldn’t understand much of what they had to say but they were anyway pretty funny.  One lady in particular, who from my perspective might as well have been speaking Russian, communicated sufficiently through her facial expressions and cadence that I found myself laughing just as hard as those in the room who actually understood what she was saying.    

In the end, none of the information communicated was news to me as I’ve made quite a project of understanding the process and pretty much everything is available via the internet but what I did get out of the evening was a feeling for the enthusiasm within the crowd.  These folks were clearly interested in doing this.  They were happy to be in the room and weren’t doing so just to participate in the inevitable Apero at the end of the evening.  The second half of the meeting was reserved for Q&A with Mr. Girand circulating around the room, handing the microphone over to one participant after another for their, often very personal, questions. One lady introduced herself as being from Aleppo and her question had to do with her birth certificate.  As I’ve mentioned in an earlier post, one of the requirements for applicants is that they provide an original copy of their birth certificate issued not more than six months ago.   She remarked that the office where she would get hers no longer exists and she is afraid to return in person to find out what she must do.  Her question was simple.  What are her options?  The crowd was silent as she asked this.  Mr. Meury told her to stop by the Zivilstandamt to speak with someone there.  She asked if he would personally help her.  Her boldness in asking this, and the way in which she did it, wasn’t cheeky.  It was touching.  The crowd responded with supportive laughter, then Mr. Meury said he would and the crowd cheered.  It made me feel good and I resolved to stop whining about Pennsylvania’s delay in providing Paige’s certificate. 

I stopped by the Apero as I was leaving the building and there, on the tables, was proof that they did not expect over 300 people.  A few baskets of crackers and five or six of those savory cakes with bacon specks.  I left them to everyone else and went home for dinner.

Integration

Demonstration of assimilation into Swiss society is a key aspect of the Naturalization process.   This was evident in the oral part of the language test and there are also two questions within the application form that touched on this.  In the first you must describe how you participate in the social and cultural life of the local community and in the second how you interact with Swiss people.   To me, these questions make complete sense and are perfectly reasonable.  Swiss citizenship is not a trophy.  It represents not only a willingness but a desire to buy into the way of life here.   As a citizen, you will have the right to vote, which means you can help shape things, so the process seeks to identify those who may try to change the country culturally.  Improve it or refine it, of course, but not fundamentally change it.  For those who just want to live here, whether it’s for economic, work or political reasons, the various residence permits offer ways to do this.    Citizenship, however, is for those who like Switzerland for what it is, not just for what it offers, and who feel at home already. 

It is interesting to me that the question in the form notes participation in the local community.  Switzerland is made up of 2,222 municipalities (Gemeinde) speaking four official languages and countless local dialects and this question is a recognition of the role of these local communities in making the larger Switzerland what it is.  The inherent diversity of the communities makes up the commonality that is the entire country.   Sure, the Zürchers make fun of the Baslers but we make fun of them right back.  And everyone makes fun of each other’s dialects. But no one would wish ill will towards another town or city.  Unless you’re talking football of course. 

Die Sprachstandanalyse

The Sprachstandanalyse is the language test and is, after the basic residency requirement, the first prerequisite in the Swiss citizenship process.  At the Federal level they don’t get more specific than simply “language” because Switzerland has four official languages; German, French, Italian and Romansh and while you’ve probably heard of the first three, the last may not sound familiar.  Romansch is the predominant language for roughly 35,000 Swiss citizens, most living in Graubünden, a canton in eastern Switzerland.  They’re a proud bunch that no one wants to offend and even though you won’t find it used on products in the grocery story it retains its official status.  Fortunately, we won’t have to master it.  Our obligation is to demonstrate competency in only one of the four which, for us, in Basel, is German.  In developing our test strategy, Lisa and I decided that I’d take the test first so I could scout it out and give her a summary of what’s involved.  No need to sweat away time drilling on the genitive if it won’t be on the test.  Paige, of course, places out by virtue of having done all of her schooling in the Basel school system.  So, I signed up for one of the Saturday morning slots, paid my CHF 180 and boned up a bit on the grammar (including the genitive).   As it turned out, any anxiety I might have felt was unwarranted as the test was much easier than expected.  I would even go so far to say that it was fun as the oral part was just a twenty-minute conversation with two nice ladies during which we got carried away and almost went overtime.  We laughed and clucked together like a couple of old hens.  After hearing this, Lisa permitted me to register her and this past Saturday killed it.  It was pass/fail but I’m sure she got an A+ so now, at least from a language perspective, we’re good to go.  The only hole remaining in our full application package is an updated birth certificate confirming that Paige was born.  Come on, Pennsylvania.  You’re holding us up!

Eine Einladung

The other day we received a notification informing us that we’re now eligible to apply for citizenship.  The letter even included an invitation to a presentation led by Mr. Bashi Dürr, a member of the Basel City Council.  Of course, I obviously already knew about our eligibility but I took this to represent a personal invitation.  How nice, I thought, that they’re encouraging us.  It made me feel special.  A few days later I mentioned this to our Dutch neighbor who said that she’d also just received the same letter.  Hmm, I reflected, feeling a bit deflated.  Maybe we’re not so special after all.   She then went on to cynically opine that both of us had probably received the letter due to the lofty status of our western passports and that those from developing countries may not have received the same encouragement.   Suddenly, I not only no longer felt special but felt, dare I say it, profiled, and while this might represent “positive” profiling, it still felt wrong and for us it could quickly turn negative due to association with the deviant currently occupying the Whitehouse.    Sadly, these are the kinds of thoughts that float through our minds these days owing to the frequency with which we must parry inquiries from people we don't even know about the Obergroper’s last tweet.  Would our upcoming interviews with the immigration committee turn into a grilling session during which we would be asked to defend his narcissistic behavior and, by extension, his decisions putting the climate and our entire planet at risk?  In an effort to be rational, I tried to think this through as would a Swiss and decided that my friends and neighbors here wouldn’t take either of these positions.  Our adopted country would have certainly sent this letter to everyone who became eligible this year, including the tired, poor and huddled masses and I was equally sure that we would not be held responsible for Voldemort’s narcissistic behavior.  This perspective immediately lifted my spirits and re-inflated the balloon of enthusiasm I’d been enjoying as we worked through the naturalization process.   And before I forgot, I made a note in my calendar to reserve the evening of May 2^nd to be at the Rathaus to hear what Mr. Dürr has to say.  

Fit für Basel

It may be that for every family project there is one person who champions the effort while the others sort of go along for the ride.  For example, a few years ago we got a new bed and while my input was sought, I was clearly not the driving force.  In the case of our citizenship project, however, it’s clear that I am the driver.  You might think it would be Paige, as she has the most at stake, but it’s not, probably because she doesn’t know any better.  Lisa sees the value and while she’s not reluctant, she’s not chomping at the bit either.  It’s my deal.  In any event, while we wait for our birth and marriage certificates to arrive from the US, I looked into what is coming up and saw that at some point we will be invited to an interview with the Naturalization Committee (Gespräch mit der Einbürgerungskommission).  Have you noticed how the German terms for most things are generally scarier and more intimidating than the English versions?  I wonder why that is.  Anyway, after seeing this I thought no time better than the present to begin preparing and it turns out that Basel offers a class to help you prepare.  It’s called Fit for Basel and it covers everything you will be expected to know about Switzerland with an emphasis on Basel.  Topics include history, culture, economy, geography and government, all addressed in five one and three-quarter hour sessions.  There is even a tour at the end.  Wow, I thought.  What fun!  Everybody should do this, even if you’re not applying for citizenship.  So I texted Lisa, proposing that we sign up.  I noted that the course was almost booked out for the Spring but there was still an opening for the late May option.  Perhaps not enthusiastically but at least not reluctantly she told me to go ahead so I did.  The next day, however, I received a call from a lady at the Bürgergemeinde who mentioned that she looked us up in their system and saw that we were quite early in the process and that the interview for which this was preparation would likely not take place for six or eight months at the soonest.  Wouldn’t we prefer to wait?  No, I thought to myself.  I wanted to do it next week and was disappointed that we’d have to wait until May.  It appeared that I’d actually exceeded their enthusiasm threshold.  Maybe this was a sign.  Feeling a bit like the dog that thought it was going for a walk but learned that the move towards the front door was only to retrieve the mail, I allowed that, sure, we could wait.  I would register again in the Fall when we were further along. 

But I made a note in my calendar.

Referezpersonen

The main application form requires that we provide the names of four Swiss citizens who currently live in Switzerland and who know us well.  Actually, the form asks for at least four, then provides space for four exactly.  To me, the request as worded meant no less than four and the more the merrier so I called the office for clarification, asking if it was okay to provide an extra sheet of paper to accommodate some additional names since we have an abundance of Swiss people who would happily vouch for us.  The guy I spoke with seemed a bit confused by my question, though, and in the end said that they only wanted to see that we knew at least four Swiss people.  Wow, I thought.  We’ve lived here twelve years.  I would hope that we can scrape together at least twelve real live Swiss people who know our names.  I’m sure that the rest of the process won’t be as simple as this.

Das Zivilstandsamt

The Registrar’s office turned out to be in another location, on the other side of town from the immigration office.  It’s a beautiful baroque building just around the corner from the Münster that I’ve probably walked by a thousand times.  Just inside the front door, looking anachronistic in the setting of this grand old building, stood a very modern machine from which I obtained, you guessed it, a waiting number.  Since I arrived just as they opened, I got the day’s first number and had only to wait until the staff was ready.  I was soon called in by a pretty, young woman who asked me to take a seat at a table in a room adorned with several very nice prints of Basel through the centuries.  After ascertaining the reason for my visit, she asked me for my permit, retreated into an adjacent room, then returned twenty minutes later with a yellow sheet of paper with a number of items checked off.  This turned out to be another list of documents we’d need to collect and I could see that we had most of them at home but not the top two.  It turns out that if you were not born in Switzerland you must provide birth certificates issued within the last six months and, if married, the same thing there.  Oohh, I thought, as she explained this to me.  I was born some years ago in a small town in upstate New York that was then still seeking to determine how best to harness electricity.   Computers may have been invented but I was sure there were none actually installed in Ilion, New York at that time.  I think the nice young woman may have sensed my dismay but didn’t let on as she soldiered down the rest of the list before asking if I had any questions.  No, I answered, as I silently considered where to begin while shaking her hand and perfunctorily wishing her a good day.   My negative thoughts soon lifted, though, as I realized that however remote Ilion may have been, or still was, it was sure to be connected to more advanced systems than those to which many other citizenship applicants, in particular those from developing countries, were turning so if they could manage it then I was sure that Ilion wouldn’t let me down.  I relaxed and made a note to contact them as soon as I got home.

Das Einbürgerungsgesuch

Well, we’ve done it.  We’ve taken the first official step in the Naturalization application process.  It wasn’t a big deal really, just a visit to the immigration office (Thursdays only).  No appointment was necessary, nor possible, so we just dropped in, took a number and waited about twenty minutes before being invited into a nice, but sterile office by a pleasant, business like woman in her late-thirties.  After asking us a few quick questions to confirm our eligibility she whisked out a folder of forms and briskly, but efficiently, worked her way through them, high-lighting the documents which we would need to assemble to initiate the process.   It took about fifteen minutes.  She then answered the few questions we had, wished us a nice day and escorted us out so she could move onto the next nice immigrant family sitting anxiously in the waiting room.

On the way home I reviewed the list.  It included nothing surprising or clearly problematic but there was a nested reference sending us to another office, the Zivilstandsamt (Registrar's office), to obtain an extract of information the city had on us.  I wondered what that meant.

The process begins…

It’s been over a year since I last blogged although I did recycle some posts in other media outlets, including a magazine article.  The problem has been primarily a matter of time and believe or not, it takes time to write this schlock.  Remember, I’m not a professional.

That being said, we recently decided that the moment is here to kick off the Swiss citizenship application process and that struck me as a good time to return to the blogosphere.   It should make for some fun and who knows, maybe my observations and digressions will prove helpful to future seekers of the little red booklet.  So, here we go.  Buckle up as we begin the journey during which I’ll bring you inside the process to vicariously experience the thrill, the frustrations, the expense and ultimately, hopefully the satisfaction of achieving fully certified Swissness.    Stay tuned…