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Legal basis: Art. 27 para. 1 let. a FNIA; Art. 24 para. 1 ASEO

Students must attend a school that guarantees “an appropriate course of study and complies with the curriculum.”

There is no further specification in the law.

Cantonal universities and universities of applied sciences and arts fulfill these requirements.

Questions come up when it comes to private schools. The authorities have delegated responsibility for the accreditation of “serious” schools, those presumed to meet the legal requirements, to a private foundation that maintains the “Register of Private Schools.” This register can be consulted on their website: www.swissprivateschoolregister.com/

In addition, private schools that offer federally recognised higher professional education and training are presumed to meet the legal requirements without needing to be listed in the register.

Being enrolled in a school that does not meet the above conditions should not consitute a barrier. In such a case however, the authorities will carry out a thorough assessment of the institution’s curriculum.

In theory, the fact that a school is recognised does not prevent the authorities from refusing a permit in the face of “concrete and manifest indications” against the presumption that the school meets the requirements for being listed in the register.

Legal basis: Art. 24 para. 1 ASEO; SEM Directives I No 5.1.1.12-15; Circular of the SEM of 7.12.2015 on the recognition of private schools listed in the Register of Private Schools in Switzerland.