A free PDF guide — a budget from CHF 1,000,000
A guide to Swiss residencethrough business
The permit goes not to whoever invests most but to whoever’s project is good for the canton: jobs, tax, the right industry. We set out what exactly is weighed, what it costs in practice and how the quotas work.
- PDF in English
- Free of charge
- Verified on 12.08.2026
- Sent by email, WhatsApp or Telegram
Preliminary information is not a guarantee of approval. The decision on the project is the canton’s economic office’s.
01 / The essentials first
What to know about the programme before the calculation
Four things that decide the project’s chances and the budget to go in.
- What decides it is the good of the canton
The law names no sum. The canton’s economic office looks at jobs for local people, the tax it will yield and the industry. A company set up merely for the status will not get a permit.
- The practical budget is known
Projects start from CHF 1,000,000 of investment with a hiring plan; buying a trading business usually starts from CHF 1,500,000. The exact sum turns on the canton and the industry.
- There is an annual quota
For nationals of countries outside the EU and EFTA the number of permits is capped by a federal quota allotted among the cantons. That bears on the timings and on the choice of canton.
- This is an active status
Unlike the lump-sum tax, here you run your own company in the country: you not only may work, you have to.
02 / The budget
What the two ways in cost
Choose the route and the family. The number of people in the application does not change the budget of the project.
03 / Two ways
Your own company or buying a trading one
The difference is in the budget, in how quickly you are in and in what the canton will weigh.
The values were checked against the official material on 12.08.2026. Only the rows for which there is no official wording are marked separately.
| Criterion | Your own companyStarting a business from CHF 1,000,000 | BuyingA trading business from CHF 1,500,000 |
|---|---|---|
| What you do | register a company and hire people | buy a business with a history and a team |
| The practical budgetA BRIDGES estimate | from CHF 1,000,000 | from CHF 1,500,000 |
| What the canton weighs | the business plan, the hiring, the tax | keeping the jobs and growing the business |
| How long to the statusA BRIDGES estimate | 4-8 months | 4-8 months |
| The quota | applies | applies |
| The permit | category B | category B |
| Who it usually suitsA BRIDGES estimate | You have your own idea and your field | You want a quick entry into an existing turnover |
- What you do
- register a company and hire people
- buy a business with a history and a team
- The practical budgetA BRIDGES estimate
- from CHF 1,000,000
- from CHF 1,500,000
- What the canton weighs
- the business plan, the hiring, the tax
- keeping the jobs and growing the business
- How long to the statusA BRIDGES estimate
- 4-8 months
- 4-8 months
- The quota
- applies
- applies
- The permit
- category B
- category B
- Who it usually suitsA BRIDGES estimate
- You have your own idea and your field
- You want a quick entry into an existing turnover
On both routes the applicant runs the company personally and lives in the canton: a passive shareholding is no ground.
04 / The country
What the country looks like
Briefly about the country and about what sets the terms of the programme.
- The essentials firstThe key facts of the programme: what decides the matter.
- A comparisonThe options and the terms of the programme in one table.
- How the work runsThe process step by step — from the check to the documents.
- The analysisWhat is checked before the status is granted.
- The limitsWhat affects the timings, the costs and keeping the status.
- Your teamWho runs the case and what each specialist answers for.
05 / The order of work
How the approval runs
First the canton and the industry, then the plan and the money: the reverse order costs time and a refusal.
- Assessing the project
We look at the industry, the investment, the hiring plan and your role. It becomes clear at once which cantons give the project a chance.
- Choosing the canton
Cantons differ in their priority industries and in how far the quota is used. Both the decision and the timing follow from the choice.
- The business plan
We prepare the plan with the jobs, the tax it will yield and the financial model — it is the plan that is considered.
- Registration or the transaction
Registering a company with paid-up capital, or buying a trading business with its accounts examined.
- Approval in the canton
The economic office weighs the good of the project, and then the permit is approved within the federal quota.
- The permit and the move
The whole process takes 4-8 months. From there the status is renewed while the company works.
07 / The check
What is examined in the project and the applicant
The canton weighs the good of the business, the bank the origin of the money, and the office your experience.
- The economic point of the project
Jobs for local people, tax and the industry. What is examined is how realistic the plan is, not merely the sum in the account.
- The source of funds
A clear history of the capital: the bank and the canton look at where the money came from before the company is registered.
- The applicant’s experience
Managerial and industry experience: the canton has to see that you can run this business.
- The accounts, on a purchase
On a transaction the finances, the liabilities and the employment contracts of the trading company are examined.
How realistic the plan is matters more than the sum: a permit will not be renewed on inflated hiring promises.
08 / The limits
What to take into account in advance
Five limits that bear on the canton’s decision and on keeping the status.
There are no guaranteesThe decision is the canton’s
Meeting the formal requirements is not yet a permit. Weighing the good of the project remains with the office.
The quota limits itFor nationals of countries outside the EU
The number of permits in a year is finite. Once the quota is used up the decision moves to the next period.
The company has to workThe status rests on the business
Renewal depends on the company genuinely trading and meeting its hiring plan.
Personal involvement is requiredA passive shareholding will not do
The applicant runs the company and lives in the canton. An investor with no role in management gets no status.
The costs go beyond the investmentSalaries, rent, tax
The company’s operating budget and the family’s living costs are counted separately from the sum to go in.
09 / Your team
Who runs your case
The work is led by specialists who deal with the cantonal offices and prepare business plans.
The editorial record
The material was prepared and checked by
- First published
- 12 August 2026
- Last updated
- 12 August 2026
The official sources
- The State Secretariat for MigrationStaatssekretariat für Migration SEM · checked 12.08.2026The terms of admission for entrepreneurs from outside the EU and EFTA, and the category B permit.
- The Federal Act on Foreign Nationals and Integration (FNIA)Fedlex, the Swiss Confederation · checked 12.08.2026The grounds of admission for self-employed activity and the country’s economic interest.
- The State Secretariat for Economic AffairsStaatssekretariat für Wirtschaft SECO · checked 12.08.2026How the economic interest of projects is assessed, and the industry priorities.
10 / Common questions
Questions about residence through business
How much has to be invested?
There is no fixed threshold in the law. In practice new projects start from CHF 1,000,000 and buying a trading company from CHF 1,500,000. What decides it is not the sum but the good of the canton.
What does the canton weigh?
Jobs for local residents, the tax it will yield, the industry and how realistic the business plan is. A company «for the status» gets no permit.
What is the quota?
A federal cap on the number of permits for nationals of countries outside the EU and EFTA. The quota is allotted among the cantons and bears on the timings.
May I work?
Yes, this is an active status: you run your own company in Switzerland. That is exactly what sets it apart from the lump-sum tax.
Who is included in the application?
A spouse and minor children take the status together with the applicant.
How long does the process take?
4-8 months with the business plan ready: the time goes on the approval in the canton and the allocation within the quota.
What happens next?
The status is renewed while the company works. After 10 years of residence the permanent C permit opens.
How does this differ from the lump-sum tax?
There you do not work in the country and pay a fixed tax; here you run a business and create jobs. They are different grounds and different checks.
Free of charge
Take the guide and an assessment of your project
We will send the PDF with the cantons’ requirements and a preliminary assessment of your project.
- What the canton weighs, and which industries are easier
- The practical budget of the two routes
- How the quotas work and what they bear on
- The terms of renewal and the path to the C permit