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Permits B, C, L, G: who may work on the side.

Swiss citizens, C-permit holders and EU/EFTA citizens may take any side job without asking. People from other countries with a B or L permit must get their canton’s approval first. Here is the rule for every permit letter — and a three-question check.

Published Last updated 6 min read
Painting of a young man with a backpack standing at the long wooden counter of a bright modern municipal office, holding a small card, a clerk behind glass, a round Swiss railway clock on the wall above the counter
The migration office counter — for most people a visit every few years, for some the place to ask before a second job.
Before we start · In plain words

Your passport and your permit decide whether a side job needs permission.

Swiss citizens and anyone with a C permit may work on the side without asking anyone. EU/EFTA citizens with a B, L or G permit may too — free movement means free choice of job. People from other countries with a B or L permit must ask their canton first, because their permit is tied to one employer. That is the whole rule; the rest of this page is the details.

  1. Find your permit letter.It is printed on your card: L, B, C, G — or S, F, N for people in the asylum system.
  2. Check your passport.EU/EFTA or not. That is the line the law draws, not the language you speak or how long you have been here.
  3. Read your line below.Free, by notification, or with the canton’s approval. Three outcomes, nothing else.
  4. Then do the money part.AHV, taxes and insurance are the same for everyone who may work.
01 · The four letters

L, B, C, G — what each one allows.

L permit
Short stayUp to one year, renewable. EU/EFTA: any job, any employer, self-employment. Other countries: tied to the job on the permit.
B permit
ResidenceThe normal permit. EU/EFTA: any job, side jobs, self-employment — no questions asked. Other countries: tied to the employer; a side job or self-employment needs the canton’s approval first.
C permit
SettlementPermanent. Whatever your passport: free choice of job, side jobs and self-employment, like a Swiss citizen.
G permit
Cross-borderYou live in a neighbouring country and work in Switzerland. EU/EFTA: any job anywhere in Switzerland, self-employment included; go home at least once a week.

Most foreign nationals in Switzerland hold a B or C permit. Croatians have had full free movement since the transition period ended — the Federal Council confirmed in January 2026 that no quotas return. [8] [13]

02 · May I work on the side?

Three answers, one of them yours.

Pick your passport, your permit and the kind of side job. The page tells you whether you may start tomorrow, notify, or ask first.

03 · The other letters and the special cases

S, F, N, students, families, au pairs.

  • S — protection status (Ukraine)Work is allowed, employed or self-employed: the employer (or you) notifies the canton, no approval needed. Side jobs are notified the same way. Status S runs until 4 March 2028; after five years a B permit becomes possible. [6] [12]
  • F — provisional admissionSame as S: work by notification, in any sector, side jobs included. Local wages must be respected. [6] [11]
  • N — asylum procedureNo work in the first months; after that the canton can allow a job. Each job needs its permission — a side job too. [8]
  • Student permitEU/EFTA students: no limit. Students from other countries: at most 15 hours a week during the semester, full-time in the holidays, and only from the seventh month after the studies start. The employer applies. [5] [10]
  • Family reunificationCame to join a spouse or parent who is Swiss or has a C permit? You may work, employed or self-employed, without extra approval — whatever your passport. Joining a B-permit holder: approval is needed but normally granted. [3]
  • Au pairThe permit is for one host family. Babysitting for the neighbours is a second job and needs its own permission. [9]
04 · What is the same for everyone

The permit opens the door. The rules inside are the same.

AHV and taxesThe permit question and the money question are separate. Whoever may work pays AHV and declares the income — see the AHV guide and the tax guide.
No cash in handBabysitting, cleaning or gardening for a family is a job. A family that employs someone who may not work is breaking the law — fines for the employer, trouble for the permit. [14] [7]
Your employer’s rules still applyLoyalty, 45/50 hours, holidays — the limits in what is allowed are the same for everyone.
05 · Questions people ask

Short answers.

I have a B permit through my employer. May I take a side job?

If you are an EU/EFTA citizen: yes, any side job, employed or self-employed, with no approval. If you are from another country: your B permit is tied to your employer, so a side job needs the approval of your cantonal migration office before you start — and self-employment is a separate approval (AIG Art. 38 and 19).

Can I drive for Uber or deliver food on the side with a B permit?

EU/EFTA citizens: yes. Third-country nationals: only with cantonal approval, because the permit is tied to the job it was issued for. Since 2023 Uber drivers count as employees, so the platform is an employer like any other.

I have a C permit. Do I need any permission?

No. A C permit gives you free choice of job, employer and canton, and you may be self-employed — like a Swiss citizen.

I have status S. May I work on the side?

Yes. Jobs under status S are notified to the canton, not approved; a side job is notified the same way. Self-employment is possible too — ask your canton how to notify it.

I study in Switzerland with a student permit. How much may I work?

From the EU/EFTA: as much as your studies allow. From other countries: 15 hours a week during the semester, full-time during holidays, and only from the seventh month after you started.

What happens if I work without the right permit?

Fines, and your permit may not be renewed or may be revoked (AIG Art. 115). The employer risks a fine or up to one year in prison (Art. 117). The AHV and tax you should have paid are claimed anyway.

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References

Where the rules come from.

  1. [1]
    Swiss Confederation — Foreign Nationals and Integration Act (AIG), Art. 38 — change of job or employer, and self-employment, for holders of a B or L permit; free choice with a C permit. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  2. [2]
    Swiss Confederation — AIG, Art. 19 — self-employment of third-country nationals needs cantonal approval. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  3. [3]
    Swiss Confederation — AIG, Art. 46 — spouses and children admitted by family reunification may work, employed or self-employed. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  4. [4]
    Swiss Confederation — Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons (FZA), Annex I, Art. 6, 7, 12, 13 — EU/EFTA citizens: free choice of job, employer and self-employment; cross-border commuters. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  5. [5]
    Swiss Confederation — Ordinance VZAE, Art. 38 — students from third countries: at most 15 hours a week during the semester, from the seventh month. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  6. [6]
    Swiss Confederation — AIG, Art. 85a (provisional admission, F) and Asylum Act Art. 75 (protection status S) — work by notification. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  7. [7]
    Swiss Confederation — AIG, Art. 115 and 117 — penalties for working, and for employing someone, without authorisation. www.fedlex.admin.ch
  8. [8]
    State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) — Overview of residence permits (L, B, C, G, Ci, N, F, S). www.sem.admin.ch
  9. [9]
    Canton of Zürich, migration office — Residence with gainful employment for third-country nationals — change of job, side jobs, self-employment; 2026 quotas. www.zh.ch
  10. [10]
    Canton of Zürich, office of economy and labour — Students and interns — work permits for foreign students. www.zh.ch
  11. [11]
    Canton of St. Gallen — Employment of recognised refugees, provisionally admitted persons and persons with status S — notification procedure, side jobs included. www.sg.ch
  12. [12]
    Swiss Federal Council — Status S extended to 4 March 2028 (decision of 19 August 2026). www.admin.ch
  13. [13]
    Swiss Federal Council — Croatia: no reintroduction of quotas; full free movement from 2027 (decision of 14 January 2026). www.admin.ch
  14. [14]
    Swiss Confederation — Federal Act against Illegal Employment (BGSA) — no cash-in-hand exception for household jobs. www.fedlex.admin.ch

Checked against the sources above on 4 October 2026; figures are for 2026 and change each January. The “last updated” date at the top changes whenever a figure is refreshed. This page is general information, not legal advice — your cantonal migration office (Migrationsamt) gives binding answers, and practice differs between cantons.