Skip to content On 2 March 2026, the European Union and Switzerland signed a wide-ranging package of agreements to strengthen their relationship, covering areas such as food safety, electricity, health, financial contributions, and participation in EU programmes like Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, and EU4Health.
Global mobility – key changes
The main updates concern the free movement of persons. Switzerland will align with current and future EU rules on mobility and posted workers, without the ability to impose quotas, though a safeguard clause remains. Some exceptions apply, notably limiting permanent residence after five years to economically active individuals and maintaining existing expulsion rules.
EU and EFTA citizens will continue to live and work in Switzerland under L, B, and G permits, with rules closer to EU Law. Access remains employment-based rather than welfare-driven.
In addition, the package provides for:
- Faster work authorisations: New digitalised processes could reduce permit processing times to as little as five days for intra-company transfers and service providers ;
- Removal of short-term quotas: Limits on assignments of up to 90 days are expected to be scrapped, allowing for easier project-based mobility ;
- Simplified cross-border compliance: A planned single digital social security certificate will replace the current A1 system, streamlining payroll and compliance for cross-border workers.
Impact and Future steps
By facilitating smoother movement between Switzerland and the EU’s 27 member states, Bilaterals III effectively expands the accessible talent pool across a market of over 460 million people.
However, the package still needs to pass through multiple steps before entering into force : The European Parliament needs to approve the package, followed by the conclusion by the Council of the European Union ; while in Switzerland, the Parliament needs to ratify the package. Once the parliamentary process is completed, the package will be submitted to a public vote.
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