Nyon, a town on the shore of Lake Geneva, was recently thrust into the limelight.
© Elena Duvernay | Dreamstime.com
A mum, dad and their children applied for Swiss citizenship together, however the mum had her application rejected by the commune, while dad and the children had theirs accepted.
Last Wednesday, Nyon’s mayor, Daniel Rossellat said Salvatore Scanio, the father, and his children would get Swiss passports but his wife wouldn’t.
La Municipalité de Nyon a octroyé la bourgeoisie à M. Scanio, estimant qu’il répond aux exigences des lois.. Cet octroi est valable pour ses enfants. Elle a en revanche refusé la naturalisation à Mme Scanio. Ce refus le 2ème en 4 ans sur près de 700 dossiers de naturalisation.
— Daniel Rossellat (@DanielRossellat) 31 janvier 2018
The dispute dates back to a meeting with the commune’s naturalisations commission in October last year. Feedback by the commune on the meeting was negative. Their geographic, historical and civic knowledge of Switzerland was considered insufficient, while their language and integration was rated “very good”, Scanio told 20 Minutes.
The commune then offered a second interview, however the couple decided instead to challenge the decision which they considered political.
The commune says it has followed the rules. “We have followed federal and cantonal laws. It is unfortunate to have ended up in this complicated process that points the finger at the town of Nyon” said Stéphanie Schmutz, from the commune, while pointing out that it was only the second time in 700 applications that someone had been rejected.
The couple plan to persevere until Mrs Scanio gets Swiss citizenship, according to the newspaper.
More on this:
20 Minutes article (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
