1 State - People - Authorities - 13 Right of Citizenship - Residence - Stay - 131 Right of Citizenship - Title One - General Provisions (LDCN)

This law governs, subject to federal provisions, the acquisition and loss of cantonal citizenship and communal citizenship rights.

The cantonal citizenship and the communal citizenship are acquired and lost in the following cases

d) by decision of the communal authority.

1. No one can have cantonal citizenship without having municipal citizenship and vice versa.

2. The loss of cantonal citizenship results in the loss of municipal citizenship.

3. Provisions regarding honorary citizenship are reserved.

1. The Council of State has the authority to

a) grant or refuse cantonal citizenship;

b) rule on applications for release;

c) pronounce the reinstatement of cantonal and communal citizenship;

d) annul ordinary naturalization obtained through false statements or the concealment of essential facts;

e) give its consent to the withdrawal of Swiss nationality.

2. It is also responsible for enacting the implementing provisions of the present law in an executive regulation.

The department designated by the Council of State (hereinafter: the department) is the competent authority for

a) deciding in cases of doubt concerning a person's Swiss nationality;

b) determining the existence or non-existence of cantonal or communal citizenship rights, ex officio or upon request;

c) giving its consent to the granting of an honorary citizenship.

The service designated by the Council of State (hereinafter: the service) exercises all competencies that are not assigned to another authority.

The Cantonal Naturalization Commission is composed of three members of the cantonal administration appointed by the Council of State.

The general council is the competent authority to grant or refuse honorary citizenship.

The communal commission for naturalizations and aggregations is composed of at least three members appointed by the general council.

The acquisition of cantonal and communal citizenship rights by descent and by adoption is governed by federal legislation.

An abandoned child of unknown parentage found within the canton acquires the right of citizenship of the municipality where they were found.

The loss of cantonal and communal citizenship due to the annulment of a parental tie, the establishment of parentage of a foundling, through adoption, and following a birth abroad falls under federal legislation.

The right of cantonal and communal citizenship is granted only if, at the time of submitting the application, the applicant meets the following conditions

a) they satisfy the formal conditions stipulated by the Federal Law for the granting of the naturalization permit;

b) they have been domiciled in the canton for two years;

c) their civil status information can be clearly established for registration in the Swiss Civil Status Register (Infostar).

Second-generation foreigners must have been domiciled in the canton for two years, including the year preceding the application.

The registered partner of a Swiss citizen must have been domiciled in the canton for two years, including the year preceding the application.

**1. The Right of Cantonal and Communal Citizenship is Granted Only if the Person Requesting it Fulfills the Following Conditions:**

a) They meet the material conditions stipulated by the federal law for the granting of the naturalization authorization;

b) They are capable of communicating in everyday life in the French language, both orally and in writing;

c) They are not unfavorably known by the police services;

d) They are, in principle, up-to-date with their tax obligations;

e) They do not, in principle, have any open legal proceedings and/or certificates of unpaid debts owed to the Confederation, the canton, and its communes;

**2. The Situation of Persons who, due to a Disability, Illness, or other Significant Personal Reasons, Do Not Fulfill or Have Difficulty Fulfilling the Integration Criterion Provided in Paragraph 1, Letters b and d, is Appropriately Taken into Account.**

The application is filed with the service using the official federal naturalization authorization application form completed with the documents specified in the implementing regulation.

1. In order for the service to process their request, the person making the request must first pay the cantonal fee.

2. If the fee is not paid within the specified time limit, the service issues a decision of inadmissibility.

If the formal conditions outlined in Article 14 are not met and if the application is not submitted in accordance with Article 18, the service does not proceed with processing the file and issues a decision to close the case.

1. The service conducts the necessary investigations to determine if the material conditions and integration criteria are met.

2. It may fully or partially delegate its competence to conduct the investigations.

3. When the material conditions and integration criteria are met, the service forwards the file to the municipal council of the municipality where the person requesting naturalization is domiciled at the time of the application submission.

4. In the event that the material conditions and integration criteria are not met, the Council of State issues a decision denying naturalization, based on the recommendation of the cantonal committee on naturalizations.

1. The municipal council shall, if necessary, complete the file and decide within a period of three months upon receiving the opinion of the municipal commission for naturalizations and incorporations.

2. The municipal decision may be subsequently modified with respect to children born during the course of the procedure.

1. The file is returned to the department, accompanied by the municipal decision.

2. If the municipal citizenship is granted, the department forwards the application to the federal authority with a favorable recommendation for the granting of cantonal citizenship.

3. If municipal citizenship or federal authorization is not granted, the department issues a filing decision.

1. When federal authorization is granted, the Council of State decides based on the preliminary opinion of the cantonal naturalization commission.

2. Naturalization is denied by the Council of State only if it becomes aware of new facts that would have prevented a favorable preliminary opinion, according to Article 23, paragraph 2.

**Facilitated Naturalization** is governed by federal legislation.

**1. Any person of Swiss nationality may apply for the right of citizenship in the municipality where they have been domiciled for three years.**

2. Aggregation is granted on the condition that the applicant fulfills the following requirements

b) They have sufficient resources.

The application is submitted to the municipal council, which compiles the file and makes a decision, based on the advisory opinion of the municipal commission for naturalizations and aggregations.

The aggregation granted by the municipal council must be pre-approved by the department.

1. Minor children are generally included in the naturalization or aggregation of their parent(s) as long as they share the same domicile.

2. When the child reaches the age of 12, the conditions laid out in Articles 17 and 26 are examined separately based on the child's age.

1. The application for naturalization or incorporation of minor children is made by the legal representatives.

2. Minor children over the age of 16 must express in writing their intention to acquire cantonal and communal citizenship rights.

Reintegration into Cantonal and Communal Civic Rights of a Person Who Has Lost Swiss Nationality

The reintegration into cantonal and communal civic rights of a person who has lost Swiss nationality is governed by federal legislation.

1. The request for reinstatement is addressed to the department that constitutes the file.

2. If the department finds that the legal conditions are met, it submits the request to the Council of State, which pronounces the reinstatement.

1. By a two-thirds majority of its members, a general council may grant honorary citizenship to any person of Swiss nationality who is not a citizen of the commune.

2. The prior consent of the department is necessary.

3. This honorary citizenship has the same effects as ordinary citizenship.

1 A general council may, by a two-thirds majority of its members, grant an honorary citizenship to a foreigner, which is personal and non-transferable, and does not have the effects of ordinary citizenship.

2. Article 34, paragraph 2 is applicable.

The release from cantonal and communal citizenship, associated with Swiss nationality, is subject to federal legislation.

The Neuchâtel citizen who holds multiple cantonal citizenships may request, upon reaching the age of majority, the renunciation of their Neuchâtel citizenship. Additionally, an individual who holds multiple municipal citizenships may request the renunciation of some of them.

1. The application for release is submitted to the department that prepares the file.

2. If the department finds that the legal conditions are met, it submits the application to the Council of State, which grants the release.

"The release extends to minor children who are under the parental authority of the released person."

The withdrawal of cantonal and communal citizenship rights linked to the withdrawal of Swiss nationality is governed by federal legislation.

Qualified to make a request for ascertainment are

a) the authority competent under federal legislation in case of doubt regarding nationality;

b) the person whose cantonal or communal citizenship is in question;

c) the municipal council of the concerned municipality.

The interested party and the municipality whose right of citizenship is at issue must be heard when they are not the applicants.

In cases where Swiss nationality itself is in question, the decision is communicated to the competent federal authority.

In the event of a merger of municipalities, the municipal citizenship rights of their registered citizens in the civil status records shall mention the name of the former municipality of origin followed, in parentheses, by the name of the newly merged municipality.

1. Decisions made by the Council of State pursuant to this law may be appealed to the Cantonal Court.

2. Decisions made by the General Council and the Municipal Council may be appealed to the Cantonal Court.

3. Decisions made by the service may be appealed to the department.

4. Decisions made by the department may be appealed to the Cantonal Court.

5. Furthermore, the Law on Administrative Procedure (LPA), dated March 18, 2025 [3], is applicable.

The Council of State and the municipal council are the authorities of the canton and the municipality that have the standing to appeal to the Federal Court in the cases provided for by federal legislation.

Applications submitted before the entry into force of this law remain subject to the former law.

The Law on Neuchâtel Citizenship Rights (LDCN), of November 7, 1955 [4], is repealed.

Law promulgated by the Council of State on May 10, 2017.

The entry into force is set to take effect on January 1, 2018.

ANNEX TO ARTICLE 50

The Law on the Organization of the Council of State and Cantonal Administration (LCE), of March 22, 1983 [5], is amended as follows