Facts
The Yugoslav national H. had been regularly employed in Switzerland with seasonal permits since mid-May 1991. On May 15, 1995, he applied for the conversion of his seasonal to an annual permit. The cantonal Aliens Police informed him on June 15, 1995 that his request could no longer be granted for legal reasons. According to the revised Limitation Ordinance (BVO) of October 19, 1994, since January 1, 1995, a seasonal permit could only be converted to an annual permit for nationals of EFTA and EU states.
H. submitted a new conversion request on November 9, 1995, which was rejected by the Federal Office for Foreigners Affairs based on the ordinance revision. H. unsuccessfully appealed this decision to the Federal Department of Justice and Police.
With an administrative court appeal dated February 2, 1997, H. requested the Federal Supreme Court to annul the decision of the Federal Department of Justice and Police and to exempt him from the quota limits of the Limitation Ordinance based on Art. 13 lit. h BVO in conjunction with Art. 28 para. 1 lit. a or b BVO. Alternatively, he requested a finding that there was a serious personal hardship case, so that he would be exempt from the quota limits based on Art. 13 lit. f BVO.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismissed the appeal. It stated that the revised provision of Art. 28 para. 1 BVO, according to which the possibility of converting a seasonal to an annual permit is only open to nationals of EFTA and EU states, is neither unconstitutional nor in violation of international treaties.
The Federal Supreme Court confirmed its previous case law, according to which it is compatible with…