Facts
The Russian national A. entered Switzerland in 1994 and married the Swiss citizen B. in 1995. Shortly after the marriage, a rift occurred between the spouses, whereupon A. left the marital home and filed for marital protection. B. then filed for divorce, but later withdrew the lawsuit. In the following years, there were further attempts at divorce, which remained unsuccessful. In 1996, B. deregistered to England and deposited his residence permit. Thereupon, the Foreigners' Police of the Canton of Zurich refused to extend A.'s residence permit, arguing that the marriage only existed formally and the invocation thereof was an abuse of rights. The Federal Supreme Court confirmed this decision.Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court states that the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs has the authority to conduct the consent procedure for the extension of the residence permit due to the federal division of competences and the relevant provisions. Even if the marriage was not entered into solely for the purpose of deception, the invocation thereof may constitute an abuse of rights if the marriage only exists formally and a resumption of marital cohabitation is no longer to be expected.
In the present case, it must be assumed that…