Conviction for negligent employment of foreigners without work permit

Facts

The appellant [X.] was found guilty by the District Court of Bremgarten and the High Court of the Canton of Aargau of negligently employing foreigners without work permit within the meaning of Art. 23 para. 4 sentence 2 in conjunction with Art. 3 para. 3 RSFNA. He is accused of having employed two German national craftsmen at [A. AG] from 27 January 2005 to 3 July 2006 and from 12 June 2006 to 31 August 2006, respectively, who did not have the required residence or work permits.

Considerations

The Federal Court dismisses the appellant's appeal against his conviction. It finds that the appellant, as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and sole signatory of [A. AG] , held the position of employer within the meaning of Art. 23 para. 4 RSFNA. Furthermore, he had acted negligently, as he had not verified through inspection of the foreigners' identity documents or inquiry with the authorities whether the foreign workers had the required permits.

The Federal Court states that for indefinite employment relationships of EU and EFTA nationals during the transitional period until the…