Facts
The appellant X., of Montenegrin origin, was granted facilitated naturalization in 2007 after he had applied as the spouse of a Swiss citizen. In 2012, the Federal Office for Migration declared the naturalization null and void, as X. had concealed during the application process that he had already committed drug-related criminal offences prior to naturalization. The Federal Administrative Court and ultimately the Federal Supreme Court confirmed the annulment of the naturalization.Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court held that the requirement of compliance with the legal order for naturalization not only covers known criminal proceedings and convictions, but also criminal offences of which the applicant knew or should have known that they were punishable. The appellant had signed a declaration stating that there were no pending criminal proceedings against him and that he had complied with the legal order. In fact, however, he had already committed serious drug-related offences prior to naturalization, which were only later uncovered. By concealing these facts, he misled about an essential requirement for naturalization, which according to Art. 41 para. 1 SCA leads to the annulment of the naturalization.
The Federal Supreme Court also rejected the appellant's argument that the duty to inform about undiscovered criminal offences violates the prohibition of…