Zurich is employing an experimental design methodology to understand and overcome obstacles so that more eligible immigrants can obtain Swiss citizenship.
Various studies have shown that becoming a citizen though naturalisation offers many benefits. For example, those who undergo naturalisation are typically more likely to integrate socially and have greater earning potential. Further, naturalisation gives people the right to vote and stand for election.
Despite this, naturalisation rates are low. The City of Zurich wanted to understand the reasons behind this and encourage more eligible people to apply.
Adrian Orrego, an Officer in the City Chancellery, explained: “By inviting and encouraging people to naturalise and to participate on a political level, the City of Zurich wanted to contribute to a better mobilisation for elections and thus to increased integration and the strengthening of local democracy in a diverse society.”
To achieve this, the city partnered with the ETH Zurich university on co-designing informational campaigns to encourage eligible immigrants to apply for citizenship.
The approach they took was recognized internationally and was shortlisted for the Eurocities Awards, which were held during the Eurocities Annual Conference in Cluj Napoca in May.
Understanding barriers
In 2017, the City of Zurich sent information letters from the mayor to residents informing them that the laws around naturalisation were changing in January 2018. The city then worked with ETH Zurich to evaluate the campaign and build on it through a prospective study.
We wanted to look at how to work together to co-design future information campaigns for citizens and iteratively and rigorously test and revise the contents.
Dominik Hangartner, Professor of Public Policy at ETH Zurich
Although the team had some assumptions, there was limited academic literature on the obstacles to naturalisation.
The research combines qualitative large-scale surveys and focus groups with eligible immigrants – both those who apply for naturalisation and those who don’t – to understand their perspectives better.
The findings revealed that the complexity of the process and the length of time it would take, as well as concerns about fees were perceived as barriers to naturalization. In addition, people didn’t always feel like they were welcome as immigrants – often exacerbated by rhetoric from some parties at the federal government level.
In Zurich, we are more open and invested in getting more people naturalised.
Adrian Orrego
The team approaches the testing of different interventions they developed to address the perceived barriers in the same scientific way as a vaccine or other drugs, Hangartner said.
Eligible individuals who receive the letter are identified by city data showing who meets naturalisation criteria, such as living in Switzerland for over 10 years and holding the necessary permits.
Through a staggered rollout, different versions of a letter are sent to eligible participants over a six-month period.
The initial campaign reached around 40,000 people and subsequent letters have since been sent to around 10,000 people each time. The content has been gradually refined to incorporate feedback from recipients.
Shaping the message
The first campaign in 2017/18 was “a resounding success in terms of the boost in naturalisation,” said Hangartner. “But one thing that we saw was that it had the biggest positive effect for those immigrants who face the smallest hurdles anyway.”
Since then, the letters have incorporated more messaging to appeal to immigrants with different background characteristics. The last campaign also featured leaflets which included information such as links to a video by the city explaining the process clearly to address concerns about complexity. The flyers also contained sample questions from the naturalisation tests that need to be passed as well as links to resources to help people practice for the exam. The goal is to help demystify the process for individuals considering naturalisation.
Positive Community Impact
Overall, the project aims to offer a “more welcoming atmosphere for immigrants in the city”, said Orrego, and evidence suggests it’s working.
Feedback revealed that the fact that the letter comes from the mayor and assures them they are welcome members of the community really resonates.
“This was something that came out in the qualitative interviews, in the focus groups and in the experimental results where we test different versions of the letter,” said Hangartner.
“It’s quite touching to see how such a simple message can be so meaningful to people.”
Orrego notes that the city also regularly receives responses addressed to the mayor. One resident from Italy wrote: “The information letter made me very happy and strengthened my motivation to try for naturalization.” Another from Germany said: “The information letter from the mayor was an appreciative sign that motivated me to submit an application for naturalization.” One individual wrote that the letter “drew my attention to the possibility of naturalization” and others called it the “final push” or the “decisive factor” in their decision to apply.
Despite an increasingly digital and social media-driven world, evidence such as this is why the city is sticking with the traditional letter format, while also providing access to more online resources.
Proactive policies
Each campaign, financed by the revenue from naturalisation fees, only costs between €8,000 and €10,000 and the city believes this represents a good return on investment.
“We have seen that there are more applications for naturalisation now than there were before the campaign started,” said Orrego. The application process consists of three stages – the local level, the canton level, then at the federal level.
“We have seen that the canton now struggles a little bit with all the applications that come from the City of Zurich,” he added. “And that’s definitely in part because of the information campaign.”
In addition, Hangartner said that analysis has shown that the best-performing letters lead to an almost 70% increase in applications for naturalisation, compared to those who have not yet received a letter.
The project has sparked interest from elsewhere in proactive policies that help residents access their entitlements. The city and ETH are creating a summary of best practices for other cities interested in doing something similar.
In addition, the Canton of Zurich is looking into using the approach to contact people who are eligible for reductions in health insurance costs but may not be claiming them.
“That was directly inspired and triggered by the canton’s interest in the naturalisation information campaign of the City of Zurich,” said Hangartner.
“There are deep and universal policy learnings across domains from this work because there are barriers in many areas of accessing your rights, whether it’s to citizenship, health premiums or other areas.”
Paving the Way for a More Inclusive Zurich
The City of Zurich’s proactive approach to encouraging naturalisation among eligible immigrants stands as a testament to the power of innovative public policy and community engagement. By partnering with ETH Zurich and utilizing a rigorous, data-driven methodology, the city has effectively addressed the barriers to naturalisation, resulting in a significant increase in applications.
This initiative not only strengthens local democracy but also fosters a more inclusive and welcoming atmosphere for all residents. The success of Zurich’s program has garnered international recognition, inspiring other regions to adopt similar strategies to help residents access their rights and benefits. As a Foundation committed to sharing good news and supporting progressive programs, we celebrate Zurich’s achievements and look forward to seeing the continued positive impact on its diverse community.