I posted about my situation on r/askswitzerland yesterday, but would like to reach out here for more advise.
I arrived in Switzerland last year in October on a Schengen Type C tourist visa to reunite with my fiancé. My visa was valid until February 2022 and I had insurance from my home country covering my entire stay in Switzerland.
After arriving in Switzerland, we decided to get married as it was our best option not to be separated again. We immediately requested for the marriage preparation and had started processing all the paperwork via my designated embassy.
In December 2021 I received temporary permission to remain in Switzerland from the Departement Volkswirtschaft und Inneres (Amt für Migration und Integration) until June 2022 allowing us to make arrangements for our marriage within that timeframe.
We wanted to have everything in order so we visited my fiancé’s insurance company in February 2022 inquiring about their policies and when I can apply for my basic insurance. They assisted me in filling out the form and asked me to sign and send it in once we are married as I could not apply for insurance in Switzerland without a legal address here.
We got married in April and I received my Meldebestätigung from our Gemeinde in May. On the document they stated that the date I moved in to my fiancé’s home as October 2021. (Basically backdated by seven months)
Until this point no one had informed us that the basic insurance is calculated from the date of my arrival in Switzerland as opposed to the date I officially take up residence in Switzerland.
When I disputed this claim the Gemeinde informed me that it was a new regulation that changed in November 2021. I arrived in October 2021 and have meticulously followed every instruction received from the government.
I am now having to pay over 7000 CHF in fines due to not taking insurance in October 2021 which was literally impossible without the residence permit from the Gemeinde.
I am at my wit’s end and would appreciate any advice at all. I am ready to pay for the insurance but it is really unfair for me to pay the fines when I am not at fault.
I would like a clear answer on whether the basic insurance begins from the date of arrival (as a tourist) or the date of legally taking up residence in Switzerland. If it’s the latter then why has my Gemeinde backdated my residence certificate to the date of my arrival?
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