A 36-year-old woman adopted by a member of the Swiss Abroad community has been ordered to leave Switzerland after 16 years in the country, a case that underscores how Swiss rules treat adoption citizenship differently depending on a person’s age at the time of adoption.
The woman, Gabriela Purtschert, was born in Ecuador to a Colombian mother and an Ecuadorian father. Her mother later married Norberto Purtschert, a Swiss citizen living abroad, who adopted Gabriela when she was a teenager. Because the adoption became legally binding only when she reached adulthood, Gabriela did not automatically gain Swiss citizenship. Her residence status then depended on work and other conditions, and when her job ended, Zurich’s migration office declined to renew her permit. She has appealed and must leave by mid-October 2025 if she cannot secure a new legal basis to stay.

Adoption and Swiss nationality law — the legal hinge
Under Swiss nationality law, being adopted by a Swiss citizen can lead to citizenship only if the adoption is completed while the child is still a minor. That path is closed if the adoption becomes final after the child turns 18. In Purtschert’s case, this timing is the hinge.
The law draws a strict line between minors and adults for adoption citizenship, and that line has real consequences for long-settled residents like her—especially when work ties break. Canton Zurich links residence permits to clear reasons to stay, most commonly employment. When a contract ends, renewal is far from automatic.
Purtschert’s file shows how quickly a long stay can become unstable when the legal foundation is employment-based and there is no citizenship to fall back on.
Policy context: adoption citizenship rules and residence renewal
Swiss nationality law sets out clear rules on adoption and citizenship:
- If a foreign child is adopted by a Swiss citizen while a minor, the child acquires the adoptive parent’s cantonal and communal citizenship, which leads to Swiss nationality.
- If the adoption is completed after the person becomes an adult, citizenship does not pass automatically.
- If a Swiss child is adopted by foreign parents, the child loses Swiss citizenship at the moment the adoption is finalized; if a court later annuls the adoption, the loss is retroactively canceled.
These rules created a gap for Purtschert: her adoption connected her to a Swiss family and to the Swiss Abroad, but it did not give her a Swiss passport. Her life in Switzerland was built instead on a residence permit tied to employment. When her job ended, the Zurich migration office had grounds to refuse renewal.
Swiss practice is clear: permits are granted for specific reasons—work, study, family reunification, or other recognized grounds. Without one, even a person with deep ties can face removal orders.
Appeals, job search, and immediate steps
Purtschert has appealed and is actively seeking new employment to maintain her right to stay. Important points about the immediate legal process:
- An appeal can postpone enforcement while authorities review the case, but it does not itself create a new right to remain.
- Securing a new work contract could provide a fresh legal basis for a permit; this is why job hunting is central to her effort to avoid deportation.
- Cases like this often become time-sensitive races to re-establish lawful status before a set departure deadline.
According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the practical race against time is common when long-settled residents must revalidate their legal basis to stay.
Impact on applicants, families, and employers
For families with cross-border ties, the difference between minor and adult adoption can be hard to accept. Many assume adoption always confers the same status as a biological relationship. Swiss law does not take that view for adults.
Consequences and practical effects:
- Years of normal life—work, community, language—can be followed by sudden uncertainty if a permit is not renewed.
- The threat of deportation disrupts employers, friends, and extended family who may view the person as part of the local community.
- Employers may hesitate to extend offers while a case is pending, which complicates efforts to secure the necessary legal basis to stay.
Practical lessons from Purtschert’s case:
- The Swiss Abroad who adopt older teens or adult stepchildren should not expect automatic citizenship to follow—the law’s age threshold matters.
- Long residence does not guarantee future permit renewals if the original basis (such as employment) falls away.
- Appeals can buy time but usually require a parallel plan (find a new job or explore other legal routes).
Longer-term options: naturalization and other avenues
While the law bars automatic adoption citizenship for adults, it does not prevent someone like Purtschert from exploring other legal paths.
- Switzerland allows people to apply for ordinary naturalization, which generally considers:
- Years in the country
- Integration into local life
- Ties to a canton and commune
The source material notes she “might explore other avenues,” including showing a close relationship with Switzerland. Whether she qualifies will depend on formal criteria set by federal, cantonal, and communal authorities.
In the short term, maintaining lawful residence through work appears to be the most direct way to remain while any longer route is assessed.
Deadlines, practical effects, and next steps
The deportation order has a clear deadline—mid-October 2025—and such deadlines have practical effects:
- They often restrict travel planning and increase stress for the person involved.
- Employers may hesitate to extend offers while a case is pending.
- People in Purtschert’s position often try to secure written proof of a job offer quickly to support a new permit application.
Zurich’s stance—no renewed permit without a valid reason to stay—reflects a standard approach across Switzerland. As for next steps, Purtschert’s appeal keeps her case open. The outcome will likely hinge on whether she can present a valid basis for a residence permit before the deadline.
Her long stay—16 years—shows settled life ties, but Swiss authorities must apply the law as written. That balance between personal history and legal rules lies at the heart of many deportation cases.
Where to get authoritative information
People facing similar issues can seek guidance from the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM):
- Official SEM website: https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/en/home.html
SEM resources can help individuals check which paths may be open based on age at adoption, length of stay, employment status, and cantonal procedures. While each case turns on its own facts, the core principles in Purtschert’s file—age at adoption, permit basis, and employment—apply widely.
Closing context
This case has drawn attention because it involves a member of the Swiss Abroad family network and a long-time resident who contributed to local life. It also shows how legal categories—minor versus adult—can outweigh personal stories when the law assigns different outcomes to each.
For adult adoptees connected to Swiss citizens, early planning is key: verify whether work permits can be supported by stable employment and whether longer-term options, including naturalization, are realistic. For employers, rapid decisions on job offers can make a direct difference in avoiding deportation for valued staff.
Purtschert remains in Switzerland for now, fighting to keep the life she built. Her mother’s marriage to a Swiss citizen brought her into a Swiss household, but the timing of her adoption set the legal path that followed. As she appeals and searches for work, the next months will test whether the legal clarity about adoption and citizenship leaves enough room for a person with deep ties to stay without adoption citizenship, or whether the deportation order will stand once the deadline arrives.
This Article in a Nutshell
Gabriela Purtschert, adopted by a Swiss citizen after reaching adulthood, faces a deportation order from Switzerland despite 16 years of residence. Under Swiss nationality law, adoption only confers automatic citizenship if finalized while the adoptee is a minor; because Purtschert’s adoption became binding after she turned 18, she never received Swiss nationality. Her legal right to stay depended on an employment-based residence permit, which Zurich declined to renew after her job ended. She has appealed the decision and is actively seeking new employment to create a fresh legal basis for a permit. The deportation deadline is mid-October 2025. The case spotlights the strict legal distinction between minor and adult adoption, the precariousness of permits tied to work, and the limited protective effect of long residence. Options include finding new employment, pursuing ordinary naturalization if eligible, or other canton-specific remedies. Authorities and families are watching as the case illustrates broader policy tensions over adoption, citizenship, and residency rules.