In Canton Graubünden it is not the political commune but the Bürgergemeinde, the citizens' commune, that decides on communal citizenship, and it examines you in a naturalisation interview that the cantonal ordinance makes compulsory. Whether it also checks your basic knowledge of geography, history, politics and society in a written test is its own decision; the Bürgergemeinde Chur does, after preparation courses. Add one of the three cantonal languages, German, Romansh or Italian, at B1 spoken and A2 written, five years of residence in the commune and the repayment of all social assistance received in the last ten years. Cantonal citizenship is granted by the government, only after the federal authorisation.
This page summarises what the Graubünden citizenship act (KBüG), its ordinance (KBüV), the Amt für Migration und Zivilrecht (AFM), the Bürgergemeinde Chur and the communes of Davos and Poschiavo published on 5 September 2026. Every figure is linked to its source; fees, course dates and residence rules differ from one citizens' commune to the next, so ask yours before you apply.
Facts checked on 5 September 2026.
Article 5 of the Graubünden citizenship act requires you to be "familiar with cantonal and communal conditions", and article 6 of the ordinance says what that means: basic knowledge of geography, history, politics and society, participation in social and cultural life and contacts with Swiss citizens. The citizens' commune checks this. Article 26 of the ordinance makes a naturalisation interview compulsory and requires it to be recorded; only in justified cases may the AFM release a commune from it. Whether a written test is held in addition is up to the citizens' commune. If it holds one, it must make sure that you can prepare with suitable materials or courses and that the test can be passed with the language skills required for naturalisation, that is B1 spoken and A2 written.
The Bürgergemeinde Chur, the largest in the canton, describes its procedure in five steps: applying, with the file going to the canton for foreign nationals; examination of the documents, the residence requirement and suitability, with preparation courses and a citizenship test; a personal naturalisation interview; the decision on the assurance of communal citizenship, cantonal citizenship and the federal authorisation; and finally the ceremony at which all new citizens receive their certificate of citizenship. In Davos the Bürgerrat of the citizens' commune decides on the assurance under the commune's naturalisation act of 28 June 2018. In Poschiavo, in the Italian-speaking south, applications reach the communal chancellery through the Ufficio della migrazione. Interview and test take place in your commune's language; the language proof can be given in German, Italian or Romansh.
The canton helps you study, but it also warns. Its information sheet refers you to your citizens' commune for the basic knowledge of Switzerland, the canton and your commune and recommends the reader "ECHO, Information zur Schweiz" published by HEKS. It states expressly that "citizenship courses" sold by private providers give no guarantee of covering the material asked for and that attendance certificates are not taken into account. The integration portal hallo.gr.ch explains what Swiss democracy rests on, which languages are spoken, how the political system works, what freedom of religion means and since when women and men have been equal before the law: the topics that also come up in the interview.
Our 35 questions on Canton Graubünden cover the cantonal part of these interviews and tests: the Three Leagues with the League of God's House, the Grey League and the League of the Ten Jurisdictions, joining as a canton in 1803, the loss of the Valtellina, Romansh as the fourth national language since 1938 with its five idioms and Rumantsch Grischun, the Grosser Rat with 120 and the government with 5 members, the 100 communes in 11 regions, Piz Bernina, the National Park of 1914, the Rhaetian Railway, Chalandamarz and capuns. Add the federal part from the lessons on Swiss politics, history and geography and the material of your citizens' commune.
In Graubünden the application goes from the cantonal office to the citizens' commune, back to the office, to the Confederation and finally to the government. The act sets the citizens' commune two deadlines of six months; the canton publishes no total duration.
Before applying you must be recorded in the Swiss civil register through the civil registry office of your place of residence. Also contact your citizens' commune: it tells you whether it requires up to 5 uninterrupted years of residence, which fee it charges and with which materials or courses you prepare for interview and test.
The official application form goes with its attachments to the Amt für Migration und Zivilrecht in Chur: settlement permit, certificates of residence for all periods, proof of nationality, civil-status certificate, language proof, CV and self-declaration, employer's confirmation or annual accounts, debt-enforcement extracts for the last 5 years, tax certificate, information on social assistance in the last 10 years and, where needed, proof of parental care (art. 22 KBüV). Attachments may as a rule be no older than two months.
The AFM takes up the application when the residence periods are proven, the criminal record meets the requirements and linguistic integration can be confirmed; if the language is missing, it decides on an exception for disability, illness or a learning difficulty. It then forwards the application to the competent citizens' commune.
Within 6 months the citizens' commune checks the residence requirements and the remaining conditions and records everything in the official enquiry report. The naturalisation interview is compulsory and recorded; it may add a written test on geography, history, politics and society, in Chur after preparation courses. Children from age 12 are examined individually and in an age-appropriate way.
Within 6 more months the assembly of the citizens' commune decides by majority on the assurance of communal citizenship; counter-motions must be reasoned and refer to the legal requirements. The decision may lie with the board or a commission, in Davos with the Bürgerrat. If the body finds the requirements unmet, it tells you so with reasons; a refusal can be appealed to the Cantonal High Court. The communal fee of at most CHF 2,000 falls due.
With the assurance and the file the dossier returns to the AFM, which makes further enquiries if needed and obtains the federal authorisation from the State Secretariat for Migration. Federal fee: CHF 100 for a single person, 150 for a married couple, 50 for a minor. From the assurance onwards you may move within Switzerland; moving abroad ends the procedure.
After the federal authorisation the government, or the department it has mandated, grants cantonal citizenship and invoices the cantonal fee of CHF 100 to 1,300 for a single person. With this decision communal citizenship also takes effect. In Chur the ceremony with the handing over of the certificate of citizenship follows.
This is what the practice questions in our lessons look like. The correct answer is marked and the explanation gives the background.
Graubünden became a full canton of Switzerland in 1803 through Napoleon's Act of Mediation. For some three centuries before that, the leagues were only "associated states" (zugewandte Orte) - allied with but not full members of the Swiss Confederacy. Napoleon's reorganization created the modern canton of Graubünden from the Three Leagues territories, one of six new cantons established at the same time.
Romansh became Switzerland's fourth national language in 1938 through a federal referendum. This symbolic recognition was important for protecting this minority language. It took another 58 years (1996) for Romansh to gain official language status for limited federal use. Today Romansh can be used in federal parliament and some official documents, though German, French, and Italian remain the primary federal languages.
Graubünden's Grosser Rat (Grand Council) has 120 members and is the only cantonal parliament that debates in three languages (German, Romansh, Italian) with simultaneous translation. It is neither the smallest (Appenzell Innerrhoden's Grosser Rat has 50 members) nor the largest (Zürich's Kantonsrat has 180). Its members are elected every 4 years by proportional representation. Deputies can speak in whichever of the three languages they prefer.
Canton Graubünden has 100 municipalities (Gemeinden/comuni/vischnancas) - one of the highest counts in Switzerland, though Bern has by far the most with 334. This high number reflects the large area and mountainous terrain, plus the tradition of local autonomy dating back to the Three Leagues. The municipalities are organized into 11 regions for administrative purposes. Despite ongoing mergers, Graubünden maintains many small communities.
The full federal course plus Graubünden in depth — lessons, canton-specific questions and key procedural facts. PDF + EPUB, CHF 19.90.
Procedure, topics and preparation for Graubünden: our full guide goes beyond this overview.