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Chronology of the Negotiations

Summary: The bilateral relations between Switzerland and the EU have a chequered history. From the EEA rejection in 1992, through the Bilateral Agreements I (1999) and II (2004), to the failure of the Institutional Framework Agreement (2021) and the signing of the Bilateral Agreements III on 2 March 2026 -- an overview of the key milestones.

Timeline

graph TD A["1992: EEA No<br/>(50.3% No)"] --> B["1999: Bilateral I<br/>signed"] B --> C["2002: Bilateral I<br/>in force"] C --> D["2004: Bilateral II<br/>signed"] D --> E["2005: Schengen Yes<br/>(54.6% Yes)"] E --> F["2014: InstA negotiations<br/>begin"] F --> G["2018: InstA draft<br/>completed"] G --> H["2021: InstA terminated<br/>(26 May)"] H --> I["2022: Exploratory<br/>talks"] I --> J["2024: Negotiating<br/>mandate and start"] J --> K["2025: Conclusion and<br/>consultation"] K --> L["2026: Signing<br/>(2 March)"] L --> M["2027/28: Popular vote<br/>expected"] style A fill:#f9d5d5,stroke:#c0392b style H fill:#f9d5d5,stroke:#c0392b style L fill:#d5f9d5,stroke:#27ae60 style M fill:#fef9e7,stroke:#f39c12

Detailed Milestones

Phase 1: Foundations (1992-2004)

Date Event Significance
6 December 1992 Popular vote: EEA No (50.3% No, 16 cantons against) Switzerland remains outside the EEA. Beginning of the bilateral path [1]
21 June 1999 Signing of the Bilateral Agreements I in Luxembourg 7 sectoral agreements on market access [2]
21 May 2000 Popular vote: Yes to Bilateral I (67.2% Yes) Confirmation of the bilateral path by the electorate [1]
1 June 2002 Entry into force of the Bilateral Agreements I Simultaneous entry into force of all 7 agreements [2]
26 October 2004 Signing of the Bilateral Agreements II in Luxembourg 9 further agreements, including Schengen/Dublin [3]
5 June 2005 Popular vote: Yes to Schengen (54.6% Yes) Schengen/Dublin association confirmed [1]
12 December 2008 Full entry into force of Schengen Elimination of systematic border controls [3]

Phase 2: The Institutional Question (2008-2021)

Date Event Significance
9 February 2014 Acceptance of Mass Immigration Initiative (50.3% Yes) EU suspends negotiations on Erasmus+ and research [1]
May 2014 Start of InstA negotiations Objective: institutional umbrella over market access agreements [4]
23 November 2018 InstA negotiation result available Draft contains dynamic adoption of law, arbitration tribunal, oversight [4]
2019 Consultation on the InstA Mixed reactions: business in favour, trade unions against, SVP fundamentally opposed [4]
27 September 2020 Rejection of Limitation Initiative (61.7% No) Free movement of persons and guillotine clause confirmed [1]
26 May 2021 Federal Council terminates InstA negotiations Three open points: wage protection, Citizens' Rights Directive, state aid [4]
From May 2021 EU blocks MRA update (medical devices) Beginning of erosion of existing agreements [5]

Phase 3: Bilateral III (2022-2026)

Date Event Significance
March 2022 Start of exploratory talks Open-ended approach without preconditions [6]
December 2023 Common Understanding Outlines of the new negotiating framework [7]
18 March 2024 Federal Council issues negotiating mandate Official negotiations begin [7]
20 December 2024 Conclusion of negotiations Initialling of the complete package (18 agreements) [7]
January-October 2025 Consultation 74% approval in the consultation [8]
2 March 2026 Signing of the Bilateral Agreements III Federal Councillor Karin Keller-Sutter and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sign in Bern [9][10]

Phase 4: Ratification (from 2026)

Period Expected event Status
2026-2027 Parliamentary deliberation (National Council and Council of States) Pending
2027 or 2028 Optional referendum / popular vote Expected [11]
2028 at the earliest Entry into force (if approved) Open

Outlook

The Bilateral Agreements III still need to pass through the parliamentary process. As the package is subject to the optional referendum, a popular vote is likely -- various political forces have already announced or signalled a referendum. The FDP and the Centre have indicated that they prefer a popular vote only in 2028 to avoid overlap with the 2027 federal elections [11].

Sources

[1] FDFA (2026). Chronology of the bilateral agreements. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. [Open Access]

[2] FDFA (2026). The Bilateral Agreements I. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. [Open Access]

[3] FDFA (2026). The Bilateral Agreements II. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. [Open Access]

[4] Federal Council (2021). Press release: Termination of InstA negotiations. 26 May 2021. [Open Access]

[5] Swissmedic (2026). Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA). Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products. [Open Access]

[6] Federal Council (2022). Press release: Exploratory talks CH-EU. Swiss Confederation. [Open Access]

[7] FDFA (2026). Switzerland-EU package signed. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. [Open Access]

[8] FDFA (2025). Consultation results. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. [Open Access]

[9] GTAI (2026). Agreements of the Switzerland-EU package signed. Germany Trade & Invest. [Open Access]

[10] European Commission (2026). IP/26/505. European Commission, Press release. [Open Access]

[11] Blick (2026). EU treaties probably won't go to vote until 2028. Blick. [Open Access] Note: Media source, not a primary source.

Last updated: March 2026