Residents » Documents » Entry Visa

To enter Switzerland, your passport must be valid for at least six months. Depending on your nationality, you may also require a visa. Citizens of the European Union (EU) need not apply for a Swiss visa before entering the country. For certain other nationalities, the obligation to get a visa can be waived if the stay in Switzerland is for less than three months, and is not for work purposes. In some cases, people holding a valid Schengen visa (a visa valid for 15 EU countries), don’t need a separate Swiss visa. To determine whether you require a visa, consult the Swiss embassy in your country of residence, or visit the IMES Website at www.foreigners.ch.

Should you require a visa, make certain that you submit the application to the Swiss embassy or consulate in your home country well in advance – it can take as little as 24 hours to process a visa, but it could take as long as three weeks.

When you arrive in Switzerland, the customs office may request proof that you can support yourself financially for the duration of your stay (around SFr 100 per day). If possible, take a recent bank statement or payslip with you, as proof of solvency.

Host Guarantee Certificate

As part of the visa application process, you may be required to produce a ‘Host Guarantee Certificate’. This is a signed declaration from a friend or associate in Switzerland, stating that they will bear the costs of your stay, and any healthcare costs you incur. The host need not be Swiss, but they must have a valid permit of residence, and since they can be liable for expenses of up to SFr 20,000 if anything goes wrong during your stay, they should probably be a very good friend! There are special short term insurance policies available for ‘hosts’, to cover any costs they incur on your behalf. Once the certificate is signed, your host should send it to the Office Cantonal de la Population.

Tourist Visa Validity

After a period of three months, foreign tourists are required to leave Switzerland for a period of at least one month before returning on another visa. The stay must not exceed a total of six months out of every 12. If for any reason you need to extend your stay past three months without leaving Switzerland, you should apply to the Office Cantonal de la Population.

Work Permit/Residence

All foreigners must have a permit to be able to work in Geneva. The permit system is complex and depends largely on factors such as nationality and duration of stay. Certain categories of permits are ‘canton specific’, so you may not be free to live in a different canton to where you work, nor may you be able to change jobs for a stipulated time. A basic rundow...