Planning a trip to beautiful Switzerland but have no idea about the Switzerland Schengen visa application process? Then, you’re at the right place.
Switzerland attracts people from near and far with its natural beauty and delicious chocolate and cheese. Tourism is an important economic activity in Switzerland, but the safety of the citizens is more important. The Swiss consulates don’t take a chance when it comes to the safety of their own people.
Update : It is now mandatory to get COVID Insurance when you travel Abroad. Click the below link to get your COVID Insurance at cost price.
This is the reason why Switzerland had a high visa rejection rate in 2016. It was close to 7%.
That’s why it is important that you know the Switzerland Schengen visa application process well. Close to 8k applications were made from the US and out of that almost 3000 applications were made at the Swiss consulate in San Francisco.
Here in this article, we’ll take a look at the Swiss Schengen visa application process from the consulate in San Francisco.
There are 5 steps that you need to follow to process your Switzerland Schengen visa application.
Steps to follow for Switzerland Schengen Visa
The five steps are:
- Know if your residential city is under the jurisdiction of the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco
- Know whether or not you need to apply for a visa at all to enter Switzerland
- Make an appointment with the Swiss consulate in San Francisco ( Get Schengen visa appointment for $ 10 )
- Mail all the documents or visit the consulate physically to submit your documents, depending on whether the consulate has your fingerprints record
Click to Book Switzerland Visa Appointment
Want temporary flight, hotel or insurance for your Schengen visa appointment?
Here’s everything that you need to do:
How to know if my city of residence comes under the jurisdiction of the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco?
Finding out the consulate at which you need to visit is easy. The official website of the Consulate General of Switzerland in the states is what you need to visit.
Choose ‘Representation‘ from the top menu.
Now you’ll get to know which jurisdiction your residence city comes under. The Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco.
Click on ‘Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco‘. You’ll get redirected to the official website of the Swiss consulate in San Francisco.
Do I need a Switzerland Schengen visa to enter the country?
Now select ‘Visa & entry to Switzerland‘ and click on the first option which is ‘Visa—Entry to and residence in Switzerland‘.
This page gives you all the information you need about your Switzerland Schengen visa.
Select ‘Schengen visa for a stay of up to 90 days‘.
Now to know whether or not, you need to apply for a Switzerland Schengen visa, click on ‘Do I need a Schengen visa?’.
US citizens or US passport holders don’t need to apply for a visa to enter Switzerland. However, if you’re a US permanent residence, you’ll most likely need to apply for a visa to enter Switzerland.
Switzerland isn’t the only country I’m visiting. I’m visiting Germany and France as well. Can I apply for my Schengen visa at the consulate in Switzerland?
You need to apply at the consulate of that country which happens to be your travel theme.
By travel theme, it means:
- Switzerland is the country where you stay for the longest duration
- If you’re staying in all the countries for the same duration, then Switzerland should be the first country you enter
Take a look at the image below to get this clear:
I’m a Green Cardholder. Do I need to apply for a Switzerland Schengen visa?
You holder a green card. This means you’re a US permanent resident and so, you have to apply for a visa to enter Switzerland.
For that, you’ll need to make an appointment at the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco. Read on know how to do it.
How to make an appointment for a Switzerland Schengen visa at the Swiss consulate in San Francisco?
Now you know that San Francisco is the consulate where you need to apply from. Click on ‘What are the Schengen visa requirements?’ below ‘Do I need a Schengen visa?’.
Click on ‘Personal Appearance‘ to find out whether you need to visit the consulate physically or you can mail your documents.
If your fingerprint scan is already present with the consulate, then you may not be required to make a physical appearance. You can mail your completed Switzerland Schengen application to the consulate.
If the consulate doesn’t have your fingerprint recorded, then you’ll have to visit the consulate in person, and for that, you’ll need to make an appointment.
Click on ‘representation competent for your place of residence‘ and select ‘Consulate General of San Francisco’.
You will reach the Swiss visa desk where you can make bookings for your appointment online. Scroll down to find the link that you’ll need to access to make your bookings.
Click on the link and you will reach a new webpage.
Enter yourCapture legal residence as the ‘United States‘ and click on ‘Next‘.
Choose ‘San Francisco‘ from the given list of Swiss consulates in the US on the new page and click ‘Next‘
Click on ‘online application‘ to make your bookings.
You’ll now need to enter a few of your details to complete the registration process. After that, you’ll have to proceed with the online application process. You will get to choose a convenient date and time for the appointment as well.
What are the documents that are needed for a Switzerland Schengen visa?
The documents required for a Switzerland Schengen visa are:
Schengen visa application form: You can download this online. Fill it and take its print-out. Sign the form and make a photocopy. Carry both the original and the photocopy to your appointment.
Switzerland Schengen Visa Application Form
Passport: You will need to carry your original passport and also its photocopy to your appointment. It should have a validity of at least three months from the date of your return from Switzerland. It should also have at least two blank pages.
Photographs: The Swiss consulate has specifications that you need to keep in mind. Have two recent photographs within the given specifications.
Proof of being a permanent resident of the US: This can be either valid green card or I-20 or I-797. Bring a notarized photocopy of these documents as well.
Cover Letter: You need to submit a detailed cover letter. Include your travel itinerary and a list of documents you’re submitting for your Switzerland Schengen visa.
Flight Itinerary: The Swiss consulate needs to know your arrival and return date from Switzerland. It’s not advisable to make your flight reservations before your visa gets approved. Avail our services to book temporary flight tickets.
What is the flight itinerary? Is it accepted by the Schengen consulate?
Of course, in fact, all the embassies mention the same. We have added links to the official visa pages which you can verify.
France Consulate
Your travel itinerary : you MUST BOOK your airline ticket but do not purchase until the visa has been approved.
We recommend that you do not purchase travel tickets until your visa has been approved. On the other hand, you may provide us with a reservation, a planned itinerary or an online printout of a roundtrip ticket.
Travel reservation to and from schengen area, not a ticket. Note: Make travel reservation which you can cancel
Flight (roundtrip)/travel reservations and full itinerary (if several Schengen States will be visited or if the trip covers several Schengen States and non-Schengen countries) with the name of passenger and one copy
Round trip ticket/reservation, originating in this jurisdiction to Europe (and ultimately to Italy) and back, including internal entry and exit points of travel i.e. EURORAIL tickets, car rental, internal flights. The names on reservations have to reflect the names on passports.
We can provide you with flight itineraries which are accepted by not only for Schengen visa but for all visas. We have customers using the same flight itinerary for Malaysia visa, Singapore visa, India visa, UK visa, etc.
In fact, the European union visa requirements for visa states the same.
As per the official document,
Round trip reservation or itinerary with dates and flight numbers specifying entry and exit from Schengen state.Schengen authorities accept the itinerary when applying for the visa but request the original air ticket when visa is collected.
That is why we have a 100% visa acceptance rate although some of our customer have been requested to provide “additional documents”, none of their visa has been rejected for providing fake documents.
With 80% of our customers being return customers or companies that process visas for their employees/clients, our approach is the best approach if you want to ensure the safety of your visa.
This is our orders screen for this month. Most of the orders have been placed by repeat customers.
The best part about our service is along with getting a flight reservation without payment, you can also get confirmed hotel bookings, personal cover letter, leave/no objection letter for your visa consulates.
Hotel room bookings: The consulate also needs to know where you’re going to stay in Switzerland. They will ask for hotel reservations for each day you’re planning to stay in Switzerland. In this case, also, it’s better if you opt for temporary hotel bookings. Cancellation charges are a lot and you can avoid losing that by making temporary bookings.
Travel Insurance: This should cover any medical emergency, accident expenses, or other emergency expenses. Read this article for more detail.
Proof of sustenance: According to the consulate, you’ll need at least $100 dollar each day in Switzerland to sustain. You’ll need to prove this. For students, this amount is $30. Bank statements and travel cards are considered to be valid proofs.
Employment Documents:
- Self-employed individuals need to bring a copy of their Business License along with tax return documents
- If you’re working in a company, you need to submit a copy of your employment contract
Students: Students need to bring a letter from their college or university proving that they have their enrolment with that educational institution.
To sum up, here are all the documents you’ll need to submit to let the consulate process your Switzerland Schengen visa application:
- Passport
- US permanent residency card
- Photographs
- Schengen visa application form
- Flight tickets
- Hotel reservations
- Travel insurance
- Employment documents
- Proof of sustenance
- Cover letter
- Letter from the college
[media-downloader media_id=”1578″ image_url=”https://travelvisabookings.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/download_ebook.jpg”]
What is the Switzerland Schengen visa?
The visa fee along with all the other expenses that you’ll need to make is given below in the table.
Why should you take a temporary hotel and flight reservations from us?
Your visa application will get rejected if you don’t submit copies of confirmed flight and hotel reservations. If you make actual bookings, you may end up losing a lot of money in the form of cancellation charges, if your visa request gets rejected.
You can avoid this by availing of our services (Temporary flight and hotel bookings). We have been in this business for more 5 years and have processed 100000 orders. We also offer a travel insurance that is valid through the Schengen area. You can also take our help in writing the perfect cover letter.
How long with the visa processing take place?
The visa processing time depends on the type of visa you have applied for. For a short-stay or tourist visa, it doesn’t take more than 10-15 days.
Can I submit my passport copies?
Whether you’ll have to submit your original passport depends. Bring your original passport along with a photocopy of it. Also, bring a self-addressed prepaid envelope with a tracking number so that the consulate can send back your passport.
Can I make an appointment with the call?
No, you have to access the online portal to make an appointment at the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco.
Can I apply to the Swiss consulate in the USA if I hold a B1/B2 visa?
You have to apply from the country whose passport you hold.
Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco Information
Address:
Pier 17, Suite 600
San Francisco, CA 94111
Tel:
+1 415 788 22 72
Fax:
+1 415 788 14 02
Email:
sfr.vertretung@eda.admin.ch
Related Switzerland Schengen visa articles
Switzerland visa requirements for US green card holders-2018