What the Switzerland visa is
Switzerland is not in the European Union, which confuses people, but it is fully inside the Schengen area. So what you apply for is a Schengen short stay visa, Type C, allowing up to 90 days of stay within any 180 day period, and the visa you receive works across all 29 member states.
It covers tourism, business, conferences, and visiting family and friends. What makes it a Swiss application is where your trip is centred: the application goes to the country where you will spend the most nights, or where the nights are split evenly, the country you enter first.
That rule matters more for Switzerland than almost anywhere, because Switzerland is so often part of a wider European trip rather than the whole of it. Three nights in Interlaken inside a two week France and Italy trip is not a Swiss application. Eight nights in Zermatt and Lucerne with a weekend in Milan is. We work this out from your itinerary before anything is booked. See the full Schengen requirements and how the 90/180 rule works.
The visa fee is EUR 90 for adults. You cannot work in Switzerland on this visa.
Who needs one
- Thai nationals travelling to Switzerland for any purpose.
- Foreigners living in Thailand whose nationality is not visa exempt for the Schengen area. The exemption follows your passport, not your Thai residence.
- Honeymoon and special occasion travellers, where the itinerary is expensive and needs matching evidence.
- Anyone visiting relatives in Switzerland, where an invitation and their status documents form part of the file.
- Business travellers attending meetings or conferences.
- Anyone on a multi country European trip where most of the nights fall in Switzerland.
Documents required
Switzerland applies the standard Schengen checklist. What matters as much as having each document is that they agree with each other, and in a Swiss application the itinerary and the funds in particular have to tell the same story. We check everything against everything else before it is submitted.
Everyone
- Passport valid at least three months beyond your return date, with at least two blank pages.
- Biometric photograph to the current specification.
- Completed application form.
- Travel insurance with at least EUR 30,000 of medical and repatriation cover, valid across the Schengen area for the whole trip.
- Bank statements showing you can fund the trip at Swiss prices.
- Accommodation booked for every night, or an invitation from your host.
- Flight reservation and a day by day itinerary that matches it, including mountain railways and any pre booked alpine transport.
Proof of occupation
- Employees. Employment certificate and a leave letter approving the exact dates of the trip.
- Business owners. Company registration documents and evidence the business is trading.
- Students. Enrolment certificate and the academic calendar showing the trip falls in a break.
- Retired applicants. Pension slips or statements showing income after retirement.
- No standard certificate available. A written explanation of your occupation and income, usually alongside a financial supporter's documents. We prepare this with you.
Additional
- Where you are visiting family or friends: an invitation letter with a copy of their ID, residence permit or Swiss status document.
- For children under 18: birth certificate, parental consent where the child travels alone or with one parent, and copies of both parents' ID.
- Documents covering any change of name or surname, such as a marriage certificate.
- For foreign residents of Thailand, your Thai visa and residence documents.
Financial requirements
Every Schengen consulate assesses whether your funds fit your itinerary. Switzerland is where that assessment bites hardest, simply because the country is expensive and the officers know precisely what a week there costs.
Switzerland publishes no minimum balance. But a balance that would comfortably support ten days in Portugal can look thin against ten days in Zurich, Lucerne and Zermatt with mountain railways and alpine hotels in the plan. This is not about having a large balance. It is about the itinerary and the evidence agreeing with each other, and we build both together rather than separately. Where the numbers are tight, we tell you honestly and look at whether a shorter or differently structured trip presents better.
A balance that appeared shortly before the application invites questions unless its source is documented. A large recent deposit is fine when evidenced, and we tell you exactly what will evidence it. If a supporter in Switzerland or Thailand is funding the trip, their financial documents can be used in place of yours, with the relationship and their status documented. Undocumented third party funding is what raises questions, not the funding itself.
What this costs
- Our fee: 4,500 THB. This covers confirming Switzerland is the correct mission, document preparation, the forms, the insurance, the appointment, submission and follow up through to the decision.
- Visa fee: EUR 90 for adults, EUR 45 for children aged 6 to 11, free for children under 6. Paid separately, along with the visa centre service charge.
- Travel insurance to the EUR 30,000 specification, which we arrange, is charged at cost.
The visa fee is not refundable if you are refused.
How we help
You are not buying information, you are buying execution. We start by confirming that Switzerland is genuinely where your application belongs, because a Swiss file lodged for a trip that is mostly in France is the most avoidable refusal there is. Then we do the thing that decides most Swiss applications: we put your itinerary and your bank statements side by side and tell you honestly whether they support each other, before either goes anywhere near a consulate. We give you one document list built for your circumstances rather than the full checklist, complete the application, write the cover letter, build the day by day plan so it matches your bookings exactly, arrange the EUR 30,000 insurance, and close any unbooked nights. Where a relative or friend in Switzerland is inviting or funding you, we contact them directly with an exact list so it is settled in one exchange. We handle the appointment and the submission, brief you on the questions, prepare any follow up the embassy asks for, and check the visa sticker when your passport comes back so an error is found in Bangkok rather than at the airport.
FAQ
1. Switzerland is not in the EU. Do I still need a Schengen visa?
Yes. Switzerland is outside the European Union but fully inside the Schengen area, so the Schengen visa is exactly what you need, and it covers the rest of the area too.
2. How much money should I show for a Swiss trip?
More than you would for most Schengen destinations, because the officer is measuring your funds against Swiss prices. There is no published figure. Send us your itinerary and your statements and we will look at them together and tell you honestly whether they support each other.
3. I am in Switzerland for three days as part of a longer trip.
Then your application probably belongs to whichever country holds most of your nights. Send us the full route and we will work it out before anything is booked.
4. How far ahead should I start?
Six to eight weeks is comfortable, and longer in summer and over the ski season when both appointments and hotels tighten up.
5. Do I have to buy flights first?
No. A reservation is what is needed at application stage, and we arrange one. Wait for the visa before buying anything non refundable.
6. Do I need to attend in person?
Yes, to give fingerprints and a photograph, unless your biometrics were taken for a Schengen visa within the last 59 months. We arrange the appointment and tell you exactly what to bring.
7. My Swiss friend is paying for the trip. Does that help?
Yes, when documented: their invitation, their status in Switzerland, proof of your relationship and their financial evidence. We deal with them directly and give them the exact list.
8. Can I get a multiple entry visa?
They exist, and are more likely for applicants with a record of previous Schengen visas used correctly. First time applicants usually receive a single entry visa matched to the trip. We will tell you what suits your history.
9. I am a foreigner living in Thailand. Can I apply from here?
Yes, with legal long stay status. Your Thai visa, your work or business here and your local address explain why Thailand is your base, and we build them into the file from the start.
10. What if I was refused before?
Send us the refusal letter. The codes state precisely which requirement was not established. No one can promise an outcome, but we build the new file around evidencing that specific point.
11. Can I work in Switzerland on this visa?
No. Work is a long stay national visa under a different set of rules. Tell us if that is the goal and we will look at the right route.
Switzerland is a straightforward application when the money and the itinerary tell the same story. Send us your route and your statements and we will make sure they do.
