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As of 2025, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS for Switzerland) will be the new system in place for all eligible travellers heading to the European Schengen zone, including Switzerland.
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All people who are citizens of a country that has a visa exemption agreement with the EU will qualify to apply for ETIAS for Switzerland. Those eligible for ETIAS Switzerland will therefore include British citizens, as the UK is one on a long list of countries that enjoy visa-free travel into the Schengen region. Switzerland attracts people from all over the world. Its peaky snowcapped mountains and luscious alpine valleys evoke images of swiss chalets with spiralling chimney smoke, and feasts of cheese fondue. Deep glossy lakes and winding rivers punctuate the sweeping grassy landscape that is dotted with ambling cows.
Intrepid explorations to the summit of mount Matterhorn will appeal to thrill seekers, or otherwise a relaxed cable-car journey will suffice to see the wonders of the surrounding Swiss landscape.
The Swiss Alps boasts almost all of the highest mountains of the alps, which explains why the Jungfraujoch glacier saddle is referred to as the ‘top of Europe’, and the journey to it can only be achieved by travelling from the highest railway station in Europe. Inevitably, the Swiss Alps draw large numbers of skiers and snowboarders every winter season to their whopping 6,884 km of sweeping white slopes.
Being that Switzerland borders five other European countries – France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Italy and Austria – it is multilingual and benefits from a wide array of rich cultural influences. The western parts of Switzerland, for example, have a distinct French flavour, and most of the residents speak French and enjoy French cuisine. The other languages spoken in Switzerland are German, Italian and Romansh, and there are a number of dialects spoken in different regions, where there are also vastly varying traditions and cultural practises. Switzerland is famous for its arts and crafts, the most notable and famous of which is watchmaking. One sight to behold is the International Clock Museum in La-Chaux-de-Fond, which houses over 700 wall clocks!
Historical centres like Zurich and Geneva offer an array of cultural attractions, art galleries and museums, and the capital Bern is a medieval town of historic wonder. There are over 600 museums across Switzerland, the most well-known of which are the Olympic Museum in Lausanne,
The Swiss Land Museum in Zurich, the Transport Museum in Lucerne, the Art Museum in Basel and the Red Cross Museum in Geneva. Trips to magnificent castles dating back hundreds of years like the Château de Chillon, reflected splendidly against the water, will be sure to imprint memories of a lifetime upon you and your family. It is also highly recommended that visitors seek out the musical and cultural activities that have been passed down through the generations in Switzerland and are still widely enjoyed today, like the Alpine folk music brought alive with traditional instruments such as the accordion, violin, bass violin, alphorn and clarinet dulcimer.
While a visit to Switzerland is a must, it is important to remember that from 2025, the requirements for entry will change. Switzerland is not a member of the EU as it is a country that strongly values its independence, sovereignty and neutrality. However, since 2018 it has been part of the Schengen region, which means that anyone travelling to Switzerland from visa-free countries like the UK will soon require ETIAS approval to do so.
All UK citizens travelling to Switzerland will require an approved ETIAS visa waiver once the system becomes operational in 2025. British citizens will have to apply for ETIAS for Switzerland before travelling and ensure that their passport is valid for at the least three months following their anticipated arrival in Switzerland. When the system in up and running in 2025, every eligible person, regardless of age, must submit an ETIAS visa waiver application (or have one submitted on their behalf) and be granted approval before entering the Schengen zone.
A valid biometric passport is the only document needed for the ETIAS Switzerland application. This should not be a problem for most British people, as biometric passports have been standard issue in the UK since 2010. The passport must have a photograph that is printed, not glued or affixed in any way, and must also be machine readable. It should also have an electronic passport chip, although this isn’t mandatory.
The ETIAS application will take about ten minutes of your time and will be quite simple to complete. It is important that the payment card used to pay the application fee does not have any holds or bars on it and has sufficient funds to complete the purchase. The fees will amount to about £6 per person, although this amount is yet to be confirmed. The application will ask basic biometric information such as name, date of birth, home address and citizenship. It is very important that the information is accurately submitted, otherwise the application could be automatically rejected. The ETIAS applicant will also have to submit information regarding their travel, medical and criminal history.
All the information gathered by ETIAS during the application process will be cross-checked against various databases such as the Schengen Information System (SIS), Europol and Interpol, to ensure that it is not at odds with what is already recorded in the system, and that the applicant does not present a known security threat or a risk of any other kind. If the information submitted is sufficient and deemed non-suspicious, approval is likely to be sent through to the applicant within 24 hours. In rare circumstances, additional information may be requested, or the applicant may be asked to attend a face-to-face interview.
Once ETIAS approval is granted to an individual, it will remain valid for three years. If the linked passport expires or is for any reason replaced within that time, then that ETIAS will become invalid, and a new application must be made. During the time frame of an individual’s ETIAS validity, that individual may travel to anywhere within the Schengen zone an unlimited number of times, as long as their stay does not exceed 90 days within any 180-day period. A longer stay would require an appropriate visa, which is something different and separate from ETIAS.
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Yes. Once ETIAS becomes mandatory in 2025 for all visa-free countries, UK citizens will have to have ETIAS Authorization Switzerland approval before entering the European Schengen zone. There will be a grace period of six months or more, after which it will be compulsory for every qualifying visitor to have ETIAS for Switzerland approval.
Yes, people of all ages will need ETIAS if they are from a country that qualifies. People under the age of 18 do not need to pay the ETIAS application fee, but they are not exempt from the process and will need ETIAS for Switzerland approval. Legal parents or guardians should submit the application on behalf of the child.
You’ll need a valid biometric passport, a valid email address (to obtain the decision confirmation) and you’ll have to be able to pay an ETIAS for Switzerland processing fee. You will be asked to provide your name, address, and other basic personal information, as well as answer a few questions regarding your travel history and criminal past. It will take about ten minutes to complete the application, and you should receive a decision within 24 hours. Border inspectors may occasionally flag an application as questionable, and request extra information or a face-to-face meeting.
No. ETIAS for Switzerland does not replace the traditional visa process and if you wish to live, work or study in Switzerland, you will need to apply for the appropriate visa.