Immigration without a visa
Citizens from EU/EFTA countries
If you are a citizen of an EU/EFTA country, you do not need to do anything special before entering Switzerland.
However, you are obliged to register with the Residence Registration Office («Einwohnerkontrolle») at your new place of residence within 14 days of your arrival in Switzerland and to apply for a residence permit.
Citizens from:
Australia, Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, UK
If you meet the above mentioned requirements you do not need a visa to enter Switzerland. In order to obtain a residence permit you must submit the same documents as those students who do require a visa (without the visa form).
The difference is that you do do not need to apply for a visa from your home country as you are allowed to enter Switzerland without a visa. However, you are obliged to register with the Resident’s Registration Office ("Einwohnerkontrolle") at your new place of residence within 14 days of your arrival in Switzerland in order to apply for a residence permit.
If you meet the above mentioned requirements you do not need a visa to enter Switzerland. However, for the Canton of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft an assurance of residence permit (Zusicherung zur Aufenthaltsbewilligung) must be applied for minimum 2 months before the estimated entry date.
- Canton Basel-Stadt: Submit the external pagedocuments in one PDF via external pagecontact form (only available in German).
- Canton Basel-Landschaft: Send the external pagedocuments in one PDF to .
Please note: The information on this page is meant for information purposes only. No responsibility is taken for the correctness of this information. The rules and regulations may have changed in the meantime. For legally binding information please contact
the website of the Swiss State Secretariat for Migration or ask at the Swiss diplomatic mission (embassy or consulate general) at your place of residence.