Ceec115:
Hi @Santino1,

I was lucky enough to meet this thread cos am very confused about certain things required for my swiss study visa.

I got admission at University of Basel for this Fall semester for a masters degree and the offer later just came June ending, is it advisable to proceed with visa appointment or defer to next session. I was strongly thinking of deferring with d opinion that embassy might use any opportunity to deny visa.

Again, the list of requirements I saw the embassy site for study applicants includes TOEFL. Do I really need to show proof of English language profiency being that am Nigerian?

More so, the financial guarantee form made provisions for columns for that of student mother and father. Must I have two sponsors? Also can an external person aside family be my sponsor?

Thanks so much n anticipating ur reply

Hey there, apologies for my late response. I have been incredibly busy all year (I still am but I just saw your message and thought you might need urgent answer to help you make the right plans).

Congratulations on your admission. UniBasel is a fantastic school and Basel is a nice, small town with an amazing old feel to it. It is certainly one of my favourite cities. Well, school generally doesn't resume until the third week of September so you still have time. I left Nigeria 8 years ago and my visa application took only 4 days (I don't know how it is these days). Also, usually you can get expedited services if they are aware that you have to resume for school as soon as possible. The Swiss are really very efficient folks.

You don't have to present any TOEFL certificate (at least as far as I know). After you have been granted admission, the administration office will send a couple of documents to you for immigration purposes. And you can always write/call the administration office if you don't have one of the documents requested for by the embassy and they usually transmit the said document directly to the embassy.

Yes, you can have only one sponsor (even outside of family ties). The caveat to that though is that you have to prove that the fund is available to you. Just a letter from your uncle saying he has the money in his account isn't gonna suffice.

I hope it helps. And by the way, if you are still planning to come this year you should start looking for accommodation because beginning of semesters are usually hell.

Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions.

P.S. My response might be late and sporadic as I'm still very busy at the moment.

Victoriously:


Hi Santino,

I realize you have been offline this year, but if you can get this, I will really appreciate your response.

I have a few questions that might benefit other readers years on, I will fire on when I get a response.

Thanks for your previous contribution to this thread.

Regards.

Hey, my sincere apologies for the late reply. I have been very busy.

Sure, fire on. Though I can't guarantee that I'm gonna reply immediately as I'm online sporadically these days.

Cheers

Hello house,I have gained alot from this thread,I want to move to Switzerland as a permanent resident to work.What is my chance of getting a visa.Is it advisable to come to Switzerland?I will br extremely glad to get a reply . Thanks alot

Hello guys,
It's been a great discussion here. I really appreciate the info.

I want to apply for an admission to study for a PhD in Molecular Biology in Switzerland in order to apply for the Switzerland Excellence Scholarship. Which school can you recommend for me and what other information will be of help. Thank you.

Hello, please advise... i got a scholarship that will cover travel and hotel for 3 days in Basel, Switzerland to attend a conference... I intend to return immediately after the conference.... Just want to know visa costs and airline that fly that route

I'm visiting Geneva next month. Nigerians in Switzerland pm me

akom0908:
Hello house,I have gained alot from this thread,I want to move to Switzerland as a permanent resident to work.What is my chance of getting a visa.Is it advisable to come to Switzerland?I will br extremely glad to get a reply . Thanks alot

What are your chances of migrating to Switzerland as a PR to work? Well, according to Swiss labour law, except you are a top dog in your profession and you have expertise that is not readily available in Switzerland then your chances are pretty low to zero.

Is is advisable to live in Switzerland? Absolutely (assuming you have legal residence). It is a beautiful country with high standard of living. Things might be a bit expensive but then again you earn a lot of money that it doesn't matter.

articulateayo:
Hello guys,
It's been a great discussion here. I really appreciate the info.

I want to apply for an admission to study for a PhD in Molecular Biology in Switzerland in order to apply for the Switzerland Excellence Scholarship. Which school can you recommend for me and what other information will be of help. Thank you.

Switzerland has quite a few good schools that offer Molecular Biology at the post graduate level some of which include: University of Zurich, ETH Zurich, University of Lausanne, EPFL Lausanne, Universities of Bern, Basel, and Geneva. As for my personal recommendations, well, I'm not an expert in Molecular Biology but what I do know is that you can't go wrong with any of the Universities in Zurich and Lausanne as they have unbelievable research facilities especially the two Federal Institutes (i.e. ETH and EPFL) as it seems those two institutions have unlimited budgets. Also, there is a mutual collaborations between Universities in the same Canton so it doesn't matter if you're officially enrolled in University of Zurich or ETH, you have access to facilities in both Institutions (same applies to EPFL and University of Lausanne). Hope that helps and good luck with your application. Switzerland is an amazing place for a postgrad.

strangest:
Hello, please advise... i got a scholarship that will cover travel and hotel for 3 days in Basel, Switzerland to attend a conference... I intend to return immediately after the conference.... Just want to know visa costs and airline that fly that route

The visa fee for 90 days visa is provided in this link

Regarding flights, there is no direct flight between Switzerland and Nigeria so you are gonna have to transit via some other countries. You'll have check to online flight booking sites like skyscanner, ebookers etc. to check what is suitable for you depending on comfort or price. Good luck and enjoy your conference. Basel is a wonderful old "roman-like" city with lots of gothic cathedrals and exciting things to do

Desmog21:
I'm visiting Geneva next month. Nigerians in Switzerland pm me

Why?

Santino1:


The visa fee for 90 days visa is provided in this link

Regarding flights, there is no direct flight between Switzerland and Nigeria so you are gonna have to transit via some other countries. You'll have check to online flight booking sites like skyscanner, ebookers etc. to check what is suitable for you depending on comfort or price. Good luck and enjoy your conference. Basel is a wonderful old "roman-like" city with lots of gothic cathedrals and exciting things to do

Thanks a lot

Santino1:


Why?

Bros I hail thee! I sent you a pm

Santino1:


The visa fee for 90 days visa is provided in this link

Regarding flights, there is no direct flight between Switzerland and Nigeria so you are gonna have to transit via some other countries. You'll have check to online flight booking sites like skyscanner, ebookers etc. to check what is suitable for you depending on comfort or price. Good luck and enjoy your conference. Basel is a wonderful old "roman-like" city with lots of gothic cathedrals and exciting things to do

thanks again for this info, need to know something please.. Since the hotel stay and flight has been booked by the conference organizer as part of scholarship I got from them.. Is it important to include my SOA while applying for the visa and if yes, like how much in the account will be okay,...

Will it help my application if I include an Australian visa that wasn't overstayed


Is it okay to buy only 4days travel insurance since am staying only three nights?

Thanks again

Desmog21:


Bros I hail thee! I sent you a pm

I don't get PMs, you can ask whatever you want here.

strangest:


thanks again for this info, need to know something please.. Since the hotel stay and flight has been booked by the conference organizer as part of scholarship I got from them.. Is it important to include my SOA while applying for the visa and if yes, like how much in the account will be okay,...

Will it help my application if I include an Australian visa that wasn't overstayed


Is it okay to buy only 4days travel insurance since am staying only three nights?

Thanks again

I'm sorry but did you even bother to open and read the link I provided in my previous post? The answers to your questions are all there.

I am almost about to complete my Bachelor's Degree and I wish to apply for Master's in University of Geneva. Course of interest is International relations and diplomacy. How much should I have in my bank account before I can be granted Visa? I heard I must stay in Switzerland for six months before I can work as a student? How true is that? I need quality information because my dream is to work in international organization like UNO,agencies of UNO in Switzerland immediately after my Master's program. Advise please.

bukatee93:
I am almost about to complete my Bachelor's Degree and I wish to apply for Master's in University of Geneva. Course of interest is International relations and diplomacy. How much should I have in my bank account before I can be granted Visa? I heard I must stay in Switzerland for six months before I can work as a student? How true is that? I need quality information because my dream is to work in international organization like UNO,agencies of UNO in Switzerland immediately after my Master's program. Advise please.

Well, you are putting the cart before the horse. I'd focus more about securing admission first before worrying about visa requirements. the whole admission process can take up to 6-9 months. If you still want to worry your head about that, then you need to have at least 21,000 Swiss francs or it's equivalent.

Partly true. If you don't possess an EU/EFTA passport, then you can only work in your institute in the first six months (subject to work permit approval of course). After six month you can then take up paid employment outside the University but must not be more than 25% (i.e. not more than 15 hours per week).

Switzerland is home to most of those international organizations and a degree in Switzerland stands you in good stead. Sometimes you even get an internship placement in those organisations during your studies and you can start building your network form there which allows an easy transition after the completion of your study. I know two guys that are working with the UN and they both went via the internship route. They are both Swiss though so maybe that has an impact.

Good luck.

guys does Switzerland charge tuition fee and do they require me to pay school fees before getting visa?

@ Santino1,

I just saw this thread and reading through it must commend your efforts and very helpful advice.

I got admitted into the university of Zurich, and have since been battling with the FINMA banking requirements needed for visa. It is my understanding that standard chartered bank (referring to your previous post) is no longer recognized by the swiss authorities for visa purposes. That been said, the only bank on the list available here in Nigeria is Citi bank. And they too don't open individual accounts.

I have absolutely no idea what to do next, I've even checked the possibility of opening an account online, but this too has it restrictions, as I'm required to present proof of residency in either the Switzerland, EU, EEA or US depending on the bank.

And being that the deadline the immigrations office gave is fast approaching, I would honestly appreciate your advice on how best to go about it.

kay2112:
@ Santino1,

I just saw this thread and reading through it must commend your efforts and very helpful advice.

I got admitted into the university of Zurich, and have since been battling with the FINMA banking requirements needed for visa. It is my understanding that standard chartered bank (referring to your previous post) is no longer recognized by the swiss authorities for visa purposes. That been said, the only bank on the list available here in Nigeria is Citi bank. And they too don't open individual accounts.

I have absolutely no idea what to do next, I've even checked the possibility of opening an account online, but this too has it restrictions, as I'm required to present proof of residency in either the Switzerland, EU, EEA or US depending on the bank.

And being that the deadline the immigrations office gave is fast approaching, I would honestly appreciate your advice on how best to go about it.

I just got off the phone with the International Student Support at UZH and apparently things have changed a lot (not for the better I'm afraid). Anyways, she did give me the following tips:

You have to go to some of the banks in Nigeria and ask if they have any sort of agreement with any of the banks listed on the FINMA list, then you open an Euro domiciled account with that bank and show that you have 21000 CHF Euro equivalent in that account. She said that's how the Nigerian students currently enrolled at UZH went about it. Unfortunately, she couldn't give me a name of such Nigerian bank or students (due to to data protection and privacy blah blah blah) but I do know that GTBank has some sort of money routing agreement with HSBC and you could also ask Standard Chartered again since they actually do have a branch in Geneva (just not on the FINMA list) and they may be able to advise you on how to to go about it.

Sorry I couldn't help you and good luck. Please endeavour to share your findings so others might learn from your experience.

Cheers

Thanks a lot dear.

To be honest with you, I had explored the option of opening with a bank affiliated with a finma approved bank once. However, when i contacted one of the UZH student service representative about the issue, she specifically told me that it just wasn't enough to open with a bank affiliated, it had to be on the finma list.

Right now I'm out of options. And running out of time too. My best bet in this situation is to follow your advice on GTB and provide the immigrations office with proof of gtb financial statement (It's not like there's any other thing I can do) then hope for the best.

Thanks once more, really appreciate @santino1

@ santino1, please I need to chat with you, kindly respond to my e-mail. Thanks

I didn't receive any e-mail. Unfortunately my PM doesn't work either. You can post your mail address and I'll get in touch as soon as I can.

Thanks.

@ kay2112 (and anyone else it might benefit)

I know we've been communicating via mail but I decided to post this here as it might benefit others in similar predicament.

After sending you the mail yesterday, I started racking my brain at the apparent contradiction in the school offering you admission to study in Switzerland on the one hand and making it virtually impossible to actually travel to Switzerland on the other. Having lived here for almost a decade and knowing the Swiss (arguably one of the most efficient country on the planet), this conundrum distresses me to no end. As a result, I went to the International student support of ETH Zurich (not University of Zurich) because the ETH, being a more global university, has way more international students than Uni-Zurich and they deal with such cases way more often. I got some valuable information there and just to be sure I also called the Migrationsamt in Zurich (Swiss office of Migration) as well as the embassy of Switzerland, Abuja and they both corroborate what the lady at ETH international student support told me. So here it is:

As a student, there are two layers of immigration you have to deal with before commencing you study viz getting a visa to Switzerland and establishing residence in Switzerland. You and I have been asking the wrong questions because we were asking about the second step and not the first (that's partly my fault as I should have known better). Anyways, for the first step which is securing visa. You DON'T need to have a Swiss account to demonstrate that you have the financial means. All you need to do is get a bank statement from any of the banks in Nigeria showing you have at least 21,000 CHF equivalent (circa 7.5 to 8 million Naira at current exchange rate), attach this to the requisite documents and complete visa application package and submit at the Swiss embassy in Abuja.

The second step (establishing residence) is the one where you NEED a Swiss bank account also showing 21,000 CHF or its equivalent.

That's what I was told by the offices responsible for such so that's close to the "official" position.

Unfortunately, the people at the embassy and Migration office only speak rudimentary English and it can be quite difficult to navigate if you don't understand German. Perhaps, they couldn't explain to you clearly in English but I managed to get an answer from them because of my "passable" German.

Good luck and I hope everything works out for you.

What a relieve @santino1.

You're the best dear. Words honestly can't express my gratitude at this moment. Thank you so much.

Santino1:
@ kay2112 (and anyone else it might benefit)

I know we've been communicating via mail but I decided to post this here as it might benefit others in similar predicament.

After sending you the mail yesterday, I started racking my brain at the apparent contradiction in the school offering you admission to study in Switzerland on the one hand and making it virtually impossible to actually travel to Switzerland on the other. Having lived here for almost a decade and knowing the Swiss (arguably one of the most efficient country on the planet), this conundrum distresses me to no end. As a result, I went to the International student support of ETH Zurich (not University of Zurich) because the ETH, being a more global university, has way more international students than Uni-Zurich and they deal with such cases way more often. I got some valuable information there and just to be sure I also called the Migrationsamt in Zurich (Swiss office of Migration) as well as the embassy of Switzerland, Abuja and they both corroborate what the lady at ETH international student support told me. So here it is:

As a student, there are two layers of immigration you have to deal with before commencing you study viz getting a visa to Switzerland and establishing residence in Switzerland. You and I have been asking the wrong questions because we were asking about the second step and not the first (that's partly my fault as I should have known better). Anyways, for the first step which is securing visa. You DON'T need to have a Swiss account to demonstrate that you have the financial means. All you need to do is get a bank statement from any of the banks in Nigeria showing you have at least 21,000 CHF equivalent (circa 7.5 to 8 million Naira at current exchange rate), attach this to the requisite documents and complete visa application package and submit at the Swiss embassy in Abuja.

The second step (establishing residence) is the one where you NEED a Swiss bank account also showing 21,000 CHF or its equivalent.

That's what I was told by the offices responsible for such so that's close to the "official" position.

Unfortunately, the people at the embassy and Migration office only speak rudimentary English and it can be quite difficult to navigate if you don't understand German. Perhaps, they couldn't explain to you clearly in English but I managed to get an answer from them because of my "passable" German.

Good luck and I hope everything works out for you.

Many thanks. What are the requirements for a Swiss account? Assuming I deposit the requested amount can I withdraw after applying & securing the visa? I look forward to your response

Santino1:
@ kay2112 (and anyone else it might benefit)

I know we've been communicating via mail but I decided to post this here as it might benefit others in similar predicament.

After sending you the mail yesterday, I started racking my brain at the apparent contradiction in the school offering you admission to study in Switzerland on the one hand and making it virtually impossible to actually travel to Switzerland on the other. Having lived here for almost a decade and knowing the Swiss (arguably one of the most efficient country on the planet), this conundrum distresses me to no end. As a result, I went to the International student support of ETH Zurich (not University of Zurich) because the ETH, being a more global university, has way more international students than Uni-Zurich and they deal with such cases way more often. I got some valuable information there and just to be sure I also called the Migrationsamt in Zurich (Swiss office of Migration) as well as the embassy of Switzerland, Abuja and they both corroborate what the lady at ETH international student support told me. So here it is:

As a student, there are two layers of immigration you have to deal with before commencing you study viz getting a visa to Switzerland and establishing residence in Switzerland. You and I have been asking the wrong questions because we were asking about the second step and not the first (that's partly my fault as I should have known better). Anyways, for the first step which is securing visa. You DON'T need to have a Swiss account to demonstrate that you have the financial means. All you need to do is get a bank statement from any of the banks in Nigeria showing you have at least 21,000 CHF equivalent (circa 7.5 to 8 million Naira at current exchange rate), attach this to the requisite documents and complete visa application package and submit at the Swiss embassy in Abuja.

The second step (establishing residence) is the one where you NEED a Swiss bank account also showing 21,000 CHF or its equivalent.

That's what I was told by the offices responsible for such so that's close to the "official" position.

Unfortunately, the people at the embassy and Migration office only speak rudimentary English and it can be quite difficult to navigate if you don't understand German. Perhaps, they couldn't explain to you clearly in English but I managed to get an answer from them because of my "passable" German.

Good luck and I hope everything works out for you.

Hello will love to send you an email

[quote author=Ceec115 post=69061731]Hi @Santino1,

I was lucky enough to meet this thread cos am very confused about certain things required for my swiss study visa.

I got admission at University of Basel for this Fall semester for a masters degree and the offer later just came June ending, is it advisable to proceed with visa appointment or defer to next session. I was strongly thinking of deferring with d opinion that embassy might use any opportunity to deny visa.

Again, the list of requirements I saw the embassy site for study applicants includes TOEFL. Do I really need to show proof of English language profiency being that am Nigerian?

More so, the financial guarantee form made provisions for columns for that of student mother and father. Must I have two sponsors? Also can an external person aside family be my sponsor?

Thanks so much n anticipating ur reply