If you plan a trip to Switzerland and are a national of one of the EU’s and Schengen Area’s visa waiver countries, you will have to apply for the ETIAS travel authorization from 2025 on. Learn all about ETIAS Switzerland and how to apply.
ETIAS is a new system for travel authorization that will be implemented within the EU, EFTA, and Schengen Area from 2025 on. It is seen as an improvement in travel security as it is supposed to prevent identity fraud, misuse of travel documents, terrorism, and serious crime.
As part of the new ETIAS zone, Switzerland will require travelers from all current visa-waiver countries to apply for an electronic travel authorization in the future. Therefore, visitors to Switzerland who used to travel using only their passports will have to take an extra step after the implementation of ETIAS.
Suppose you are a citizen of one of the following countries. In that case, you will be eligible to travel to Switzerland with ETIAS:
| ETIAS: eligible countries | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Albania1 | Antigua and Barbuda | Argentina | Australia |
| Bahamas | Barbados | Bosnia and Herzegovina1 | Brazil |
| Brunei | Canada | Chile | Colombia |
| Costa Rica | Dominica | El Salvador | Georgia1 |
| Grenada | Guatemala | Honduras | Hong Kong S.A.R3 |
| Israel | Japan | Kiribati | Macao S.A.R4 |
| Malaysia | Marshall Islands | Mauritius | Mexico |
| Micronesia | Moldova1 | Montenegro1 | New Zealand |
| Nicaragua | North Macedonia1 | Palau | Panama |
| Paraguay | Peru | Saint Kitts and Nevis | Saint Lucia |
| Saint Vincent | Samoa | Serbia2 | Seychelles |
| Singapore | Solomon Islands | South Korea | Taiwan5 |
| Timor Leste | Tonga | Trinidad and Tobago | Tuvalu |
| Ukraine | United Arab Emirates | United Kingdom6 | Uruguay |
| USA | Vanatu | Venezuela | |
1The visa exemption applies only to holders of biometric passports.
2Excluding holders of Serbian passports issued by the Serbian Coordination Directorate (in Serbian: Koordinaciona uprava)
3The visa exemption applies only to holders of a "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" passport.
4The visa exemption applies only to holders of a "Região Administrativa Especial de Macau" passport.
5The exemption from the visa requirement applies only to holders of passports issued by Taiwan which include an identity card number.
6Including British Overseas Nationals (BOTC, BOC), British protected persons (BPP), and British Subjects (BS)
ETIAS enables you to visit Switzerland and any other ETIAS country for tourism, business trips, transfer, or medical treatments. Furthermore, you can freely move between the ETIAS countries within your 90-day maximum stay.
An ETIAS approval is valid for three years. Once you have your travel authorization, you can visit Switzerland and all other ETIAS countries within the EU, EFTA, and Schengen Area for up to 90 days.
The European Free Trade Association EFTA was established to promote free trade between certain non-EU countries and the EU and the rest of the world. Currently, the following states are part of EFTA and will require ETIAS approval upon entry:
You can enter Switzerland as often as you want within the 3-year validity of your ETIAS but only stay for up to 90 days within 180 days.
In a 2023 press release, the EU clarified that ETIAS travelers will not have to provide health information, vaccination records, or biometric data.
However, it says that travelers will have to answer some security questions so that the system can assess whether they pose a threat to the Schengen area and the EU. These include questions about criminal records and travel to conflict zones.
All applications will be checked against EU security databases before making a decision. According to the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), 97% of applicants will have their ETIAS application processed and approved immediately.
The remaining 3% of applications will be manually reviewed by the ETIAS Central Unit and National Units to make a final decision.
If you want to visit Switzerland with an ETIAS travel authorization, you must meet the following ETIAS requirements:
If you fit all these requirements, you will get ETIAS approval and can travel to Switzerland.
As soon as the EU’s new web service and mobile app for ETIAS are online, applicants can complete their requests to travel to Switzerland. Be ready to:
After an automated data check, you will receive the ETIAS travel authorization within a short time between a few seconds and 96 hours.