Will this be too late?! I really, really hope it's going to be OK.
I received my D visa in Sydney today. My visa was granted on 2 Feb, so the expiry date is 2 May. Problem is, I purchased my air ticket last November and my arrival date is Friday afternoon, 28 April (and my cats'). Monday 1 May is a public holiday. So the only possible day for me to register at the local migration office is 2 May.
The visa is just for you to enter the country at immigration, not for registering at the local office, you'll be fine.
Are you sure it’s a public holiday? Not all cantons observe it. Where are you moving to?
Canton of Zurich
I don't even know how long it will take for me to get this new visa/permit after I go to register myself. The consulate lady said 2 May is a really bad idea and asked me to change my air ticket. But she said nothing else...
The visa says "Valid from 14.02.2017 until 02.05.2017"
But if I do not get a new visa or permit, surely my stay after 2 May will be illegal? The Swiss consulate lady strongly suggested me to change my air ticket... (But that'll cost me $1200+; and because I have cats' arrangement it's really complicated to change anything)
No. It doesn't matter how long it takes your permit to come through, you will be here legally. Enter the country before your visa expires and register as soon as possible once you are here and all will be fine.
OK, that makes me less worried! So I will go to the local residents registration office on 2 May and it will be fine?
The consulate staff was just concerned if anything happened to my flights.. but my flight is due on 28 April. Surely I won't have a 4 day delay..
Also, is it a Permit L that I will get after I register? (family reunion, 6 months; not married yet)
It’s fine, the lady at the embassy obviously doesn’t know what the procedure is. The visa is simply to allow you to be in Switzerland for longer than the 90 day tourist limit. Registering is what allows you to live and work here and so long as you do that on the 2nd May you’re okay. The permit will take a few weeks to be issued as you’ll need to give biometric data a week or so into the process.
Thank goodness. I was really worried for the entire day! The visa authorisation letter mentioned "6 months" and "no employment". So I assume the permit I will be getting will be valid for 6 months and I'm not allowed to work?
I was really confused today about why the letter said 6 months and the visa only allows me to stay until 2 May (if it was like what the lady said).
No, you’re not allowed to work until the marriage has taken place and you get your new dependent’s permit. The one you’ll get when you arrive is simply to allow you to be here to arrange the wedding and get married.
As others say.
A visa is not a permit. The former has nothing to do with the latter. You can enter a country with a visa, but the permit determines whether you're allowed to stay in the country and/or work in it.
If the entry visa expires on 2 May, that merely means you have to enter the country by that day at the latest.
Every subsequent registration with authorities and every detail of the permit have nothing to do with the D visa.
You need to register within a week after arrival - i.e. have at least 4 days to do so. You are not allowed to work for the first 6 months.
So technically I could also go to the Registration Office after 2 May, and before 5 May? (which I'm not going to do, but just curious) (which means the lady at the consulate really didn't know the procedures well)
The VISA authorisation letter was in German, so obviously I couldn't read everything. It mentioned 6 months. So now I assume that it meant the subsequent permit is valid for 6 months, and not the D visa itself...
(I'm new to this permit thing, because obviously Australia doesn't have this permit system - a visa grants entry to Australia as well as the length and legal status of living/working)
Today I got an email reply from the consulate in Sydney:
"Dear Madam
Thank you for your email which my colleague transmitted to me for questions of competence.
As you were told, it would be advisable to arrive a little bit earlier, as it is really last minute. As the Swiss migration authority defines the dates based on the candidates application, this Consulate cannot change them.
I would strongly advise that
- or you tavel some days earlier
- or you look up the contact details for the Einwohnerkontrolle Zürich and ask them directly, as they are the only competent authority in this matter.
Kind regards,
Simone Spring
Vice-Consul"
What do you guys think ??!!
What if I go there in March for a week or two and register myself? And then go again as planned? Is it completely crazy and unecessary?
Don’t change anything because you’re absolutely fine.
Your idea wouldn’t work because the visa is only applicable for a single entry and you wouldn’t get your permit to replace it in time.
Depending on what time your flight gets in I suppose you could possibly register on the 28th April, but if that’s not possible doing it on Tuesday, 2nd May is fine. As said, the visa is only to get you into the country within a specified time - arriving on the 28th April meets that specification.
Hi,
I also have that type of visa. I am allready married to a swiss national. We marry in Peru and then my husband started the process to make the marriage legal in Switzerland. After that he asked for the Visa D.
The Visa especifies i could enter to Switzerland between the 12-12-16 to 07-03-17. According to what i've been told at the Swiss embassy in Peru i could arrive to switzerland until 07-03-2017, if i had not arrive until that date, my husband would have to start a new procedure to get once again a Visa D.
Those dates are only for you to enter legally to Switzerland. Your registration must be done no more than 2 weeks after you enter the country. So in your case you can arrive 2nd May at 23:59 (try not to) Then you have 2 weeks for registration. In my case, i entered the 24th December to Switzerland and registered myself the 27th because of the holidays.
If you are gonna arrive the 28th April there is no problem, you just register yourself as soon as possible.
I hope i've write down correctly and help you with your doubt. English is not my first language and i don't write in english since i left the school 10 years ago.
Thank you all very much. My fiancé also verified with the immigration in Zurich that everyone above's information was absolutely correct. Don't know why that lady in the Sydney consulate didn't know any better.. I haven't changed anything!
However, the Visa Sticker on my passport does say "multi" instead of "single"