Embassy of Switzerland — Local services in Washington

So rude. You MUST contact them via email under every circumstances (even for the situations which do not need any email or phone contacts), they will take their time to reply and you have to respond them almost at once whenever you receive the reply (I took their phone call 30 seconds late and the lady starts blaming me). Most importantly, everything on the website seems to be changeable based on the lady's emotion.

I received the work authorization letter from the local canton in Switzerland. The authorization specifically told me that I need retrieve the entry VISA from D.C., and the embassy's website noticed me that I have to hand over all the documents in person and no appointment is needed. So, I bought an airline ticket and flew myself from Madison, WI to D.C., unfortunately, the embassy was closed on Thursday, so I went there on Friday. The lady with the embassy told me that I need to send them an email to describe my situation then they will contact me later.

It was the next Tuesday when they reached me out by phone. In the conversation, the same lady told me that I need to contact the consulate in New York to get this done, because I rented an apartment in Madison, WI. Politely, I replied "I'm a US J-1 VISA holder and my legal status is non-resident alien for tax purpose, most importantly, I worked in Virginia for more than two years and only 10 months in Wisconsin, probably this indicates that the embassy could possibly handle my entry visa processing". But the answer was No.

Now, I am counting that I will stay in the 3-star hotel for two-week to have all these...

I came here to purchase my Swiss Student visa last spring. The process takes awhile and make sure you have your money and all documentation before arriving. The staff is a little cold, but do not let that get in your way. I came to the embassy three times because there were problems with my application. When you write a letter of content on leaving Switzerland upon completion of your studies, you must make sure it is typed and signed. Make sure you have plenty of money in your bank account because the Swiss will want to make sure you have enough money to be in the coutnry. Make sure to have information on where you will be living in Switzerland and have all your documentation from your Swiss school and home university stating you are going to study in Switzerland. The embassy wants to have everything offical and have mutliple copies. I had 4-5 copies of all the documents needed for the application. The Swiss will want to have 3 copies. For photos, you will need 3 or 4 of the same photo, for the embassy you can take them at any drug store. I took mine at the CVS in Adams Morgan before heading to the embassy. There is seating in the consular area of the embassy. There is a nice video the plays in the waiting area on tourism in Switzerland and there are plenty of travel guides and maps on the...

I did not have a good experience. They lost some of the papers I sent along with all my documents. My situation was urgent and I lost about 15 days due to this mistake because I had to send them again. I was in contact with the canton in Switzerland, which is the main authority in my situation, to speed up the process. It took 6 weeks in total for Washington to just receive the paperwork and send my passport back, even though canton completed the process within the day they received my documents (thanks again to the canton). Of course, while all this is going on, you cannot reach someone you can contact. They kindly called me on my phone when they made their own mistake, but you don't have a chance to get a response to your calls or e-mails. Congrats on a super...