Switzerland Student Residence Permit
Students from India and Pakistan enter Switzerland on a national visa for study (type D visa). Within 14 days, you register with your town and apply for a B permit. It is usually valid for 1 year at a time.
SwitzerlandSWITZERLAND RESIDENCE PERMIT
Type: Student
ID#: Example
ID: Example
Status: Student
Example: Master's programme
Institution: Swiss university
Your residence permit for study (B permit) lets you live in Switzerland while you study.
Your visa and your permit
The visa lets you enter Switzerland. The permit lets you stay. You must keep your permit valid for your whole course.
Visa or permit?
Put in your passport by the Swiss embassy at home.
Used to enter Switzerland.
Usually valid for entry within 3 months of issue.
Issued by your canton after you arrive.
Lets you live and study in Switzerland.
Renewed each year while you study.
Who handles your permit
Your town registers you. The migration office of your canton issues and renews your permit. The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) sets the national rules.
Papers you will use
B permit card
Your residence permit for study, from your canton's migration office.
Registration confirmation
Given by your town when you register. Vaud: this paper helps you open a bank account while you wait for the card.
Enrolment paper
From your university each semester. Zurich wants the extended enrolment paper from ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich).
Transcript of records
Basel: send a copy of your last transcript when you ask for an extension.
Avoid these problems
What you must keep doing
Stay enrolled
Your permit is for study at the school named in your file. Renew it with your new enrolment paper each year.
Keep enough money
You show your money proof again when you renew. Zurich asks for your own bank statement.
Keep health insurance
Take out Swiss health insurance within 3 months of arrival, unless the canton says you do not need it.
Report changes
Tell the town about a new address. Tell the migration office about a change of course.
Work only with a permit
Your employer applies first. You start only after the canton says yes.
Leave properly
When you finish, tell your town office in person that you are leaving, before you leave Switzerland.
Student permits in Switzerland
As a student, the canton (the Swiss state where you live) gives you the permit that fits your stay. You do not choose the type.
Key time limits
Register with your town
Within 14 days of arrival
Give fingerprints and a photo
After you register
Receive your card
A few weeks later
Renew each year
Before it ends
Permit types for students
B permit (study)
For degree students. Usually issued for 1 year and renewed while you study.
Key Requirements:
- Enrolment at a Swiss university.
- Proof of money for your canton.
- A place to live in that town.
L permit (short study)
Vaud gives an L permit (a short-stay permit) for study stays of up to 6 months.
Key Requirements:
- Enrolment for a short course.
- Proof of money for the stay.
Job search permit
Graduates of a Swiss university get 6 months to look for a job. Geneva gives an L permit for this. It cannot be renewed.
Key Requirements:
- Final transcript or diploma.
- Geneva: proof of money for 6 months and a place to live.
From arrival to your permit card
Register with your town
Go to the residents' registration office (the town office where you sign up to live), or use its online form.
Duration: Within 14 days of arrival
Give fingerprints and a photo
The canton's migration office (the office that gives permits) invites you to record your biometric data (fingerprints and photo).
Duration: After you register
Receive your card
Zurich: the card comes by registered post. Tell your town if your address changes.
Duration: A few weeks later
Renew each year
Show your new enrolment paper and your money proof again.
Duration: Before it ends
How to get and keep your permit
You start the permit in your town. The canton finishes it.
First permit, step by step
Find your town office
You register in the town where you live, not where you study.
The town office has different names: Zurich city: Personenmeldeamt (by appointment). Vaud: Contrôle des habitants (Lausanne: online only). Basel-Stadt: Einwohneramt.
Register
Register within 14 days of arrival.
Bring your passport, enrolment paper, rental contract and the fees. If your home is temporary, register there anyway.
Give fingerprints and a photo
The canton invites you after you register.
Zurich: at the Migration Office of the Canton of Zurich. Vaud: at the biometric centre in Lausanne.
Get your B permit
The card arrives by post.
It is usually valid for 1 year.
Renew
Renew before it ends.
Show new enrolment and money proof.
Renewing your permit each year
Enrol for the next semester
Get your new enrolment paper from your university.
Collect your papers
Add your money proof. Basel adds your last transcript of records.
Send in time
Basel takes extensions by post only, not by email. Zurich and Vaud send you a letter that explains the steps.
After you graduate
| From Status | To Status | Requirements | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student (B permit) | Job search | A degree from a Swiss university. | Six months, from the end of your studies. |
| Student (B permit) | Work permit | A job offer that fits your degree. | Your employer applies to the canton. |
Papers to bring when you register
Each town has its own list. These are the common papers.
Registering for a B permit
Passport
Your valid passport with the type D visa.
Visa authorisation
Zurich city: the visa authorisation (the canton's approval that let the embassy issue your visa), if you have it.
Enrolment paper
Proof that you are enrolled. Zurich: the extended enrolment paper from ETH Zurich. Vaud: under 3 months old.
Registration and permit fees
Zurich city: Swiss franc (CHF) 40 to register plus CHF 142 for the permit. Basel-Stadt: CHF 25 to register; the card is billed later. Vaud: take about CHF 200 in cash.
Proof of health insurance
Zurich: if you cannot show it when you register, bring a copy of your policy within 3 months.
Rental contract
Your rental contract, or a contract to rent a room from the tenant. If your name is not on it, the landlord confirms that you live there.
Passport photo
Vaud asks for 1 passport photo.
Papers for renewals and after graduation
Renewing your B permit
- New enrolment paper for the next semester.
- Your own bank statement (Zurich).
- Basel: a copy of your last transcript of records.
Job search permit (Geneva)
- Completed form K, signed.
- Colour copy of your passport.
- Final transcript, and your diploma if you have it.
- Proof of money for 6 months and a place to live.
How long the permit takes
The visa takes about 8 to 12 weeks before you travel. The permit card comes after you arrive and register.
Permit steps
Visa from home
Get your type D visa before you travel.
Key Activities:
- Hand in your papers at the Swiss embassy.
- The canton decides.
Register in your town
Go in person or use the online form your town offers.
Key Activities:
- Bring your passport, enrolment paper and rental contract.
- Pay the registration fee.
Biometric appointment
The migration office invites you.
Key Activities:
- Give fingerprints and a photo.
Permit card
The card comes by post.
Key Activities:
- Keep your address up to date so the card reaches you.
What can slow it down
Missing papers
A missing paper can add weeks. The money proof causes most problems.
Appointment waits
Zurich city: free appointments may come after the 14-day limit. Book the next one and ask for more time.
Change of course or canton
A change of course needs a new approval. Moving to another canton needs that canton's approval first.
Time ranges
Typical Cases
Complex Cases
Keep your permit valid
Small steps each year keep your right to stay safe.
Good habits
Renew on time
Your permit is usually valid for 1 year.
Basel: by post only.
Stay enrolled
Keep your enrolment valid each semester.
Your permit is for study.
Report a new address
Tell your town when you move.
In Zurich city you can also report a move online.
Ask before moving canton
A move to another canton needs its approval.
Apply to the new canton before you move.
Long trips abroad
Check before long trips.
Geneva: more than 6 months abroad ends a B permit.
Common mistakes
Plan ahead
Most problems come from late renewals and missing money proof.
Residence permit questions
Short answers for students from India and Pakistan with a Swiss student permit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Useful links
State Secretariat for Migration (SEM)
Switzerland's national office for permits. Its work page explains student jobs and the job search after graduation.
Learn MoreGeneva: student permit office
Geneva's Cantonal Office for Population and Migration (OCPM) explains student permits.
Learn MoreNeed more help?
Your university's international office knows the rules of its canton. Ask them about your permit.
Emergency numbers in Switzerland
In an emergency, call these free numbers from any phone.
- General emergency: 112
- Police: 117
- Fire service: 118
- Ambulance: 144
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