Internationales Seminar für Analytische Psychologie

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Immigration Information for Citizens of the USA

Visa / Residence Permit

US nationals can travel to Switzerland without a visa. They can stay as a tourist within Switzerland and the Schengen area for a period of a maximum of 90 days within a period of 180 days. At ISAP the semesters are a bit longer than 90 days, so coming as a tourist means missing the beginning or the end of the semester. In case you plan to study at ISAP for a longer period, in most cases it is recommended to apply for a long stay visa. This visa is also called a national visa or a visa D.

You can apply for a long stay visa at the Embassy or one of the Consulates of Switzerland in the USA before traveling to Switzerland. To find out the responsible authority in your case click here.

With the long stay visa you can travel to Switzerland. After you have arrived in Switzerland, you need to register at the municipality where you are staying. Please note that this registration needs to be done within 14 days after arriving in Switzerland. If you are registering in the Canton of Zurich, the municipality will forward your registration to the Migration Authority in Zurich. The Migration Authority decides about residence permits.

You will need to provide several documents, e.g. a passport/identity card and a rental contract. For an overview of all the documents please inform yourself at the municipality. The responsible authority is called ‘Einwohnerkontrolle’ in German. In the city of Zürich you will have to be at the responsible authority of the municipality, called the ‘Kreisbüro’. There are several of these authorities, responsible for a part of the city. To look up the responsible ‘Kreisbüro’ in your case, you can fill in your Swiss address on this website.

Tourist

It is possible for US citizens to travel to Switzerland without a visa as a tourist. Please be aware that you are allowed to stay within the whole Schengen Area a maximum of 90 days within a period of 180 days. This also means that when you have visited the Schengen Area recently before coming to study at ISAP may affect the maximum amount of days that you are allowed to stay within Switzerland. There is a tool here to calculate the maximum amount of days that you are allowed to stay. You can use it to plan your stay in Switzerland.

At ISAP the semesters are a bit longer than 90 days, so if you come only for this period, you will miss the beginning or the end of the semester. In case you plan to study at ISAP for a longer period, in most cases it is recommended to apply for a residence permit for study reasons.

Please note that it is not possible to apply for a long-stay visa for study reasons while being in Switzerland/the Schengen Area. You will need to file your application when you are in the USA.

Long stay Visa (Visa D)

Switzerland is divided into Cantons. Each Canton has its own Migration Authority. The following information is based on ISAP’s experience with the Canton of Zürich. Please be aware that policies may be different in other Cantons of Switzerland. The information below is only for the situation where you plan to live in the Canton of Zürich.

You can find the application form here.

There are a few important things you should know for your application for a long stay visa:

  • Students at ISAP are on average older than students at other Swiss schools and universities. As far as we know, there is not a maximum age to get a long stay visa to study at ISAP.
  • The studies at ISAP can take up to a maximum of 7.5 years (that is 90 months). You will need to fill out this length on your application form (Question 22 on the form).
  • At question 29 on the form please fill in that you are going to study Analytical Psychology, training to be a Jungian Analyst. Further add your student status at ISAP, this can be one of the following three statuses: 1) Matriculated Auditor (Immatrikulierter Hörer), 2) Training Candidate (Ausbildungskandidat), 3) Diploma Candidate (Diplomkandidat).
  • You will need to prove that you have sufficient financial means. (Mittel zur Bestreitung des Lebensunterhalts). One of the ways to prove this is to give a copy of a bank statement that has a minimum amount of CHF 21’000 or the equivalent in USD. You will need to use one of the banks that have been approved by the Zurich Migration Office. See this list.
Please contact the Front Office ([email protected]), if you need more information about this.

Residence Permit

With the long stay visa you travel to Switzerland and register at your local municipality. The municipality will forward your registration to the Migration Authority. The Migration Authority will decide about your residence permit. Usually, students at ISAP receive a residence permit B that is valid for a period of 1 year. Every year you will need to renew your permit (the migration office will send you a letter to inform you that the permit will expire).

Working while studying

As a US citizen you need a work permit to work in Switzerland.

In the first 6 months of their stay in Switzerland, students who are citizens of the USA are not allowed to work. After that, they can work up to a maximum of 15 hours per week during semester weeks and up to full-time outside of the semester weeks.

You can find all the details about it on the website of the work authority in Zürich here. However, it is in German. Please ask the Front Office ([email protected]) for more information.

Health insurance

If you are staying in Switzerland on a long stay visa, you need to get (Swiss) health insurance. Having health insurance in the USA in general does not exempt you from this obligation. Costs vary widely depending on your situation and your wishes. You can compare prices here and here.

A relatively cheap option for students who are only temporarily in Switzerland is to get health insurance with Swisscare. You can only insure at this company if you are exempted from the compulsory Swiss insurance.

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