I currently have a work permit processing for an unpaid internship in Geneva. Although I know now that I should have applied from my home country (Canada i.e. non-EU), I didn't - I applied from here and am still here waiting.

Today I went to the Office de la Population in Lausanne and was told that I was allowed to stay in Switzerland until a decision had been made, which means I won't confront any problems with my tourist visa (expiring in a couple weeks). However, it is probable (as has been mentioned in related threads) that, assuming my permit is approved, I will need to leave the country and sort things out with Canadian authorities.

My questions are as follows:

1. What exactly will I need to accomplish with the Canadian government?
2. Is it something that I am able to do from abroad, such as France or Germany? (and I ask this because I feel as though I've come across this information once, but am unable to relocate it)

Kind thanks to anyone who is willing to share their knowledge...

You need to pick up your visa. It gets put in your passport IIRC.
Stuttgart. I think most people go there.

Hello,

I actually just went through this myself this summer. I arrived from Canada before my permit was approved and completed my permit process in Europe.

You'll need to complete a form and provide two Swiss style passport photos when you visit the Consulate. I had to fill out form D (long term stay): http://www.bfm.admin.ch/content/bfm/...sformular.html

I had the option to obtain the Visa either in Stuttgart, Germany or Paris, France. I opted to go to Stuttgart. The consulate is only open for limited hours in the mornings so I arrived at 9 am to be safe. You leave your passport there until 3 pm at which time return and pick it up. This means you have plenty of time to eat, visit stores, or take a stroll around the city.
When you pick your passport up, you'll have one page with the Visa glued to it.

Hope that helps!

Thanks a lot! Very reassuring!

Were you told by the Swiss authorities that these options were available, or did you find out on your own?

I was given these options by the human resources department at work. I'm sure there are alternate locations for pick up.

Bump!

Would love to hear other experiences

Hello,

Excuse me for interrupting this post, but I thought it was pretty similar to my boyfriend's situation. He's waiting on a student visa. He got the little thing that sticks inside of this passport in Chicago at the Swiss Consulate, however, something about the Swiss government was waiting on his insurance papers so that they could fully review his student visa application. He's now waiting on his residence card. Can the Swiss government still deny him at this point if he's already got the sticky thing in his passport (they called it his entry visa which is good for 3 months). We are both US citizens, and don't need an entry visa to enter, but I'm guessing he entered as a potential student, as I entered as a tourist? Is this correct? Also, then I was just curious if since he's already got that thing in his passport, he wouldn't need to go back to back to Chicago or Germany or France, they should be able to just give him his residency card here in Switzerland, correct?

If anyone has any knowledge about this, I would really appreciate it.

Also, if I'm totally wrong by posting this, I do apologize. I am still fairly new to the forum. I didn't know if something so similar I should post a completely new posting. So, please do accept my apologies.

Thank you!

No he's not because

He won't get a student residence permit until he arrives and registers in Switzerland.