Hi everyone,

I've been a lurker in the forum for a long time, as there have been a lot of relevant and helpful existing answers to my questions. I'm posting this time because I can't find anything on my latest question. Excuse me in advance for the long-winded post.

My situation: I'm finishing up my first master's degree in public administration in New York City this month on an F-1 student visa. My non-Swiss boyfriend of 3 years is currently on a fixed-term contract with the UN in Geneva. As we've been apart for 2 years, I've been trying to join him to close the distance. Back in March, I received an offer to study the Master of Statistics program at the University of Geneva. I have decided to pursue this degree for legitimate reasons, as I'm interested in data science and gaining a data-driven approach to multiple disciplines, etc. So this is a win-win situation for us. I've submitted my visa application to the Swiss Consulate in NYC in late April and received a tracking number for my application from the Population and Migration office of Geneva Canton last weekend.

I was preparing the application for the Master's program in Geneva in the midst of midterm exams at my current degree in NYC, which was a very demanding and overwhelming experience. So only until now did I have a chance to really look back and do more research on the student visa process. From what I've read on this forum, things in Geneva seem to move very slowly and there have been stories of unimaginable delays and rejections based on various specific grounds. And I realized that I might have screwed up and not prepared my application very well, particularly proof of sufficient financial means...

In my student application to the Geneva Canton, I have my parents wrote a letter of support as my sponsor with a bank statement of $US 23,500 for the duration of my studies (17 months - 3 semesters). I assumed this was enough given what I have read in the context of Zurich, until I figured out that each Canton might have a different requirement.


My questions:
1. So based on your experience of the process with Geneva, do they require the bank statement to cover my study on an annual basis only (similar to the US) - in that case then my bank statement might be enough? Or do they actually want the amount to cover the entire duration of 3 semesters? Based on your experience, have I screwed up with only $23,500?

2. Having read that people have had their applications rejected based on financial grounds, I am trying to rectify the situation head-on, by proactively submitting supplemental documents to strengthen my case and reduce any possible delay. I have written to both the Swiss Consulate and the Geneva Canton Population and Migration Office about this. I have yet to receive a response from them, and also read that the Canton might not be very responsive at all.
- So I'm wondering at the same time if this is possible to actively ask to submit additional documents and/or has anyone done this before?
- For those who were asked to submit additional documents, did you submit them to the Consulate/Embassy or directly to the Canton and via email or hard copies?

Sorry again for the long-winded post. Many thanks in advance for any inputs you have to offer and I look forward to hearing from you all!

Welcome to the Forum.

This recent thread has some links that might help:
https://www.englishforum.ch/permits-...sa-geneva.html

Many thanks for quick the reply and the link
While that thread does confirm the fact that UNIGE doesn't have much info about financial requirements, my 2 outstanding questions remain, particularly if it's acceptable to proactively request to submit additional documents - given that my application is already currently being process at Geneva Canton at this stage. I've emailed them but no response so far.

If anyone has any specific insights or relevant experience to share about how to approach this, I'd really appreciate it!