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Which documents should I submit with a national visa application?

The application will be forwarded to the competent cantonal authorities in Switzerland for a decision. The Embassy of Switzerland can only issue the visa after approval by the competent authorities. The total processing time is approximately 8-12 weeks. This time is an approximation only and may vary considerably depending on the canton responsible and the elements of the application.

The Embassy does not provide information during the procedure. Therefore, please contact the cantonal migration authority responsible for your place of residence:

Cantonal immigration and employment market authorities

The processing time for a national visa D is up to several weeks or months. More specific information can be given by the competent cantonal migration office in Switzerland only.

The Hague procedure, according to the Hague Convention of 29 May 1993 on protection of children and co-operation in respect of inter-country adoption is applied where a child habitually resident in one contracting state ("the state of origin") has been, is being, or is to be moved to another contracting state ("the receiving state") either after his or her adoption in the state of origin by spouses or a person habitually resident in the receiving state, or for the purposes of such an adoption in the receiving state or in the state of origin. Spouses residing in Switzerland who are adopting a child in Thailand are kindly requested to take note of the information sheet below, available in German and French:

National visa for international adoption (PDF, 154.7 kB, multilingual: German, French)

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Last update 09.06.2023