Several Swiss embassies and consulates—including those in Chişinău, Bucharest and Bogotá—updated their visa-application microsites on 28 September to reflect harmonised Schengen documentation lists and clearer service-level commitments. The overhaul follows full implementation of the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) in April and is intended to reduce incomplete applications that clog appointment slots, according to a Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) circular seen by missions worldwide. Key changes include downloadable checklists tailored to tourist, business and medical visas; an explicit 15-day decision target (with a 14-day extension for mandatory Schengen consultations); and early-submission guidance—up to six months before travel—to account for EES fingerprint verification. The Embassy in Moldova additionally warns applicants about third-party “service” touts outside TLScontact centres, urging travellers to rely solely on official channels. For global-mobility teams the refresh offers greater predictability. The embassies now state which categories qualify for accelerated ‘authorised visas’—often used for intra-company moves—and clarify that family members of Swiss or EU/EFTA citizens may lodge applications directly at the mission without using outsourced providers. Companies should download the new checklists and circulate them to travellers; incomplete files will be rejected at the counter under the stricter post-EES protocols. Organisations operating rotational rosters should note that some posts (e.g., Chişinău) have cut processing to six working days for straightforward short-stay visas, but peak-season demand could still lengthen queues. The FDFA is expected to migrate all remaining missions to the new template by mid-October, giving multinational employers a single, standard reference point for Swiss Schengen-visa compliance worldwide.
