Switzerland
Last update 03 April 2025Diplomatic missions
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Swiss Confederation
IMPORTANT! As of 16.09.2024, entry by land into the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany from Switzerland is carried out with a valid identity document /international passport or identity card/. The additional controls introduced by the German authorities are expected to last six months.
Diplomatic missions of the Republic of Bulgaria in the Swiss Confederation
Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in Bern, the Swiss Confederation
Address: Bernastrasse 4, CH-3005 Bern
Telephone: +41 31 351 13 67
Fax: +41 31 351 00 64
Emergency phone: +41798243822, +41798239370.
Working hours: 09:30 – 17:30 (local time)
Opening hours of the Consular Office - Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 12:00 and on Wednesdays from 14:00 to 16:00. The Consular Office is open by appointment. Appointments are available by calling 0313511367, between 14:00-16:00, and by the following email: [email protected]
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.mfa.bg/embassies/switzerland
Permanent mission of the Republic of Bulgaria in Geneva, Switzerland
Address: 16, Chemin des Crêts-de-Pregny 1218 Grand Saconnex, Genève
Phone: +41 22 7980300; +41 22 7980301
Fax: +41 22 7980302
Emergency phone: + 41 76 264 15 84
Working hours: 09:00 – 18:00
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.mfa.bg/embassies/switzerlandpr
Bulgarian Honorary Consuls in the country
Dr. Felix Fischer
Zurich, Consular District — Zurich, Basel-City, Basel-District, Solothurn, Aargau, Schaffhausen, Thurgau, St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden
Address: Limmatquai 94, CH-8023 Zürich, Suisse
Telephone: +41 44 711 71 71
Fax: +41 44 711 71 11
Е-mail: [email protected]
Mr Fabrizio P. Mion
Lugano, Consular District — Cantons of Graubünden, Grisons and Tessin
6901, PO Box 6134, Switzerland
Address: 6900 Lugano, Via Canova 18, Switzerland
Telephone: +41 91 913 41 42
Fax: +41 91 913 41 43
Е-mail: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Embassy of the Swiss Confederation in the Republic of Bulgaria
Address: 1504 Sofia, 33 Shipka St., p.b. 132
Telephone: +359 2 942 01 00
Fax: +359 2 946 16 22
Е-mail: [email protected]
General information
Security level:
The crime rate in the country is low.
Healthcare:
There are no outbreaks of contagious diseases in Switzerland. No vaccinations are required upon entry into the country.
Customs requirements:
From 01 January 2024 new VAT rates will come into force in the Swiss Confederation as follows:
• 8.1% (7.7% by the end of the year) normal rate
• 2.6% (by the end of the year — 2.5%) reduced /mainly for food, medicines, etc./
• 3.8% (3.7% by the end of the year) special /hospitality and gastronomy/
Citizens travelling to the Swiss Confederation are entitled to import into the country goods for personal use or as gifts up to a total value of CHF 300. Products originating in EU Member States or Norway may be imported freely without inspection by border veterinary services within the limits of the quantities allowed. If the goods exceed the value of 300 francs, VAT is due accordingly, as well as import duty if the goods exceed certain quantitative limits.
Customs tariff for travel of citizens in the Swiss Confederation
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1 kg |
up to 10 kg 17,- francs/kg, over 10 kg — 23, - francs/kg |
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Butter, sour cream |
1 kg/litre |
16,- francs per kg/litre |
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Other edible fats, margarine |
5 kg/litre |
2,- francs per kg/litre |
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Alcohol / only for persons over 17 years of age/ |
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5 litres 1 liter |
2,- francs/litre 15,- francs/litre |
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Tobacco products/for persons over 17 years of age only/ |
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250 pieces 250 g |
0.25,- francs /short 0.10,- franc/gram |
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Fuels |
25 litres |
0.75,- franc + VAT |
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Detailed information on the specifics of importing/exporting goods into the Swiss Confederation, as well as the specifics of customs procedures can be found on the website of the Swiss Federal Customs Service in English, German, French and Italian, www.ezv.admin.ch
1. Plant and biological species:
- Prohibited for import into the Swiss Confederation are: Cotoneaster, Photinia davidiana,
- Plant species protected under the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species /CITES Flora/ are prohibited for import or subject to special permit regime. Permits are issued by the Swiss Federal Veterinary Office
2. Animals:
- All species protected under the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species /CITES Fauna/ are prohibited for import. Permits are issued by the Swiss Federal Veterinary Office
- Entry into Switzerland from EU member states with pet dogs, cats is allowed if the latter have a passport, electronic chip or marking.
Detailed information can be found on the website of the Federal Veterinary Office: http://www.bvet.admin.ch/
3. Currency - imports/exports of more than 10,000 Swiss francs are subject to declaration and proof of origin of the currency.
4. Works of art:
Works of art destined for exhibitions, fairs, congresses are imported freely, and their import is processed by Carnet ATA. For the import of works of art at exhibitions, auctions for commercial purposes, their declaration is required, a guarantee in the amount of the VAT due on the value of the goods shall be lodged at the border, and this guarantee may be lodged in cash or in the form of a guarantee from a customs agency. After the final export of the goods from Switzerland, the remaining guarantee is deducted, or the guarantee is released, and the VAT on the goods sold is deducted from it.
Detailed information can be found on the website of the Federal Office for Culture www.bak.admin.ch
Greater attention should be paid in the major cities, first and foremost in Zurich — mainly pickpocket thefts, mostly by persons of foreign origin.
Road traffic:
Those traveling by vehicle on Swiss roads must be equipped with a vignette sticker (Vignette), which can be purchased at border crossing points, post offices, cantonal traffic offices. The validity of the vignette sticker is 14 months /from 1 December to 31 January of the following year/. There are no daily, weekly or monthly vignette stickers in Switzerland. The price of the sticker for a car is 40 Swiss francs (about EUR 35). Drivers should keep their lights on during daylight hours. Vehicle drivers are required to have chains for certain sections in the high mountains.
All vehicles with a foreign registration should be in good technical condition and it is not rare when the traffic police, when the condition of the vehicle is visibly not good, oblige drivers to carry out a technical inspection on the spot. Fines are imposed in case of technical deviations that constitute a traffic hazard. The fines are quite high, compared to Bulgarian standards, in most cases over EUR 1000, and the vehicle is stopped from driving and should be exported from the territory of Switzerland.
Permissible blood alcohol concentration — 0.5 per thousand, for professional and novice drivers — 0.1 per thousand.
For general information on fines and penalties imposed for violations of the Swiss Road Traffic Act, see: https://www.ch.ch/fr/regles-de-la-circulation-en-suisse/ and http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/going_abroad/switzerland/index_bg.htm
Practical advice:
Visitors to winter resorts should follow the instructions of the rescue services in relation to avalanche hazards.
Climate:
There are no serious hazards from natural disasters.
Local currency:
Swiss franc (CHF)
Travel papers and visas
The Swiss Confederation is a member of the Schengen area and Bulgarian citizens have the right to reside on its territory for up to 90 days within 6 months, the requirement is to have a valid identity card or passport.
For stays longer than three months, as well as for stays for work purposes, Bulgarian citizens are required to have a residence permit, which is issued by the respective cantonal migration offices. Detailed information on the conditions and documents required for a residence permit can be found at: https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/de/home/themen/aufenthalt.html
It is advisable for unaccompanied and accompanied children under 18 years of age to have the necessary consent for travel from their parents or guardians, as this may be requested by border authorities.
Consular service
Issuance of identity documents:
Applications for identity cards, passports and Emergency Travel Documents can be made at the Consular Office of the Embassy. For the use of the ‘Express Service’, the delivery of the DHL Courier Service is used, which must be paid separately by bank transfer. The service can be paid for by one person and up to 8 people can benefit from it. This way you can share this expense with friends, neighbours or relatives. The prepaid courier service does not imply and does not include the faster preparation of your requested personal documents. Your personal documents cannot be sent to any address other than that of the relevant representation abroad.
The amounts for the service shall be transferred to the following bank accounts and in the following amounts:
1. For payment in EUR - EUR 42.99:
Beneficiary:
DHL EXPRESS BULGARIA EOOD
Beneficiary’s IBAN No: BG40UNCR70001523563800
Beneficiary’s Bank: UniCredit Bulbank AD
BIC/SWIFT Code: UNCRBGSF
Beneficiary’s Bank Address: 7, Sveta Nedelya square, Sofia 1000, Bulgaria
2. For payment in BGN - BGN 84.09:
Beneficiary:
DHL EXPRESS BULGARIA EOOD
Beneficiary’s IBAN No: BG94UNCR70001523563798
Beneficiary’s Bank: UniCredit Bulbank AD
BIC/SWIFT Code: UNCRBGSF
Beneficiary’s Bank Address: 7, Sveta Nedelya square, Sofia 1000, Bulgaria
As payment information you must write: BDS_city_name_your name. Example: BDS_Bern_Ivan Ivanov Ivanov.
The Emergency Travel Document of a child born in Switzerland must be applied for and signed by both parents, or by one parent only if the other has granted express authorisation to do so. Parents present a multilingual Swiss birth certificate or a Swiss certificate legalized with an Apostille and their valid identity documents.
If certain conditions are met, an application for a new Bulgarian identity document (BID) could be submitted electronically on the following website: https://e-usluga_bds.mfa.bg/
Certifications and legalizations:
The Swiss Confederation and the Principality of Liechtenstein are parties to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents. Consular endorsements of powers of attorney, declarations or other documents take place after the person has personally signed the document before the consular officer. If a personal appearance is not possible, the signature is made before a Swiss notary, the document is certified with an Apostille, translated into Bulgarian by a sworn translator and the translation is certified at the Embassy. Translation of documents could also be done by an authorized translation company in Bulgaria.
All official documents issued in Switzerland, required for presentation in Bulgaria, must be provided with an Apostille, translated into Bulgarian by a sworn translator and certified at the Embassy. The translation of the document could also be done by an authorized translation company in Bulgaria.
The Apostille stamp is affixed by the Canton Government Office in which the document was issued.
Civil status:
The procedure for registration of a change in the current civil status of Bulgarian citizens may be carried out in person, through an authorized person or through diplomatic channels via the Embassy. In the latter case, the established practice is for the documents to be cleared and sent by diplomatic pouch, and the period for sending such mail by courier is not fixed in time and may take up to several months.
When the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in the Swiss Confederation is notified ex officio by the Swiss authorities, the registration of the respective event in Bulgaria shall be carried out ex officio by the Embassy.
Switzerland is a party to the Vienna Convention on the Issue of Multilingual Extracts from Civil Status Records. Due to the fact that the Swiss forms of the multilingual civil status certificates (Forms A, B and C) differ from the ones approved by the Convention, it is recommended to provide them with an Apostille, as some municipalities in Bulgaria refuse to redraw the multilingual Swiss certificates. The translation of the document can be done with the translators accredited to the Embassy, and the signature of the translator is certified at the Embassy. The translation could also be done by an authorized translation company in Bulgaria. The finished document is then submitted to the municipality of the permanent address in Bulgaria, on the basis of which a Bulgarian certificate is issued.
Local law prohibits civil marriage at the Embassy.
All consular services are payable locally in local currency (Swiss francs) by bank card at a POS terminal or, exceptionally, in cash.
Bulgarian citizenship:
Through the Consular Office documents can be submitted to the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Bulgaria for:
- acquisition of Bulgarian citizenship;
- establishment of Bulgarian citizenship;
- restoration of Bulgarian citizenship;
- exemption from Bulgarian citizenship.
The procedures and documents required for exemption, acquisition, restoration and establishment of Bulgarian citizenship are detailed on the website of the Ministry of Justice www.justice.government.bg, section ‘Bulgarian citizenship’.
The Ministry of Justice accepts original documents and foreign documents must be accompanied by an Apostille and a translation into Bulgarian by an accredited translator. Only complete applications are accepted, and an interview is scheduled upon submission, which is an integral part of the procedure for acquiring Bulgarian citizenship.