General information about repatriation flights

Please note that you are permitted to enter Switzerland if you are (www.sem.admin.ch):

• a Swiss citizen;
• a person who holds a valid national passsport together with one of the following document: 
  • - a valid residence permit, i.e. a Swiss residence permit (L / B / C / Ci     permits);
  • - an FDFA legimitation card;
  • - a national D visa issued by Switzerland;
• a person with rights of free movement; The entry into Switzerland or a country within the Schengen area 
• a person who is travelling via Switzerland into another country that she/he is permitted to enter

Upcoming repatriation flights with SWISS to Zurich

The following repatriation flights are planned:

- SWISS on the 22^nd of August 2020, 5^th and 19^th of September 2020 from Johannesburg to Zurich (with various onward flight options)

For further information kindly read the attached Swiss Flyer (PDF, 233.6 kB)

Important: On (www.swiss.com) you must select "ONE WAY" when making your booking online, as these are special repatriation flights and not regular commercial flights.

Once you have made a confirmed booking for the repatriation flight, it is mandatory that you complete the passenger information excel sheet (XLSX, 54.1 kB, English) and return it as an attachment to the following email address: jnbrepatqueries@dlh.de

If you were able to purchase a flight ticket, kindly send the copy to: southernafrica@eda.admin.ch

Only afterwards the Regional Consular Center in Pretoria will be able to issue your Laissez-passer (travel permit from your current address in South Africa to the Assembly point).

Upcoming repatriation flights with KLM to Amsterdam

The following repatriation flights are planned:

- KLM on the 16^th, 23^rd and 30^th of August 2020 from Cape Town

- KLM on the 15^th, 22^nd and 29^th of August from Johannesburg

KLM Flyer (PDF, 608.5 kB, English)

Please consult regularly the Homepage of KLM (www.klm.co.za) in South Africa or contat the Airline via phone +27 10 205 0100 or +27 10 205 0101 for bookings and enquires.

If you were able to purchase a flight ticket, kindly send the copy to: southernafrica@eda.admin.ch

Only afterwards the Regional Consular Center in Pretoria will be able to issue your Laissez-passer (travel permit from your current address in South Africa to the Assembly point).

Upcoming repatriation flights with Air France to Paris CDG

The following repatriation flights are planned:

- Air France on the 16^th and 30^th of August 2020 from Johannesburg

- Air France on the 15^th of August 2020 from Cape Town

Flyer Air France (PDF, 784.7 kB, English)

Please consult regularly the Homepage of Air France (www.airfrance.co.za) in South Africa or contat the Airline via phone +27 10 205 0100 or +27 10 205 0101 for bookings and enquires.

If you were able to purchase a flight ticket, kindly send the copy to: southernafrica@eda.admin.ch

Only afterwards the Regional Consular Center in Pretoria will be able to issue your Laissez-passer (travel permit from your current address in South Africa to the Assembly point).

Upcoming repatriation flights with Lufthansa to Frankfurt

The following repatriation flights are planned:  

- Lufthansa on the 14^th and 28^th of August 2020 from Johannesburg

- Lufthansa on the 11^th and 25^th of September 2020 from Johannesburg

For further details kindly read the attached Lufthansa Flyer JNB  (PDF, 238.2 kB)

- Lufthansa on the 8^th and 22^nd of September from Cape Town

For further details kindly read the attached Lufthansa Flyer CPT (PDF, 237.3 kB)

Important: On the following website of Lufthansa you must select "ONE WAY" and the access code "LGFLYBACK20" when making your booking online, as these are special flights and not regular commercial flights.

Once you have made a confirmed booking for the repatriation flight, it is mandatory that you complete the passenger information excel sheet (XLSX, 48.5 kB) and return it as an attachment to the following email address: jnbrepatqueries@dlh.de

If you were able to purchase a flight ticket, kindly send the copy to: southernafrica@eda.admin.ch

Only afterwards the Regional Consular Center in Pretoria will be able to issue your Laissez-passer (travel permit from your current address in South Africa to the Assembly point).

Upcoming repatriation flights with Qatar Airways

The following repatriation flights are planned:

- Qatar Airways on the 14^th, 17^th, 21^st and 24^th of August 2020

Flyer Qatar Airways (PDF, 66.6 kB, English)

For reservations visit: www.qatarairways.com/WeWillGetYouHome with promo code PR_CR981 or call the airline on +27 11 267 7700

If you were able to purchase a flight ticket, kindly send the copy to: southernafrica@eda.admin.ch

Only afterwards the Regional Consular Center in Pretoria will be able to issue your Laissez-passer (travel permit from your current address in South Africa to the Assembly point).

Consular services

For further information please click here

Visa information regarding entry/travelling to Switzerland

The Swiss Federal Council has decided, that entry at the Schengen external borders is generally restricted (with few exceptions).

For that reason the Regional Consular Centre (RCC) in Pretoria is no longer accepting any Schengen visa applications until further notice. 

New: The State Secretariat for Migration will allow Schengen visas for life partners to travel to Switzerland from 3 August 2020. As the borders to/from South Africa are officially closed, there will be no commercial return flights. The journey back to South Africa will not be granted and this new regulation will not apply.

Interesting links are:

www.sem.admin.ch

www.sem.admin.ch/news

COVID-19, Travel

The Federal Council calls on Swiss tourists and business travellers to return to Switzerland as soon as possible and to organize their journey independently. It cannot be ruled out at this point in time that flight connections to and from South Africa could be affected due to the travel ban issued by the local authorities. Please note that Switzerland is on the South African and WHO list of high risk countries. We recommend that you contact your airline and/or travel agency urgently.

Further, we recommend to all Swiss nationals who are currently travelling or living in South Africa to follow closely the information and recommendations of the local authorities as well as of the World Health Organisation WHO.

On state level, the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health has information about the new coronavirus and publishes updates of the current situation and measures to be taken.

IMPORTANT: If you are currently travelling abroad, please make sure you download the EDA Travel Admin App and register or update your travel plans and contact details. By doing so you ensure that you can be contacted by the relevant Swiss representations if necessary.

More information on the situation and measures in South Africa

Department of Health

National Institute of Communicable Disease

COVID-19 General Hotline for the public: +27 800 029 999 / National Health and Laboratory service COVID-19 Hotline: +27 82 883 9920

WhatsApp Coronavirus Support Line from the National Department of Health: +27 60 012 3456

Other relevant sources of information are

Infoline Coronavirus Switzerland: +41 58 463 00 00

Show solidarity and take the necessary precautions and measures to protect yourself and others.

More information and explanatory videos  

Support letter - Entry or return to the residence countries (Switzerland) for South African citizens

The Embassy of Switzerland are aware that South African Authorities currently require from their own nationals who want to leave the country a 

“…  Proof that confirms your admissibility in the form of a letter from the embassy or other diplomatic / consular representative of your country of normal residence, confirming your right of residence in that country and that you are permitted to return thereto under the current circumstances.  If returning by road or connecting flights, the proof submitted to us needs to include each transiting countries permission for your travel.”

Please note that the Swiss representation abroad are not in a position to issue such letters of admissibility. However, for serving the purpose, you may find the confirmation useful, which you can download here (PDF, 51.3 kB, English) .

Services and visa

All consular services for the South African provinces of Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West and Free State, as well as for the states of Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, have been provided by the Regional Consular Centre Southern Africa in Pretoria, which is attached to the local Embassy of Switzerland.

The Consulate General in Cape Town continues to be responsible for the South African provinces of the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Western Cape.

All Visa applications are handled by the Regional Consular Center Southern Africa in Pretoria.

Information can be found on the websites concerned:

Services – South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mauritius
Visa – South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mauritius

Angola
Malawi
Mozambique
Namibia
Zambia
Zimbabwe

Scam: Fraudulent Contractor

The Embassy of Switzerland in Pretoria has become aware of a scam including a fraudulent contract of the company Fibre Ring and Youth Empowerment Project, based in South Africa making reference to the official Swiss Representation in South Africa. Neither the Swiss Embassy in Pretoria nor the office of the Swiss Development Cooperation based in Harare do host any connection with this contractor.