Full visa exemption for Serbian nationals
Published: Wednesday, Oct 9th 2024, 10:40
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From Sunday, Serbian nationals with passports issued by the Serbian Coordination Directorate will be able to enter the Schengen area and thus Switzerland without a visa for 90 days. This was decided by the EU in mid-September. The Federal Council decided on Wednesday to make the necessary changes to Swiss regulations.
Since December 2009, holders of Serbian biometric passports no longer require a visa when traveling to the Schengen area. With the complete visa exemption, this now also applies to Kosovo Serbs residing in Kosovo or elsewhere. Passports for them are issued by the Serbian Coordination Directorate in Belgrade.
People with these passports were previously the only people from the Western Balkans who required a visa for stays of up to 90 days in the Schengen area, as the Federal Council explained. By abolishing the visa requirement, it is implementing a Schengen regulation. As an associated Schengen state, Switzerland is obliged to adopt Schengen developments.
Serbian nationals still require a visa to work in Switzerland. According to the information provided, they receive this as nationals of a third country on condition that they have good professional qualifications. A further requirement is the lack of equivalent workers in the Swiss and EU/EFTA labor markets.
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