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I am resident in London, 9 years so far and I am travelling from London to Chamonix France on a Schengen Visa that will be issued by France for the duration of my trip, 7 days precisely.

However, have been checking for the best route to get to Chamonix and it turns out that the easiest route will be via Genève Aéroport (GVA) but the thing is for a visa issue by France will I be able to still transit with a shuttle from Genève Aéroport (GVA) to Chamonix or I will have to apply for a second visa.

As I write, I am in contact with The Swiss Embassy but I'm yet to hear back, just wondering if anyone may have had similar experience, entering into a Schengen area on a visa issued by a different country?

Relaxed
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Claire Steells
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    Due to Swiss Covid transit rules, I think it shouldn't be closed as duplicate. – xngtng Jul 15 '21 at 11:13
  • @xngtng I did mention them in my answer but that's not what the question is about. – Relaxed Jul 15 '21 at 12:11
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    @Relaxed I believe ultimately the OP wants to know if it is possible to make a transit through Switzerland to France in the near future, even if their primary concern is visa in the question. – xngtng Jul 15 '21 at 12:15

2 Answers2

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Entering through another country is perfectly fine, that's what the Schengen area is about. There are some corner cases (if it looks like you were deceptive and try to misuse a single-entry visa for an entirely different trip) but this itinerary is very common and extremely unlikely to raise concerns.

In season, you will see an entire row of shuttle operators for various French ski resorts at Geneva airport and many people on the same flight will be doing exactly whay you are doing. Your passport won't be stamped when crossing the French-Swiss border.

You do need to be aware of two issues that are not directly related to visa and immigration rules:

  • You will enter Swiss customs territory and this can have an impact on what you are allowed to take with you (e.g. alcohol) as Switzerland is not a member of the EU.
  • Covid-related restrictions applicable in Switzerland might differ from those applicable in France. I have no idea whether they provide for a transit exception (or what they will look like when you take your trip) but it's possible that your carrier will require additional tests or paperwork or refuse to take you to Switzerland entirely.
Relaxed
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    Geneva airport is separated in a Swiss and a French sector. Isn't it possible there when arriving on an international flight, to clear customs and immigration directly into the French sector of the airport and hence not be subject to Swiss customs and immigration? For me, this has never been of relevance, but I thought the airport was separated exactly for this purpose. – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo Jul 15 '21 at 16:00
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    @Tor-EinarJarnbjo Unlike Basel, that's not an option at GVA. All commercial non-French passengers flights arrive in Switzerland for all purposes (customs/immigration). – xngtng Jul 15 '21 at 16:45
  • @xngtng Ah, ok. So you can only exit to the French sector if you arrive on a domestic French flight? – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo Jul 15 '21 at 16:52
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    @Tor-EinarJarnbjo Yeah. You used to be able to pass to the French sector within the airport, but nowadays a recent boarding pass is required (and sometimes pose problems for people renting cars from the French sector but cannot get there). Even then it's treated as entering Switzerland and then transiting to France. Only domestic flights entirely stay within the French sector. – xngtng Jul 15 '21 at 17:10
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    @xngtng I was in the Geneva airport three days ago, and there definitely is a French sector. – phoog Jul 15 '21 at 17:44
  • @phoog Yes, but all passengers pass through passport controls staffed by Swiss border guards and are deemed to be entering Switzerland. If you exit GVA from a non-French flight, you won't have an option at the exit to go through the French customs, the Swiss customs is the only way. To enter the French sector without leaving the airport, a recent boarding pass is required. https://www.gva.ch/en/Site/Passagers/Acces-Transports/Plan-du-Terminal-1 / https://www.gva.ch/en/Site/Passagers/Questions-Reponses-FAQ/secteur-france – xngtng Jul 15 '21 at 19:42
  • @xngtng yes, I thought the comment had failed to post, and I did not attempt to repost it because I realized I had acted too hastily, before reading everything you had written. If I had realized that it was in fact posted, I would have deleted it. I apologize for having caused your needless duplication of effort. (Also, I arrived at and departed from Geneva on non-French internal Schengen flights, so not directly relevant to this question.) – phoog Jul 15 '21 at 20:22
  • @Tor-EinarJarnbjo I thought about adding a discussion of this specificity but that's not relevant to the OP's problem for several reasons, the most important one being that shuttles for Chamonix and other places in Haute-Savoie leave from the Swiss part of the airport. If you come on a flight from Paris, want to rent a car, don't mind an hour-long detour then it would be an option when the French sector resumes regular operations. Right now it isn't. – Relaxed Jul 15 '21 at 21:52
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As long as your visa is not territorially restricted (for type C visas, no other restrictive remarks other than "ETATS SCHENGEN" in the "VALID FOR" field), it is fine visa-wise.

However, United Kingdom is currently considered to be a high-risk country by the SEM. You must be vaccinated (with any WHO-authorized vaccines) to transit through Swiss territory in this case.

Unlike the EuroAirport in Basel where you could choose to exit through French immigration and customs, there is only Swiss immigration in Geneva and all Swiss Covid rules apply.

Transit from a third country considered by the SEM to be high-risk to a Schengen state

Third-country citizens holding a residence document or a visa type D for their destination country in the Schengen area are permitted to travel through Switzerland to that country. The normal requirements for entering Switzerland apply.

It is only possible to enter Switzerland from a high-risk country in order to travel on to another Schengen state for a short stay of up to 90 days if you can prove that you have been vaccinated (see “How can I prove that I am vaccinated?”). Persons under 18 may enter Switzerland if they are travelling with an adult who has been vaccinated. Otherwise the normal requirements for entering Switzerland apply.

If you have not been vaccinated, but your destination country in the Schengen area has authorised your entry for a short stay of up to 90 days, you may only enter the Schengen area by travelling directly to your destination country (i.e. you may not travel though Switzerland).

https://www.sem.admin.ch/sem/en/home/sem/aktuell/faq-einreiseverweigerung.html#2005127624

(The last paragraph just means you cannot transit through Switzerland, not that you can only take a direct flight. If another Schengen country allows such transit, Switzerland doesn't care.)

xngtng
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