[thechat] Swiss visa problems

[William Anderson]

Madhu Menon wrote:
> Hey folks,
> 
> One of my friends is travelling to Europe. She's going to UK, France,
> and Switzerland. She's staying with a Swiss friend of hers in Switzerland.
> The problem is that when she applied for her Swiss visa, the Swiss
> embassy asked for not just her financial documents, but also that of her
> friend who's hosting her. She is in an embarassing situation now because
> she feels bad asking her friend to hand over her bank statements etc.
> She thinks it a serious violation of her friend's privacy.

Sounds like standard "do you have means to stay in our country so you
won't try and sponge off the state" policy to me.  Interesting that they
want to make sure the person you're staying with can do the same.
Probably a reaction to a large influx of Balkan asylum seekers in the 1990s.

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