Visiting Switzerland? Overstaying can be painfully pricey 

At Zurich airport, a Canadian traveller in transit was fined CHF350 (about $385) because her visa had expired a day earlier. It is a fine of pure meanness that leaves a bitter memory of Switzerland,” says Poorneema Devi Bujun, a 38-year-old Canadian citizen. She is very upset with the Swiss authorities. Zurich police issued her a CHF350 fine for illegally staying in Switzerland. It arrived in her letterbox in Montreal on March 15. Bujun’s woes began last October. The Canadian had just spent three months on holiday in Germany. Before returning home, she wanted to visit her family in Mauritius. To get there, she took a flight from Leipzig via Zurich. A costly miscalculation When the Zurich cantonal police, which handle immigration at Zurich airport, checked her passport, she discovered that her Schengen visa, which allows a 90-day stay in 27 European countries, had expired. “I clearly had the intention of respecting the rules but overstayed by one day due to miscalculation. I thought ...