Schengen Visa

Schengen visa is perhaps the most famous visa nowadays that allows its bearers to visit 29 EU and EFT countries (in some cases more). No matter what the traveling reason could be, one can travel to these all countries with only one visa. This saves money by not applying for visas from all 29 countries at different times.

Schengen countries combined issued 8.5 million uniform visas in 2023 according to the statistics of the European Council. Overall, from around the world, 10.3 million visa applications were submitted to the member countries’ consulates and embassies.

Southern/Mediterranean Europe remains a top choice for international tourists in Europe. Countries like France, Spain, and Italy, located along the Mediterranean Sea, attracted the most visitors in recent years. France led with 79 million arrivals, followed by Spain, Turkey, and Italy. Spain topped international tourism receipts, overtaking the United Kingdom, while France ranked third.

What is a Schengen Visa?

A Schengen visa grants permission for short-term visits of up to 90 days within a 180-day period. It may be a single-entry visa for one trip or a multiple-entry visa for multiple trips. Conversely, an airport transit visa permits passage through the international transit zone of a Schengen airport during a layover or flight change, without permission to exit the transit area.

Who needs to apply for a Schengen visa?

Non-EU citizens planning to travel to the Schengen area typically need to apply for a Schengen visa. The EU has a standardized list of countries whose citizens must obtain this visa to enter its external borders, although some exceptions exist for certain travelers.

Moreover, specific third-country nationals may require an airport transit visa (currently 12 countries in general) for layovers in the international transit zones of Schengen airports. However, exemptions from this requirement apply to certain groups of individuals. Currently, there are 60 countries whose nationals do not require a visa to travel to the Schengen zone. See here the complete list of countries that need and do not need to apply for a Schengen visa.

Types of Schengen Visas

Types of Schengen visas can be divided into different categories as per use of purpose, duration of visas, and entry types:

a) Duration-wise Schengen visas

There are two types of the main Schengen visas as per duration:

• The first one is for a short period for example for 90 days. This is called a short-term “c” type Schengen visa (you cannot stay more than 90 days during 180 days in a row in a Schengen country on this visa even if the validity of the visa is 5 years at maximum).
• The second one is a long-term visa for a stay longer than 90 days in a Schengen state is called a long-term Schengen visa “D” type (You can stay regularly without having to leave the Schengen zone).

b) Entry-wise Schengen visa

It is important to understand if you are granted a single entry or multiple entry visa by a Schengen country. The explanation is as follows:

Single-entry

A first-time visa is always a single entry, and you can only enter the Schengen zone once. Inside Schengen countries, you can make as many exits and entries as you want. However, once you leave the Schengen zone and return to your country of origin, a single entry visa does not allow you to enter again in the Schengen zone even if the visa is still valid.

Multiple-entry

If you have a multiple-entry visa, then the situation is different, and you can make as many entries as you want to and from the Schengen countries. This visa is usually given to applicants who have already had 2 short-term single-entry Schengen visas expired. It is decided by the embassy itself and it cannot be gained upon choice. Multiple entry visas are 1,3, and 5 years. However, the EU Council sometimes decides on a duration of 2 and 5 years as well.

Air transit visa (ATV)

This type of visa allows you to connect through the international transit area of an airport in the Schengen area during a stopover or a change of flight. You cannot leave the international transit area on this visa. Please remember that each Schengen country has its regulations for Airport Transit Visa for third countries. Sometimes a traveler from a third country has permission to transit in one country but not in another. For example, Indian nationals do not need an air transit visa in Italy, but they need it in German airports.

c) Purposes-wise Schengen visas

Visa application Purpose	Details
Business	This visa is applied for business activities in the Schengen countries. The reasons can be appointments, or attending events and exhibitions.
Medical reasons	This visa is provided to patients who need medical care in any hospital or medical clinic in one of the Schengen member states for a time of 12 weeks within 180 days.
Study purposes	The students who need to attend any school or university courses, language, and other short courses, and take an entrance exam in any educational institute in the Schengen Area should also apply for a Schengen visa.
Visiting family and friends	This type of visa is for those who want to visit their friends and family in the Schengen Area. For this visa, the host will be a legal resident of a Schengen member country, and he will send an invitation letter to the guest. Some countries like Romania and France also require the pre-approval of such visa types.
Tourism	This is the most entertaining category of the Schengen visa and probably one of the most used options for traveling to Schengen countries.
Airport Transit	This option is for those who travel through the international zone of a Schengen Country Airport without using the Schengen Country.
Transit	This visa is similar to an airport transit visa. Many seafarers, who need to stay for a short time at one of the member state ports will use this visa.
Sports, Cultural, and Film crews	This type of visa is for people who are from outside of the Schengen area and want to attend religious, Sports, or Cultural events and film crews. The candidate should be a participant in the event, not just an audience.
Official visit	These visas are for official delegations from governments.
Others	If you do not find your desired visa category in the application form, you will select the “others” option and write a one-line description of the reason for your journey.

List of Schengen Countries

There are currently 29 Schengen countries in total. Croatia joined the Schengen zone on 1 January 2023 and the latest inclusions are Romania and Bulgaria on 31 March 2024. Below is the actual and updated list of Schengen countries:

Austria	Greece	Malta	Slovakia
Belgium	Iceland	Netherlands	Slovenia
Croatia	Italy	Norway	Spain
Denmark	Latvia	Poland	Czechia
Estonia	Liechtenstein	Portugal	Hungary
Finland	Lithuania	Sweden	Germany
France	Luxembourg	Switzerland	Romania
Bulgaria

Where to submit the Schengen Visa Application?

To obtain a Schengen visa, you need to apply at the Consulate of the country you plan to visit. If you’re visiting multiple Schengen States and have a longer stay in one, apply at that country’s Consulate.

If your stays are equal, apply at the Consulate of the first country you’ll visit. Generally, apply at the Consulate covering your legal residence area. Detailed visa information for each Schengen country can be found on their dedicated websites. A complete step-by-step guide to how to apply for a Schengen visa here.

When to submit a Schengen Visa Application?

You must present your application to the Consulate no later than 15 days before your intended journey and no earlier than six months before your trip. Booking an appointment may be required before submitting your application. Ideally, you should apply 30 days before your intended stay.

Required documents for Schengen visa application?

a) General documents

• Valid passport, with an expiry date at least 3 months after leaving the Schengen area. For multiple-entry visas, 3 months after leaving the last visited country;
• Completed Schengen visa application form;
• Passport sized Photograph meeting ICAO standards;
• Medical insurance covering emergencies, hospitalization, and repatriation; This means adequate and valid Travel Medical Insurance for your whole stay, with a minimum coverage of €30,000.
• Supporting documents for stay purpose, finances, accommodation, and return intention;
• Fingerprints collected during application (some exemptions apply);
• A cover letter;
• A travel itinerary;
• Additional documents may be required by the Consulates.

b) Category-wise required documents

Tourism	Medical	Friends and Family	Other Trips
Your complete plan such as a travel Itinerary; A comprehensive detailed cover letter about yourself and your financial situation; A hotel reservation for the planned trip; A ticket reservation confirmation to and from the Schengen countries; Details or proofs of any ticket bought (such as a sports event etc); Details about your tourism background if any, this also includes your travel history.	Any medical appointments; Details of the Doctors or Hospitals; Medical issue history and reports; Any records if you have previously been to any Schengen country for medical checkups; If there is any medical emergency, then please include proof from local hospitals; If an extra person is accompanying the patient, their relation details and information about tour cost if born by the accompanying person or the main applicant; Extra financial resources are required for checkups.	A sponsorship if you will be staying with them; The sponsorship should include information about accommodation and the sponsor’s financial status; Note that certain countries, like Romania and France, need approval for such invitations from authorities; Any proof of relationships between you and the sponsor; If you are a relative of an EEA/EU citizen, you must provide relation proof, in this way, you also do not have to pay the visa fee and the visa process can be accelerated; If attending any event such as marriage or another ceremony, then the invitation details such as cards, etc.	For all other types of trips, you must include the related documents of the trip. These could be documents related to sports events and invitation proofs; For air transit (currently only for 12 countries), you must also provide proof of a valid ticket and travel plan and the stay duration at the airport.

c) Documents for personal situation

Employee	Self-Employed	Minor	Student	Sponsored by Spouse
Recent, official, and signed letter from their employer with name, date of issue, address, contact details, position of signatory, and registration number. The position and salary of the employee should also be indicated; and  Pay slips for the last three months.	Recent, official, and signed letter from an accountant, banker or solicitor with name, date of issue, address, contact details, position of signatory and registration number the country, stating the nature of the self-employment or business ownership. The letter must also state the annual salary drawn from the company; and  Self-assessment form edited by revenue and customs authorities.	Birth certificate; and For minors traveling alone or with only one parent (exceptions are made if one parent has the sole custody or residence order for the child):  Original passports of both parents or certified copy of the biodata page of the passports;  Proof of consent of parental authority or legal guardian; and  school certificate. In the case of sole custody, the following documents must be submitted: a) a birth certificate mentioning one parent; b) a death certificate of an absent parent; or c) a court ruling.	Recent, official and signed letter from school, college or university stating date of issue, name of the applicant, type of studies, number of lessons (hours) per week and attendance record.	A marriage certificate;  The spouse’s bank account statements (see above); and  A statement of will to support the spouse. – her/his parent(s):  a) proof of family relationship, e.g. birth certificate;  b) the parent(s) bank account statement (see above); and  c) a statement of will to support the applicant.

How much does a Schengen visa cost?

The visa fees are categorized as follows:

Schengen Visa Category	Fee in EUR
Adult applicant	€90
Children between 6-12 years of age	€45
Children younger than 6 years of age	Free
Holders of diplomatic, official, or service passports traveling for official purposes	Free
A family member of an EU/EEA national	Free
Pupils, students, and accompanying teachers during a school trip	Free
Researchers traveling to perform scientific research	Free
Nationals from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia.	€35
Nationals from Cabo Verde	€67.50

The Schengen visa fee has been increased by the EU Council and it is in force from 11 June 2024. An extra fee may be required when using visa service centers, which assist with applications for some Consulates. These are separate visa application centers such as TLS Contact, Global Visa Center, BLS, or VFS Global which accept Schengen visa applications. Certain applicant groups may qualify for exemptions from the visa fee. Schengen visa costs you other than a fee visa for the following utilities:

• Biometrics fee (charged by the visa application centers);
• Visa form filling fee (optional and offered by visa application centers);
• Hotel reservation fee (if any, many third-party applications offer free-of-cost bookings);
• Return ticket reservations (most of the airlines provide it free of cost and you should not buy a ticket before getting a visa);
• Costs of English translations or attestations; and
• other costs for event bookings (optional).

Schengen visa processing times?

The standard processing time for a visa application is typically 15 days. However, if further examination of the application or additional documents is needed, this period may extend to up to 45 days.

Certain family members of EU or EEA citizens, as defined by the Free Movement Directive, may be eligible for a cost-free and accelerated visa process.

How to apply for the Schengen Visa?

The following steps can be followed to apply for the Schengen visa.

• Determine a Schengen Country.
• Determine the purpose of the trip.
• Prepare documents
  • General Documents for all applicants;
  • Documents related to the trip category;
  • Documents required as per the personal situation.
• Fill in the Schengen visa form.
• Get the appointment.
• Submit the Visa application.

Schengen Visa Extention

Here are some reasons the Schengen visa holder wants to extend his visa:

• whether the applicant is a traveler looking for a more European experience,
• a business person who has to do some unexpected business after his visa expires,
• or a patient who wishes to receive medical treatment in one or more Schengen member states and needs to continue his treatment.

The applicant will not be allowed to stay in Europe after his Schengen visa expires until he/she gets it extended. The European Parliament and Council (EC) No. 810/2009 authorized the extension of the Short Stay Schengen visa by establishing a community code on the visa of 13 July 2009 (Journal of EU Laws of 2009 L243 / 1).

However, if you do not have a compelling reason to base your application, you will have little chance of getting an extension. Following are the reasons to extend a Schengen short-stay visa under the Schengen visa policy:

• Humanitarian Reasons
• Late Entry
• Force Majeure
• Important Personal Reasons

Schengen visa refusal

Applicants who are denied a Schengen visa receive notification through a standard form outlining the reasons for refusal. This form includes the grounds for refusal and provides information on the appeals process, including procedures and deadlines for submission.

Concept explanations

a) What is the 90/180 rule?

There are certain rules one must follow to travel the Schengen countries. You can stay in the Schengen area for 90 days in any 180 days. Calculated individually for each of these states. For example, after staying in the Schengen area for 90 days, one can immediately go to Croatia and stay there for another 90 days.

The 180-day reference period is not fixed. Citizens of countries whose Schengen visa-free entry is allowed. Most people think that the 180-day period starts from the day your visa is validated, which is not true. It lasts for 180 days. So, whenever you want to enter Schengen, you have to count back the last 180 days and see if you’ve been in Schengen for more than 90 days at a time. 

b) Difference between Visa Validity and Duration of Stay 

The embassy decides the visa period. In addition to the multiple entry visa, which enables you to stay in the Schengen area for a maximum of 90 days over 180 days. The verification of your single entry visa or double entry visa depends on the embassy.

The embassy identifies the days you are allowed to stay in any of the Schengen countries, as well as the first date you enter Schengen, and the last day you are allowed to stay. There is always a difference between the visa validity and the number of days allowed at maximum during a single trip:

c) Visa Validity

This is the period from which you can use your visa to enter and stay in the Schengen area. 

d) Duration of stay

This is the number of days you are allowed to stay in Schengen for a maximum of days. The first day you enter Schengen is counted as “Day 1”, even if you enter just minutes before midnight. However, the “last day” counts as the day you leave Schengen, even if it is just a few minutes after midnight.

Important Sources

Who needs a Schengen Visa to travel to Schengen Countries?

Types of Schengen Visas

How to apply for a Schengen Visa?

Difference between Single Entry and Multiple Entry Schengen visas?

Schengen Countries

Schengen visa new fee rules