[rahulk2510]

Congratulations on getting the coveted Schengen visa.

I would like to add one caveat for others to consider that even if you provide all documents mentioned, hiring an agent to verify completeness of application and following the above process to the 'T', your application can still be rejected.

Case in point is my brother and his wife's application. They had booked the entire trip with actual details and not the dummy reservations with relevant bus, train and air tickets fully paid up and having all funding papers ready and yet both of their Visa got rejected.

Its either purely luck or that EU is turning into a bureaucratic nightmare (due to reasons that we see on SM). Though the grapes might be sour for us, but should plan to discover our own country more.

[Foxbat]

Informative thread for those planning for a Euro trip. I was also thinking about a summer trip but thought the process was simple and straightforward from my experiences almost 18 years ago.

When I was a 3rd year student in Engineering I got a summer internship in Germany and visited the consulate in Kolkata for a visa. I was given a 3 months Schengen visa in about 2 hours time (they took my passport and stuck the visa sticker) and since I was a student it was free, I just had to show the flight tickets and letter of invitation from the University.

I remember all the staff in the consulate was very warm and friendly.
A special touch was when they gave me a thick book about places to visit in Germany when I was about to leave the consulate.

[.HEM]

I always apply for business visas at least twice a year from 2016, except the covid period. All my visas were approved with tight schedule and I have always travelled and never skipped a visa.

In 2023, I travelled separately to 3 different Schengen countries in a span of 6 months. I applied for another Schengen visa this January and to my surprise, I got a 2 year visa with 90 days duration of stay This will be more than enough for me as each of my travel itinerary will not cross a week.

During my application submission, I have seen many people carrying bundles of A4 sheets for proofs, but I never submitted more than 12 pages of details for my business visa

1. Air ticket and hotel booking
2. bank statements for 3 months attested by bank
3. Proof of business in India
4. Covering letter stating the purpose of the travel
5. Address proof and ID proof
6. ITR for 3 years
7. Entry ticket if I'm attending a fair or Invitation from my client
8. Travel Insurance

I always felt that business visas get approved with few checks, like how much tax I pay here, How sound my financial status is, etc. They just need to make sure that you will come back to India.

My Schengen business visa never got rejected. I have applied to German, French and Spanish consulates so far. Hope to travel to more Schengen countries in the coming years!

[meetarin]

Originally Posted by NiInJa

Adding some helpful information as I did a Sweden trip in 2022 and a failed application to get Spanish Schengen this just last week

That's some really detailed information! Really appreciate

Originally Posted by NiInJa

So yes, for some, it might be an achievement, for others it can be a learning, for some others it might just be a usual thing. Let's not deny the emotions associated with traveling to another country for whatever reason.

You captured it absolutely right - Emotions! For me, it was definitely a moment of elation, given the ordeal one goes through, and doesn't even have a hint of outcome till the last moment

Originally Posted by poloman

If you have elderly parents travelling with you, high chances of your visa getting rejected.

Useful tips, will keep this in mind. I was actually planning to take my parents on a trip, who would be going abroad for the first time! And I also agree on the last bit - we are tarnishing the name of our country. I personally met so many Indians (especially in Poland) who migrated illegally few years back and have a thriving business there now.

Originally Posted by rijo_tj

If you are someone who goes through a lot of blogs and posts regarding Schengen visa rejection and associated scary stories, getting a visa would in most cases feel like an achievement.

Agree with all you said! I hope you had a great trip. Do share a TL with us

Originally Posted by rahulk2510

Congratulations on getting the coveted Schengen visa.
Though the grapes might be sour for us, but should plan to discover our own country more.

Thank you! Yes, our country has a LOT to offer and I have been fortunate to explore a considerable part on wheels!

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Informative thread for those planning for a Euro trip.

Thank you. I am sure it would have been easier! The takers were surely fewer back in time. And now - 2022 data says, there are 6 lacs Indian applications for Schengen visa.

[supermax]

Nice post. I've been at the receiving end of a visa rejection, quite literally, though it was not my own. I went to VFS global, to pick up my wife's passport which I hoped had her Schengen visa, allowing her to travel with me to Sweden, for a short trip as her own residence permit had not yet come through. As I flipped through the pages hoping to see the familiar sticker, I found nothing at all, and instead, a letter of rejection tumbled out!
The reason for the rejection? They'd asked her why she'd applied for 4 months leave though her trip was for 3 months only. She told the interviewer innocently, that I'd mentioned that we might even be able to extend her trip so she could spend more time with me. That was enough for them to reject the visa on the grounds that she might not return! We ultimately appealed and got it on the appeal. Invited my parents and then hers, and didn't encounter any issues with any of their applications.

Originally Posted by NiInJa

How did I miss this judgemental post?
Anyway, I've seen visa applications (applied with honest intentions) in my close circles getting rejected: My Spanish visa got application got rejected recently as in the kid's birth certificate, my name and my wife's name is written in devanagri script, an error that was not caught when applying B1/B2 US visa or even Swedish Schengen visa and U.K. Work visa that we currently have. Had to cancel my bookings and kill the excitement we had for one stupid but valid reason. So yes, for some, it might be an achievement, for others it can be a learning, for some others it might just be a usual thing. Let's not deny the emotions associated with traveling to another country for whatever reason.

Yup, when I first saw this post, I didn't see the post either, but only some references to it. Before I could even go and grab some popcorn, the kind admins had already cleaned up all traces to said post, so a bit disappointed actually
Fully agree with your point about how dicey these applications can be, and how it can indeed be termed as 'cracking it' for those who've successfully made it to the other side. Hardly something anybody needs to take offense to.

[antony5279]

Originally Posted by meetarin

Thank you! I think it's about finding the right agent. I went through my employer agent as well, but he couldnt help either. So I figured I will do it on my own. And yes, I heard France processes the applications very quick!

To clarify, I did not use an agent finally. Did it on my own.

[HighOnSpeed]

I just received my passport from the Swiss embassy. I requested for a 56 day visa but I've been issued only a 30 day visa! Is this normal?
I have sufficient funds, all the relevant bookings in hand, but this is my first visit to the Schengen region and I'm travelling solo.

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by HighOnSpeed

I just received my passport from the Swiss embassy. I requested for a 56 day visa but I've been issued only a 30 day visa! Is this normal?
I have sufficient funds, all the relevant bookings in hand, but this is my first visit to the Schengen region and I'm travelling solo.

Well, they gave you the baseline duration. I’m afraid you’ll need to show your itinerary once there and get it extended.

[HighOnSpeed]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Well, they gave you the baseline duration. I’m afraid you’ll need to show your itinerary once there and get it extended.

But this is unheard of! There was no explanation as to why they issued me a 30-day visa(within the next 90 days) either. And I did inquire about an extension with some people but they said it is simply not possible except for some exceptional cases and in my case, I would have to reapply for the visa altogether for the next 30 days. Anyways, I've written to the embassy and I'm awaiting a reply.

It is a pain to make alterations to my itinerary now. It was a circuit beginning and ending at Paris completely dependent on the rail network. I have to redo the whole thing and make fresh bookings for everything within the next few days. What an inconvenience!

I guess I should forget about longer-duration visas atleast for the first few visits.

[itwasntme]

Maybe the Swiss thought it was a French thingy being a round trip from Paris.

Not being snarky but that is the way it is. We were in the same soup years back doing Paris Venice Paris on the then overnight sleeper train, and we had to struggle to explain to the minutest detail.

[HighOnSpeed]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Maybe the Swiss thought it was a French thingy being a round trip from Paris.

Update- I wrote to the Swiss consulate yesterday and they have instructed me to drop off my passport for the new visa as per the originally requested duration. A sigh of relief!

Thankfully, in my case, the visa was issued within 7 days of my application(including the shipping which was delayed by Bluedart) so I have another 11 days to go for my initial travel date. Happy to see that they are issuing longer duration visas for first timers!

[robincsamuel]

Originally Posted by meetarin

I know, hundreds of posts and videos have been made in the past on this topic and there is literally no dearth of resources, but the purpose of writing this piece is to make the process as detailed and simplified as possible, so that it makes you have all the information in one place and are confident in navigating the maze.

Dear OP,

Thank you for writing down this; it was extremely helpful. Your sample cover and the itinerary helped me to create my own.

We are traveling as a group—my family and my friend and his family. I consulted a travel agent as I wasn't confident applying myself, but I wasn't happy with many things including the template cover letter they shared. They also suggested visa shopping, saying the rejection rate has been higher for Austria recently. The application form had spelling mistakes; even Austria was spelled wrong. So I ended up doing everything myself and consulted them only to clarify my doubts.

Summary:
• Number of days: 11
• Countries: 3
• Entry & Exit: Vienna, Austria
• Visa Type: Single Entry
• Appointment wait time: 1 day
• Turnaround time: 13 days (The embassy took a week, and the rest is due to VFS transit delay, including two weekends)

Itinerary & Cover Letter
We always plan our day-wise itinerary, regardless of whether it's required for a visa. So we had that ready before applying. The travel agent shared a vague template cover letter and I wrote one referring to the sample from this thread and many others. Apart from the usual things, I mentioned the group travel, investments, and the way we work [sample cover letter and itinerary attached]. We used the same cover letter for every applicant but with minor tweaks to present it from the applicant's perspective and to adjust th attachments accordingly.

Employment Documents
I believe our employment documents are the most complicated part of our application. I'm a self-employed professional working remotely with a company in the US. Instead of an appointment letter and salary slip, I have an independent contractor agreement, invoices, foreign remittance certificates, and ITRs. I also got an NOC from our IT development manager after reading this thread.

All of us work with the same company in the same manner. That's another concern since all the documents look identical. To complicate things further, one of us is serving a notice period and is expected to join our company before the travel date. We've mentioned this in her cover letter and included resignation acknowledgment, offer letter, and an NOC from the new employer as the travel date falls after her joining date.

School Documents
We are traveling with a child. Although the travel agent said it wasn't required, it was listed in the document checklist so I got one from the school.

Proof of Funds
The checklist specifies a 3-month statement, but I submitted a 6-month statement based on this thread, along with the ITRs for the past three years. We've also included the CDSL and CAMS statements.

Flight reservations
The travel agent shared an Emirates itinerary. Emirates allows holding the itinerary for 3 days and they used that. I found out this when I was randomly checking and saw the ticket as invalid. I was expecting a verifiable ticket, but the agent insisted it was enough. I wasn't comfortable with that, so I researched and ended up booking 100% refundable Emirates Flex Plus tickets.

Hotel reservations
We've made proper hotel reservations, all refundable, so we just had to attach them in sequence.

VFS Appointment
The appointment was readily available in Bangalore and we got the morning slots. They pushed for the premium launch saying the Austria counter has a long wait time, but it turned out there was no wait and the process took hardly 30 minutes. I chose not to opt for courier service since I live nearby and also skipped the SMS alerts. I think the SMS alerts aren't necessary because they send the same over email anyway.

Timeline:
• June 26: VFS Appointment. We received an immediate email alert saying the application had been submitted, and another alert in the evening that it had been sent to VFS, Delhi.
• June 28: I received alerts in the morning that the application reached VFS, Delhi, and then had been forwarded to the embassy.
• July 04: My manager received an email asking to confirm the employment status of all of us. That's when I realized they were processing our applications together.
• July 05: An email alert in the evening saying the application has been processed and is on the way to VFS, Bangalore.
• July 08: The final email alert and a call in the evening informing the passport is ready for collection.

I visited the next day morning, got tokens, and waited at the same counter to collect the passports. They asked for photocopies of the ID proofs of every applicant. And, that's it—we got the visa!

Close to 200 pages of documentation!

[meetarin]

Originally Posted by robincsamuel

Dear OP,

Thank you for writing down this; it was extremely helpful. Your sample cover and the itinerary helped me to create my own.

Hi @robincsamuel, glad this thread was of help to you, and congratulations for your visa. Hope you have an amazing holiday!

[clementj]

This has been a very useful thread not only to understand the procedure but to realize how arbitrary the visa approval can get.

There was a recent announcement from the EU that Schengen cascade has been tweaked to make longer term C visas more accessible. i.e. if you have a 2 legally used Schengen visas in the last 3 years you can request for a 2 year multiple entry visa when applying for the 3rd time. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/delegatio...dians_en?s=167

As narrated by so many in this thread, the process of applying for a Schengen visa is so laborious that it acts as a deterrent even if one has genuine intentions and purpose.

A C2 visa would be such a relief from the extensive documentation and eternal wait. What the chances of getting a C2 are if one applies as a family under the new cascade guidelines regimes with two previously issued and legally used Schengen visas? Has anyone here been lucky so far in getting their C2 with family?

[superutp]

Would appreciate the information in this thread, especially the cover letters/itinerary.

Recently we (Wife & myself) applied for a Schengen Tourist visa for Spain (at BLS International Mumbai)

Lo & Be-hold we got it in 1 day, which was quite shocking to be honest. Please let me know if anyone needs any info on the same. Would be happy to share.