Schengen Visa

This visa allows the holder to stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days for the purposes of tourism, business, visiting family, medical treatment, studies, training placements or volunteer activities that last under 3 months, or for other non-gainful activities. It also allows transit through the territory and airports. 

The Schengen area includes 26 European countries without border controls between them: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

The Schengen Visa will allow you to travel to any Schengen state and transit through their territory, but it will not automatically entitle you to enter the Schengen area. The border authorities can refuse entry if the visa holder does not meet any entry requirements. You must meet the entry conditions established in the Schengen Borders Code.

REQUIERED DOCUMENTS

Schengen visa application form:

• It should be duly completed and signed by the applicant or the parent/guardian in case of a minor.

Valid Passport:

• Original and a photocopy of the page or pages of the passport that contain biometric data.
• The document must be valid until three months after the planned date of departure from the Schengen territory and must have been issued during the ten years immediately before the date of entry.

Documents corroborating the purpose of travel and the specifics of the stay, as well as the intention of the visa applicant to leave the Schengen area before the visa expires:

• Return or tourist circuit ticket, in all cases.
• Proof of accommodationor letter of invitation from a private individual (such a letter only proves the availability of accommodation).
• For study trips, training programs, non-work internships or volunteer work with a duration of less than three months, enrolment documentation or proof of admission to an educational establishment or internship contract or proof of admission to a volunteer program.

Proof of having sufficient financial means for the proposed stay or of the ability to legally obtain such means:

• In 2020, the minimum amount required is 90 euros per person per day. In any case, and regardless of the length of stay, the traveler must have at least 810 euros or its equivalent in foreign currency.
• Economic means may be accredited by presenting cash, traveller’s cheques, a credit card accompanied by a bank account statement, an up-to-date bank book, or any other resource that accredits the amount available, such as a credit statement regarding the card or bank account. Bank letters or online bank statements will not be accepted.

Photograph:

• A recent, passport-size, colour photograph, taken against a light background, facing forward, without dark or reflective glasses, or any garments concealing the oval of the face.
• Photographs of minors must not show any part of the adult holding them.

Travel medical insurance:

• The insurance must cover the costs of repatriation for medical reasons or death, as well as for urgent healthcare and/or emergency hospital treatment for the entire stay and throughout the Schengen area.
• Coverage must be of at least €30,000 or its equivalent in local currency. If the application is for a multiple entry visa, the medical insurance must be valid for the first planned entry. The applicant must undertake to purchase insurance for future trips.

Payment of the visa fee:

• The amount of the visa fee is 80 euros for people aged over 12 and 40 euros for children of 6 to 11.
• Children aged 5 and under are exempt from the fee.

Procedure:

• The visa must be applied in person or by the legal representative in case of a minor.
• The applications must be submitted at the consular office or at the Visa Application Centre in case of availability of one. In either case, an application is necessary.
• Applications must be submitted between 6 months and 15 days before the scheduled date of travel.
• Biometric data capturing:

The applicant’s facial image and fingerprints will be captured during the visa application procedure. Applicants under 12 and applicants whose fingerprints have been taken in the last 59 months are exempt from fingerprint taking. However, in the latter case, if the applicant’s prints are of poor quality, the Consular Office will request that they come back in to have their fingerprints retaken.

Decision period:

The legal period for reaching a decision is of 15 calendar days as of the day after the application submission date, but this period may be extended to 45 calendar days if an interview or additional documents are requested.