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Getting a short term visa

How do I apply for a short-term visa on an ordinary passport?

1. What do I need to apply for my visa application?

To apply for a Schengen short-stay visa, you are required to present one visa application per person, including the following items:

1.1. Items to be checked before application fees are accepted
- A passport which is valid for at least 3 months after the date of the requested visa;
- [A visa application form] duly completed and signed;
- A maximum of 3 photographs meeting requirements;
- Application feesVisa application forms for a child under 18 years of age must be signed by a parent or legal guardian.

If any of the items you provide do not fulfil our criteria, consular personnel will not accept your application and will ask you to present items which do. If you insist on submitting your application anyway, your application will be recorded but a visa will not be issued and the other items in the application will not be studied.

1.2. Proof
- Proof of the purpose of your stay in the Schengen area;
- Proof of your means of support during your stay and accommodation;
- Proof of travel and repatriation insurance;
- Guarantees of repatriation to your country of residence (return ticket or adequate personal means to purchase one);
- For children under 18 years of age, specific proof;
- Any documents helping to convince the consular authority of your intention to leave the Schengen area when your visa expires.

The websites of diplomatic and consular posts that issue visas on ordinary passports may include more detailed information taking local specificities into account. These items providing proof that are on such websites are to be presented to the consular authority.

The consular authority will accept your application as provided by you and will make his decision on the basis of the guarantees and proof attached to your application. If you have failed to attach the proof included in the list, the consular authority will assume that you are unable to do so unless you effectively explain why such proof was omitted in a separate letter attached to the application.

1.3. Additional documents

The consular authority may ask you to provide additional documents within a set period in order to study your application more effectively. You do not need to submit a new application nor pay additional application fees if that is the case.

2. Proof that a visa application has been submitted

When you submit your visa application, the consular authority will give you a receipt for the exact amount of application fees you paid. This receipt is acknowledgement of receipt of your application.

3. Processing a visa application and the consular authority’s decision

After a visa application is submitted, the consular authority processes it and decides on whether to issue a visa.

The consular authority makes his decision as swiftly as possible, the time period will vary depending on possible consultations he must conduct. There is no point in contacting the consular authority while the application is being processed.

If the consular authority has not responded to you within two months, you may consider that your visa application has been refused.

4. If you are issued a visa

A stamp will be affixed to your passport: how to read a visa stamp.

A short-stay visa is just one item required to enter the Schengen area. When you cross the border into the Schengen area, the border police may require you to provide other documents as well.

5. If you are refused a visa

Your passport will be returned to you without a visa stamp. The reasons the visa is not issued are not provided to the applicant. Application fees are not reimbursed.

The consular authority does not agree to re-examine your application on the basis of new items at this stage.

However, if your visa is refused, you can submit a new visa application at any time. You must fill out a new form, sign it, attach identity photographs thereto, pay application fees, and provide the required proof and new items you may have to add.