Schengen visa: the comprehensive guide from A to Z

The Schengen Visa is the magic lamp that many travel and tourism enthusiasts want to get, as it is the key to entering most European countries without the need for a separate visa for each country separately.

The history of the Schengen visa dates back to 1985 when the Schengen agreement was signed, which provides for the cancellation of passports among 15 member states of the European Union to become a free tourism zone.

Below we will put our hands on the most important points about the Schengen visa. First, we will get to know what is the Schengen visa, then we will look at its types, requirements, how to obtain it and the most important common questions about it, so that this article serves as a comprehensive guide and reference for all our valued visitors.

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Content :

• What is a Schengen visa?
• What are the Schengen countries
• Types of Schengen visa
• Schengen visa requirements
• How to obtain a Schengen visa
• The most important reasons for rejecting the Schengen visa
• Arab countries exempt from the Schengen visa
• common questions

What is a Schengen visa?

It is a joint entry visa between a group of European countries that allows its holder to temporarily enter these countries and move between them freely, whether for the purpose of tourism, work or study without the need for a separate visa for each country.

What are the Schengen countries

The Schengen Area countries are the countries that the Schengen Visa holder can travel to and move between. The number reaches 26 countries, including 22 countries within the European Union. The following table shows the names of all Schengen visa countries:

Types of Schengen visa

There are 5 different types of Schengen Visa available, the choice of what suits you best depends on the purpose of the visit and how long you will stay within the Schengen area.

Schengen visa requirements

The applicant for a Schengen visa must provide the following documents translated into English (or to the language the destination country requests) from certified translation offices before proceeding with the application for obtaining a visa from one of the embassies or consulates of the Schengen countries in his country, and these documents are:

• The Schengen Visa application form is complete and completely correct and signed by the person applying for the visa, and care must be taken to fill out the form data in black ink clearly, and in the case that the question was not applicable, he can write N / A in the answer field (to download the form Press here).

• A valid passport with a date of no more than 10 years, and must be valid for a period of three months from the date scheduled to leave the Schengen area and include at least two blank pages.

• An important Schengen requirement is travel or health insurance, a document that proves that the applicant gets health insurance in the entire Schengen area, with a pledge from the insurance company to cover costs of up to 30,000 euros in the event of any medical emergency, God forbid. You can contact one of the companies that provide the service in your country for more details about this.

• Proof of round-trip flight reservations during the period during which it is planned to travel (a copy of the air ticket). We recommend you Turkish Airlines AndEmirates Airlines.

• Proof of the residence reservation, and it can be obtained from the travel agency through which the reservation was made or confirmation of the reservation in case the reservation is through a website Booking.com. (Some embassies and consulates do not accept bookings via Booking.com, so this must be confirmed before booking).

• The travel plan, which is a document during which the applicant explains his trip plan, the countries and cities that he will visit, the length of time he will spend in each city … etc. (Most embassies do not need this document, but it is a good idea to present it in all cases).

• A certificate of recommendation from the employer or company in the event that the applicant is an employee, and a certificate of registration if the applicant is a student. In the event that the applicant is an employer, the commercial registration can be submitted.

• Proof of financial position and active bank statement verifying the applicant’s financial ability during his stay in the Schengen area (the amount that must be present in the account varies from one embassy to another, but generally from 45 to 60 euros for each day spent by the applicant within the Schengen area).

• Two recent photographs of the applicant with sizes 35 x 45 mm, taken in the last 3 months, and they show the face very clearly according to the conditions and examples shown in this document (Press here To view the document).

How to obtain a Schengen visa

A request to obtain a Schengen visa can be made through some intermediary companies, such as VSF Global And TLS Content Or through the embassies and consulates of the Schengen countries in your country. Submission is according to the following:

• In the event that the applicant is planning to visit only one country, he will apply for the visa through the intermediary companies or the embassy / consulate of the destination country in his country.

• If the applicant plans to visit more than one country, he submits the application for obtaining the visa through the intermediary company or through the embassy / consulate of the main destination or the destination that will spend the largest period of time.

• If the applicant plans to visit more than one country but he will spend an equal number of nights in each country, he can submit a visa application to the embassy / consulate of the country that they visit first.

Important note: If the applicant is going to visit more than one country, he must explain this in the travel plan and abide by the plan to avoid any problems when moving from one country to another.

The most important reasons for rejecting the Schengen visa

There are many reasons why a Schengen visa application is rejected and varies from one application to another, but there are more common reasons that may cause your application to be rejected. We will present it below to avoid it upon application:

• Filling in the visa application incorrectly, which is represented in spelling errors in the name of the applicant, forgetting some important data, or errors in translating the original documents or writing forged data.

• Failure to provide proof of flight reservation confirming the intention of the applicant to travel during the period actually shown or making a fake reservation and canceling it once the application is submitted, as well as with regard to proof of the residence reservation.

• Failure to provide sufficient documents to prove the applicant’s financial ability during the travel period, such as an active bank statement of a good amount, and in general it is preferred that the account contains at least 45 to 60 euros for each day the applicant will spend in the Schengen area.

• Failure to provide a valid travel insurance policy for the specified amount (30 thousand euros) or to provide a policy from an unapproved authority, so please ensure that the embassy approves the issuance of the insurance policy before obtaining it.

• Submit the visa application to the wrong embassy, ​​and if the applicant plans to visit more than one country within the Schengen area, he must submit the application to the embassy of the first country he will visit or the country that will spend the most time as we explained earlier.

• Failure to provide sufficient documents to prove the applicant’s intention to return to his home country as an employment contract stating that he has a job for which he will return or a receipt of university fees payment as well as real estate bonds or any other document.

Arab countries exempt from the Schengen visa

Citizens of all Arab countries must obtain a Schengen visa to enter the region with the exception of UAE nationals who can enter for tourism or work without the need to pre-obtain the visa and obtain it with their regular passport upon arrival, and the matter is different for residents, they must obtain a Schengen visa for residents in the Emirates before traveling .

Frequently asked questions about Schengen visa