If you were denied a Schengen visa. Lack of medical insurance. And good luck with your travels.

Obtaining a Schengen visa has always been a serious and troublesome business. The document is a pass to the whole of Europe at once, it is not surprising that its execution requires more conditions, time, and effort from travelers. Political conflicts recent years further aggravated the situation, and today the refusal to meet the needs of someone who needs a Schengen visa is a fairly common phenomenon. Especially with independent attempts to acquire a document, in particular with regard to immigrants from the Russian side.

Are there reasons why extradition is denied? European visas? - Yes. Is it worth closing the topic of obtaining a Schengen after the rejection of an application, is a refusal always fatal? - No.

Schengen visa or Schengen visa appeared as a result of the Amsterdam Agreement, adopted by the young European Union, in order to facilitate communication between the union regions. Later, 7 European states that are not members of the EU (Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Iceland, the Vatican, Monaco, San Marino) joined the agreement, forming a single Schengen zone. With the visa of the same name in hand, visitors to Shenzona are free to move freely between the participating countries, as if there were no borders between them. Such a license is not needed for all guests of Europe, but for those traveling from Russia and most of the CIS countries, it is required.


Countries where the Schengen Agreement applies. Click to enlarge.

However, it is possible to issue a private single-entry visa pass for only one European country V in the usual way. It is precisely because the Schengen visa has advanced features that it is so labor-intensive and time-consuming to obtain it. Embassies place higher requirements on potential universal pass holders and check them more thoroughly. At the same time, the refusal of a visa from one country entails the complication of the procedure for obtaining a pass to another. Therefore, the design of the Schengen must be prepared especially carefully and not overestimate one's strength if there is no confidence in success.

Basic Schengen visa standards

The specific division of the Schengen pass is based on the purpose of the trip, the length of stay, the number of entries and exits.


There are Schengen visas:

  1. Tourist - a mandatory attribute of those traveling to Europe to relax, see the sights, make tours in several states. The latter case is different in that the license in this scenario is issued in the name of the country where it is most planned to stay. If there is no priority, then it should be issued through the country from which the trip will begin.
  2. Business - designed for business meetings on the territory of the Shenzon, business trips, negotiations. Valid from 1 day to 3 months. The main one among the certificates submitted for entry is an official invitation letter from a business partner. As a rule, this is the management of the company concerned or a specific legal entity.
  3. Guestbook - is needed by everyone who intends to visit relatives, close people, friends, good acquaintances living in the vastness of the European Union. A prerequisite is the presence of an invitation in the prescribed form from the host.
  4. Transit - based on the name, it is required for transit crossings of the SHZ member country when following a different route. Its necessity is determined by the specific case and circumstances.

Strong differences in design different types No. In addition to classification according to the purpose of the trip, the Schengen visa is also divided into letter categories according to the strength of the action.

Schengen letters

According to its permissive power, the schengen-visa is divided into 4 categories:

  1. "A": legalizes the stay at the airport of the Schengen country for the duration of the transfer en route to another state. Leave transit zone with this category is prohibited. Russians do not need to issue it, however, there are a number of countries, visitors from which are required to have the specified permit with them.
  2. "B": a more extended version of the type "A" in terms of powers. The owner of such a pass has the right, during his transit stop, to visit the region where he stopped, as well as to freely move around it for up to 5 days. It is allowed to use this visa several times.
  3. "C": the most common subspecies, allowing a short stay in the Schengen area (most often 3 months). It is category C that should be in the hands of tourists, guests, people who come on business.
  4. "D": long-term license for permanent long stay in a specific country with the right to travel visa-free within the EU zone.


For each category, in addition to the main documents, additional ones are required. Commission fee the same for the first three subspecies ("A", "B", "C") - 35 euros. Category "D" is subject to a fee of 60 euros. Prices are valid only for paperwork on their own, directly through the embassy. Tour operators or visa centers require an additional commission for their services.

Required documents

The vast majority of applications rejected visa documents has the simplest reasons:

  • incomplete package of required documentation;
  • incorrect filling of certificates, questionnaires, forms;
  • misprints, obvious errors;
  • non-regulated forms of forms, photographs.

Here is what the basic portfolio of documents looks like, which must be attached to an application for any type of Schengen visa:

  • valid passport;
  • old foreign, if it has survived;
  • A completed application form;
  • statement;
  • 3 photos with a neutral facial expression, on a light background, without corners and frames, size 3.5x4.5 cm;
  • certificate from the main place of work in a strictly prescribed form (required to indicate the position of the recipient, his salary, length of service, full address of the organization, details, registration certificate number), signed by the head, certified by a round seal (incorrect filling entails a denial of a Schengen visa);
  • certificate of no tax debts (sometimes);
  • employment history;
  • a summary from the cash account on the availability of the due amount (the amount depends on the type of pass);
  • copies of round-trip tickets, hotel booking invoices (booking is also allowed for a return ticket);
  • insurance policy;
  • photocopy of internal passport;
  • papers that are a guarantee that the visitor will leave the place of visit after the end of the trip, namely: data on the presence of his house, apartment, family, business in his homeland, implying a mandatory return (not strictly required, but they are a significant plus when considering an application).

Additional certificates or reports are assigned depending on the type of entry permit. But the more the applicant provides "good" papers, the more likely avoid failure and expedite the consideration of the application.

Why might they refuse?

Migration services have the right not to explain their negative decisions, even if outwardly they arose from scratch. However, the main reasons for the refusal of a Schengen visa are known. experienced travelers. Those who will not be approved are:

  1. At least once violated the rules of being in the Schengen zone before. Such rules exist and their implementation is monitored very clearly. Basically, it has to do with the length of stay.
  2. On my last visit, I came under the attention of the European police because of the commission of offenses.
  3. Provided false information about yourself. This may relate to the level of income, criminal record, past trips abroad. Most often, information on earnings is faked, since a universal visa is issued only to people with a certain income. However, all financial data is carefully checked, fraud will be detected, the application is rejected.
  4. I resorted to a subterfuge. For example, forged an invitation letter from friends or business partners. Such falsifications are easily calculated.
  5. Has an income that is insufficient by European standards to move freely and live during the trip. But even if the official earnings on the papers are low, presenting a bank account with the required amount, round-trip tickets and hotel reservations often ensures a positive decision by the visa department.
  6. Goes to Europeans or even abroad for the first time. The base is not iron, bends for this reason occur occasionally. But if there are inaccuracies in the papers or not all documents have been collected, which raises the suspicion of not returning back, a novice tourist may be denied entry without delving into the essence.
  7. Already received a challenge earlier or at the embassy of another state. Moreover, if the matter is in the wrong documentation, then a new attempt, where everything will be corrected, will give the desired result. If, however, there is a more serious reason behind the refusal (an offense, a scam with certificates, etc.), you should not hope for a favorable outcome in another embassy, ​​they will refuse everywhere.

IN Lately rumors are being strongly circulated that now a Schengen pass may be denied to those who visited without the consent of the authorities Crimean peninsula. But here the situation is contradictory.

The situation with Crimea

The fact that European permission to visit is not given because of the Crimea first surfaced in the summer of 2015. Complaints were poured into the Russian consumer society about the unreasonable withdrawal of applications for visiting Europe from Russian citizens. When checking, it turned out that all of them had previously traveled to the Crimea. However, the official leadership of the European visa services categorically denies this connection. The increase in negative results by the fall of 2015 was explained by technical problems, as well as the transition to new system registration of applications.

However, unofficial witnesses and those who experienced it on personal experience, warn that after visiting Crimea, the chances of a positive decision on issuing a Schengen visa are actually reduced. Therefore, if a trip to Europe is in the near future, and Crimea was planned only out of interest, then it is better to satisfy your curiosity about Crimean life at another time.

What should I do to avoid visa rejection?

There are a number of steps you can take to minimize or avoid rejection of your application. First of all:

  • you need to attach as many positive papers as possible to the application, even if they are not in mandatory list, the main goal of this is to convince the visa officer of his exceptional honesty, reliability, security, so they will do: an old foreign passport with visas, indicating that the deadlines have been met earlier (a clean passport is always in doubt), a certificate of registration of ownership of personal property, a business license , certificate of the presence of a prosperous family, etc.;
  • it is necessary to pay maximum attention to details when filling out the forms: a typo, an error, an incorrectly completed column of the questionnaire almost always entails a refusal, if you are not sure, it is better to pay a little commission and entrust this matter to a competent person;
  • do not lie, trying to hide the negative aspects of your life (bad salary, fines, criminal record), the very fact of an unsightly event may not matter, but hiding information is always a challenge to the application;
  • it makes sense to check if there are any old debts or misunderstandings on loans, taxes, fines, sometimes the reluctance to let them into the EU is connected with this.

If all the criteria are impeccable, and the refusal nevertheless occurred, the new code gives the right to appeal the consequences through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The reasons that can provoke the rejection of documents for a Schengen visa can be both objective and subjective. For example, Bad mood visa officer. Therefore, there is no need to despair at once. There are free consultations at embassies on all issues related to the legalization of foreign trips. In especially complicated cases, there you can always get comprehensive information on any situation.

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Being denied a visa is a very unpleasant event that can cause serious stress. In this situation, the first thing to do is to find out the reason for the refusal.

The reason for your negative decision to issue a visa is the reason that is considered an obstacle to the issuance of a visa (there may be several reasons; they are indicated by a cross).

YOU ARE DENIED TO ENTER THE COUNTRY:

[?] the purpose of your planned stay is unclear, given the main criteria for the consideration of visa applications, provided for in Part 5 of the General Consular Instruction relating to the Schengen rules and addressed to diplomatic missions and consular offices;

[?] there are reasonable grounds to assume that the purpose is to circumvent the provisions and enter the country or stay in the country (the relevant article of the code is indicated).

The basis for a negative decision to issue a visa is the absence of the following condition / conditions for issuing a visa (indicated by a cross):

[?] lack of a valid document giving the right to cross the border; or the period of validity of the document giving the right to cross the border is insufficient;

[?] lack of documents confirming the purpose and circumstances of the planned stay; or information in the submitted documents is insufficient or unclear;

[?] lack of sufficient means of subsistence, taking into account both the length of stay and return to their country or travel to a third state where the applicant has the right to enter, or the inability to legally earn these funds.

The points marked with a cross make it quite clear where exactly the mistake was made.

Each consulate has a stamp to notify you of a visa denial. This stamp contains the letters A, C, D in one row, the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 in the other row - visa refusal codes.

The numbers indicate the reason and the validity period of the refusal, and the letters indicate the type of visa requested.

  • Ш tamp "1-С" - refusal of a visa;
  • Ш tamp "2-С" - call for an interview;
  • Ш tamp "3-С" - means only that the consulate had questions about the submitted documents (or the submission of any additional documents is required). Therefore, if upon receipt of a passport you see a “3-C” stamp, be sure to get the Consulate staff to answer the question “why”.

1 - refusal of a visa and "visa quarantine" from three months to a year. Visa quarantine means that during the period specified in the decision of the consulate, entry into the Schengen countries is prohibited, not a single country participating in the agreement will issue a visa. Most often, the reason for such a refusal is previous violations of the rules for entering the Schengen territory, minor offenses in the Schengen territory (violation of traffic rules recorded by the police and non-payment of a fine, for example) or a mismatch between the purposes of the visit indicated in the application with the documents provided in support of it. This decision is entered into the SIS database. After the quarantine period expires, the applicant can apply for a visa again, and having received one, enter the Schengen area.

2 - means calling the applicant for an interview in view of the questions that have arisen at the consulate. Most often, interviews are assigned to people going to study, or to relatives. As a rule, this is not a refusal. Such a wording is not entered into the SIS database. If the applicant's answers are satisfactory to the consular officer, a visa sticker will be pasted over this stamp.

3 - refusal due to insufficiency of the submitted documents. Persons who receive a decision with this wording can re-apply for a visa as soon as they collect all Required documents. If the papers are in order and meet the requirements of the consulate, and the applicant has not previously had violations in the Schengen countries, he will be issued a visa.

4 - indefinite refusal. Complete ban on entry into the Schengen countries. Such a decision is made in the event that the applicant commits serious offenses in one of the Schengen countries, fraud with documents submitted for a visa, or if it is established that this person belongs to terrorist or other organizations that pose a threat to the countries participating in the Schengen Agreement.

A person who has received a refusal has the right to appeal. In the final part of the refusal decision, the applicant must be explained the rules for filing an appeal, indicate information about the competent authority considering complaints, as well as the deadlines for filing an appeal.

If a C-1 denial is issued, you should definitely file an appeal. It is necessary to attach to it all the documents that, in the opinion of the applicant, can confirm the erroneous conclusions made by the consular officer, and also show that the purpose of the trip corresponds to the application, or the previously existing violations have been eliminated. If possible, you should ask for the mediation of the host party to resolve the dispute. The host party may act as a guarantor of compliance by the foreigner with the rules of stay in the Schengen area. Often, perseverance and self-confidence can solve the problem.

Before deciding to issue you a Schengen visa or not, your documents are carefully checked. This is done in order to identify persons whose stay in the Schengen countries is undesirable, as well as to identify potential emigrants.

Greater chance of rejection in young people who do not have a place permanent job unencumbered by family and property. This group of people has every reason to stay in the country of entry.

You need to convince the consular staff that you do not need to emigrate to another country. A certificate from work about high wages, the presence of a family or a certificate of the presence of large property can help in this, so that the consular staff can see that you have something to lose if you do not return.

If you have previously traveled abroad and regularly returned back, be sure to show your old passports with visas and border stamps - this is almost a guarantee that you will return this time.

When applying for a visa, you must be prepared for the fact that the consular staff will check the accuracy of the data specified in the questionnaire. They can call you at work and ask your colleagues if you work at this enterprise without introducing yourself.

Often the reason for refusal at the consulate is the provision of a new, clean passport. Therefore, if you traveled earlier, and you have a bunch of visas in your old passport, be sure to bring it. This will increase your chances.

A Schengen visa can be denied for a variety of reasons. Often the reasons may be informal or undocumented. These reasons relate to the particular practice of this Consulate or to the relations between our countries. Other causes are known formal causes. These include:

  • Providing deliberately incorrect information in the questionnaire, that is, fraud.
  • The presence of the so-called records of the criminal nature of the applicant, that is, if the person who applied for a Schengen visa had a criminal record in the past.
  • The applicant is not allowed into the Schengen area for security reasons.
  • The applicant cannot prove a connection with the country of residence.
  • The applicant intends to work illegally in the country where he wants to obtain a tourist visa.
  • The applicant has no real reasons and reasons for making this trip.
  • The applicant has no apparent legal means of subsistence. This means that there is no source of income, such as a certificate of employment, a bank account, or traveler's checks to cover expenses.
  • The trip to the Schengen country of destination is not booked, that is, there are no hotel and air tickets, as well as transfers or tickets for various events.
  • The applicant is considered to be a person with a so-called bad temper. It means that this person quarreled or committed other similar actions in the Consulates or at the border of the Schengen countries.
  • The applicant requests a visa for a suspiciously short period of time.
  • The applicant has already been refused a Schengen visa and cannot prove that the reasons that led to the refusal of the previous application no longer exist.
  • The applicant is a citizen of a country with which the host country has poor diplomatic relations.
  • The applicant has violations of visa or migration laws in previous trips.
  • The applicant has a foreign passport, the validity of which is coming to an end. According to the Schengen agreement, the passport must be valid for 3 months from the date of the end of the alleged trip to the Schengen zone.
  • The applicant did not use the previous Schengen visas issued to him for the intended purpose or canceled the booked trips for no apparent reason.
  • The applicant cannot prove his intention to return to his country of residence.

These reasons are formally spelled out in the documents of the Schengen Agreement and in consular instructions for diplomatic missions and Consulates of the countries that have signed the Schengen Agreement.

Sometimes it causes fear among our novice travelers because of the fear of getting Schengen visa denied

Such fears can be easily allayed if you understand that any Schengen visa denied must have certain reasons, reasons. And if in your case these reasons are absent, then feel free to start self-issuance of a Schengen visa. Success is usually guaranteed to you.

In this article, we will not take into account the so-called informal reasons, which include both the specific practice of issuing entry visas of a particular Consulate, and possible specific relations between our countries.
Apart from such reasons denial of a schengen visa(by the way, very few, even extremely rare cases) there are other, fairly well-known formal reasons.
Let's take a closer look at each of them.

Reason number 1 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

provision of deliberately false information in the visa application form, i.e. "normal" scam.

More precisely, if this fact is discovered, then the consular services will not particularly understand intentionally or accidentally the applicant provided incorrect information, he will be qualified as a fraud.
We will not touch on cases where the applicant deliberately reports false information: here, as they say, you know what the risk is!!! If the deception is revealed, you will receive Schengen visa denied.
But it's very disappointing when a newcomer to, just makes a mistake not from malice, but due to inexperience or simply from the fact that he was inattentive to filling Schengen visa applications.
Such errors, sometimes found in questionnaires, include undeclared information about the next of kin.
Often enough, Applying for a Schengen visa, tourists believe that there is no need to report information about deceased parents, as well as about children who are safely alive and well, but are not going on this trip with their parents, who filed.
REMEMBER: if there is an item or question in the questionnaire, then it must be filled in, it must be answered.
You can not leave the graph in Schengen visa application empty!!!
If you do not have an answer to the question: for example, in the column: former surnames; If you have never changed your last name, then you must write “NO”, but in no case leave this section blank.

Reason number 2 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

this is the presence in the tourist profile of the so-called records of a criminal nature.

This means that the person who submitted Schengen visa application, had a previous criminal record. I must say that such a "past" can not always be the reason denial of a schengen visa, but is always a kind of negative moment. But even in the case of a criminal record, it cannot be hidden in any case, since when checking personal data, this fact can be detected, and, in this case, the refusal of a visa will be 100%

Reason number 3 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

this is if the applicant - the visa applicant - is not considered possible to be allowed into the zone of the Schengen countries for security purposes.

It usually has nothing to do with ordinary tourist, which starts self-issuance of a Schengen visa. Such restrictions on entry into the Schengen area apply exclusively to people who, according to European services, are seen in illegal or terrorist activities.

Reason number 4 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if the applicant for a Schengen visa cannot actually prove his connection with the country of residence.

It is important for the Embassy and Consular Services to understand that the applicant - the applicant for a Schengen visa - has strong ties with his country and is not interested in immigrating. Such connections are close relatives, the presence of real estate, permanent work. If you have everything in order with these aspects and you have no immigration intentions, then you have nothing to fear.

Reason number 5 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if there is a suspicion that the applicant intends to illegally start working in one of the Schengen countries.

Where is this visible? Yes, first of all, from your certificate of employment or other sources of income. If this work does not inspire confidence, there is no stability in it, then you are at risk ...
In this case, you have a chance to get Schengen visa denied.

Reason number 6 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if the visa applicant has no real reasons and / or reasons for taking this trip.

Here you need to stop in more detail. What can be attributed to such reasons? Yes, anything - after all, this is actually your route or travel plan.

Here for this applying for a Schengen visa on your own and it is recommended to write detailed itinerary so that the Embassy sees your goals and desires. It is necessary that visa officers understand that you are not just eating somewhere, but going on a trip to see certain monuments, visit museums, exhibitions or attend a specific event.
You must have some purpose for your trip. "Excuses" like going to see Paris or Rome do not fit!!! What specifically in this Paris or Rome “inspired” you to travel!?

Reason number 7 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if the applicant does not have any legal and visible means of subsistence.

In other words, you must have a job or other source of income in the country where you live.
Remember that a housewife is not a reason denial of a schengen visa. But if you are a housewife, pensioner or student, then you must explain what means you live on. That is, you must have either sponsors (housewives and students) or savings (pensioners).
If you do not have a legal job, you cannot provide a certificate of employment, then do not be alarmed! After all, you live on something: eat, drink, pay daily expenses. Prove that you have money. After all, it could be freelancing!

Reason number 8 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

the applicant will certainly be denied a Schengen visa if your trip is not “booked”,

namely, you cannot provide hotel reservations, transport documents, etc. But if you don't have any of that, then give it up. applying for a Schengen visa on your own. Go to a travel agency, pay them a lot of money and go ahead: they will book everything for you and provide you with a visa. By what means??? I assure you that a lot...

Reason number 9 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if the applicant was seen in some scandals or scandalous situations,

that took place at the Embassy or at the border of the Schengen countries. This, of course, is on the verge of absurdity, but if similar situations nevertheless took place and information about them somehow got into the database, then they can serve as a reason denial of a schengen visa.

Reason number 10 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

if the applicant asks for a visa for a suspiciously short period,

for example, for 1-2 days. Exceptions are cases when you are flying to a specific event that will last this particular period. Well, for example, you have dreamed all your life to see some kind of opera performance and fly to Milan only for this premiere. But it also means that you must have a ticket for this premiere...

If there are no visible reasons for such a short stay, then it is reasonable to suspect that it is only important for you to get into the Schengen and you are not going to return back.

Reason number 11 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

the applicant's refusal of a Schengen visa

and the applicant cannot prove that the reasons that led to the previous refusal have already been eliminated.

There are an incredible number of examples here. If you were refused due to lack of sufficient means of subsistence, prove that you have a job and have money.

If you could not prove your strong connection with your homeland: there is no real estate, relatives and no one at all, apply for a visa in a changed situation.
Each specific case has a specific solution.
Write your question at the end of this article and together we will analyze your situation.

Reason number 12 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

the applicant is a citizen of a country with which this Schengen country has poor diplomatic relations. Here ... the ways are inscrutable ... And specifically, you are unlikely to be able to influence the situation.

Reason number 13 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

but this reason is more specific: the applicant may be denied a Schengen visa if he had violations of migration or visa laws.
Typical violations include travel to different countries Schengen, despite the fact that you have, for example, open Finnish visa. But you didn’t go to Finland or you were there once or twice, despite the fact that you went to other countries a dozen times !!!

This is just a typical St. Petersburg situation. Getting a Finnish Schengen in St. Petersburg is very easy for citizens who have permanent registration in St. Petersburg and the region: no hotel reservations or tickets are required. But if you opened such a visa, but did not go to Finland, then this case will be a violation of visa laws. The next time the Finnish Consulate will refuse you a Visa. Therefore, it is best to immediately submit a document for self-issuance of a Schengen visa to the Consulate of another country. There will be no refusal if the situation is as we have described it here.

Violation of migration legislation is a delay in the days of your stay in the Schengen area, if your visa has already expired. An act will be drawn up at the border, in any case you can pay a fine, but you can also get Schengen visa denied on next request.

Reason number 14 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

the applicant has a passport, the validity of which is coming to an end.

According to the rules of the countries of the Schengen agreement, a visa can be put in a passport, the validity of which comes to an end no earlier than 3 months from the date of the expected completion of the trip.
Everything is simple here. If you are going to Schengen in April and your passport expires in July, you will receive Schengen visa denied. First do new passport and apply for a Schengen visa.

Reason number 15 for refusal of a Schengen visa:

the applicant cannot prove his intention to return back to his home country.

In other words, if you have nothing here, then you are obviously at risk. In the same group of people who, from the point of view of the embassy and consular services, represent an army of potential illegal immigrants and, accordingly, a threat to the labor market in the EU countries.

Check out all of these reasons!
All of them, down to the last smallest reason, can be safely corrected if you carefully consider the selection of your documents for.
In progress self-registration Schengen visa there is nothing scary and difficult.
It is only necessary to concentrate a minimum of your attention.
Ask questions, and we will be happy to answer them.
Good luck with your travels and obtaining a Schengen visa.

You prepared for a trip to Europe, collected the required documents, applied for a visa, and after waiting, you were refused. Vacation plans are disrupted, the ticket must be returned, and the hotel reservation must be canceled. Why do consulates refuse a Schengen visa? Should I apply again?

The refusal is sent to the applicant in writing. The reasoning part of the form sent from the consulate usually lists the grounds for refusal. If the specified purpose of your trip, the application and the attached documents meet the requirements, you will most likely receive a Schengen visa. With full compliance with the rules, failures are rare. If you are denied - understand the reasons and try again.

What are the reasons for rejection?

Violations may be, at first glance, minor, but they will spoil your “reputation” of a tourist. For example, the authorities of the country of entry will find insufficient financial guarantees, or they will doubt that the applicant has motives for returning back. You can vaguely indicate the purpose of the trip or simply do not take out insurance, attach photos that are too old, or lose sight of the fact that the validity of the passport expires early, and that’s it - you will be refused.

So, for a German consulate to issue a visa, a simple printout of a hotel reservation from booking.com is not enough - official confirmation will be required. The consulates will be too attentive to the “clean” passport of the applicant, without previously issued visas. If you received a visa before, but changed your passport before the trip, it would be useful to remove and attach a copy of the previous document to the general package.

Small violations are easy to fix, but serious incidents with international laws cannot be corrected. They will be the reason for your person to be blacklisted.

  • Never provide "fake" documents, do not write false data in the questionnaire.
  • Do not violate the order of "first entry" to the Schengen - enter exactly the specified country; observe the period of stay in the state, which was marked as the main one.
  • Your previous conflicts with the law in the territory of any Schengen country will lead to an indefinite visa ban.

You receive your passport, and instead of a visa, it has a stamp with a set of letters and some numbers. In this "secret code" it is quite possible to understand. The letters (A, B, C, D) indicate the type of visa. Numbers (1-4) - categories of prohibition, or additional requirements for further Schengen registration.

The number 1 is just a refusal, but 4 is an indefinite, permanent refusal (option 4 is rare: such a measure is applied mainly to violators of the laws). 2 - an invitation to an interview to clarify any details of the trip. 3 - request for additional documents. Defects can be quickly corrected, then the visa will be pasted on the passport page on top of the stamp.

What to do in case of refusal?

You have been denied a one-time application tourist visa- the stamp contains the letter C with the number 1. Probably, motivation will be attached to such a refusal, although not necessarily: government agencies have the right not to explain anything. If no clear reasons were given to you in an official letter, try to analyze your shortcomings yourself and start acting.

How to file an appeal

An appeal against a denial is filed in different forms, to various government agencies, according to the laws of the country you applied to. Spain and Germany accept appeals from applicants exactly one month after the refusal, the Netherlands - four weeks, Norway - only three weeks. In these countries, appeals foreign citizens consulates independently consider. In Belgium, Denmark, Italy, France, appellants need to apply to the courts (from the district to the Supreme), or to the relevant ministries authorized to resolve visa issues. The refusals of the Finnish and Swedish consulates cannot be appealed at all, but in Sweden requests for a review of the decision are accepted.

You have decided to file an appeal. In your letter to the state structures of the refused party, consistently state the arguments according to which the consulate could reconsider the decision. You can attach any additional documents proving your honest intentions. If the appeal is accepted and approved, the consulate informs the appellant that it is possible to resubmit the documents. With a positive decision on the appeal, the annoying stamp will be canceled, and a Schengen visa will appear on top of it.

If a C2 or C3 denial is received, it means that the office that reviewed your application simply did not have enough information in the submitted documents. When the embassy has questions, the process is delayed, but the outcome may well be positive. Take into account your mistakes, eliminate all misunderstandings, carefully prepare for a new interview, take the missing documents.

Applicant placed in quarantine

The ban can be imposed not just on obtaining a visa, but on the procedure for submitting an application and documents, on any of your trips to the Schengen states. Quarantine periods vary from three months to a year. If you try to violate the visa quarantine, the sanctions are extended up to ten years.

You must be notified of the visa quarantine along with the refusal. If there was no such warning, you may risk re-sending the documents by choosing another country of entry, or still file an appeal and challenge the refusal. If there is very little time left before the trip, it is worth trying again to get a visa. However, having seen a fresh visa ban stamp in the passport, consular officers of another country can do the same without going into details. So an appeal would make more sense. If there is enough time, or on the contrary, you are already hopelessly late, but would like to achieve justice for the future, try to annul the refusal by appeal.

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Denial of a visa can greatly ruin your vacation plans, especially if you already have tickets and a hotel paid for at that time. In fact, the percentage of visa refusals is very low, and the chance of getting it is subject to simple rules practically equal to zero.

Any country is interested in the visits of foreign citizens, because they make a good contribution to the economy. But the embassy must be sure that you have the necessary money for the trip, accommodation, tickets back, any other factors that will facilitate your return (work, family, real estate). Nobody wants problems with illegal migrants, and you need to convince the embassy that you will leave on a certain date.

Theoretically, any unwanted person can be rejected because of a threat to national security, internal order, or public health.

In practice, they refuse most often for the following reasons:

  • Were provided fake or invalid documents. The simplest case is an unpaid hotel reservation or a certificate from work. There are times when consular employees call the specified contacts to verify the data.
  • Not confirmed purpose of travel and conditions of stay. For example, you did not provide an invitation, or it does not indicate your place of residence, and there were no other supporting documents (hotel reservations).
  • Not confirmed Availability required amount travel funds. Most countries accept bank statements, but some require 3-6 months of detail. To enter some countries, you must have a certificate of employment.
  • The applicant has already visited the territory of another . Take this into account, because in all Schengen countries it is impossible to stay on a short-stay visa for more than 90 days in a 180-day period(a single limit for all countries of the agreement).
  • The unified information system has information about your visa ban from another embassy. This system is used in the Schengen countries.
  • If provided documents or data raise doubts about their authenticity.
  • The applicant has entry marks for disputed or warring territories. Most of these countries do not mark the visit to the country, or mark only at will.
    • You cannot enter most Arab countries with a visit stamp.
    • Azerbaijan cannot be entered after visiting Armenia or Nagorno-Karabakh.
    • If you have stamps or South Ossetia, entry into is prohibited.
    • If you plan to travel to the USA (especially for a long period), you should not have travel stamps, as it has been embargoed since 1962.
    • Entry into Serbia is closed if there are stamps on entry into Kosovo.
    • If you arrived via Turkish part islands (Ercan airport), in Greek part you may not be allowed.

In addition to these cases, also almost 100% refusal will be received by persons under investigation, or with outstanding convictions, as well as if the applicant violated the law during the last visit.

At the embassy and at the border Special attention given to persons who behave inappropriately, suspiciously or impolitely.

What is "visa quarantine"

The period during which documents will not be accepted in any consulate of the Schengen countries is informally called a visa quarantine. As a rule, its validity period is at least 3 months. This means that after receiving a refusal, you may not expect to receive a positive decision for at least 3 months.

In the event that the trip is very important to you, you can apply for a visa again, but you should understand that you must have perfectly collected documents and be able to describe in detail the need for entry.

You can also contact the host to contact the embassy and report the urgency and importance of the trip. If the refusal received before was not associated with serious violations, you have a chance to exit the "visa quarantine" ahead of schedule.

Most often, quarantine is done for 3 months and 1 year. The maximum possible duration of its validity is 10 years.

What to do in case of refusal?

If you've been rejected, that's no reason to be upset. First of all, you need to determine the reason for the refusal. Of course, it is difficult to do this before official statements, but you can try.

There are cases when refusal was given to people with a good and stable job, the presence of real estate, a family with a full package of necessary documents.

If you have time before your trip, you can try to file an appeal. Each country has its own rules for filing. Basically, this is a written appeal, consisting of 3 parts:

  1. Introductory part - it indicates the full name of the consulate or body that made the decision to refuse.
  2. Explanatory part - in which you need to describe the current situation in detail, as well as possible reasons failure.
  3. The final part - in which you need to express your request for a review of the decision.

It is advisable to attach to the appeal all documents that may affect the review of the decision.

It usually takes a few weeks to review your application. But in some countries it is sent for consideration to the local court, and the terms are delayed by 1-1.5 months.

Usually in the Embassies of the Schengen countries Consuls do not receive applicants in person. You will be able to meet with them in person only in exceptional cases, if you can justify such a need.