How to Get a Schengen Visa (1)

Have you been thinking of how to apply for a Schengen visa either for study, work, business or tourist purpose? If yes, then this article is for you..  Whether you are applying for the first time for this type of visa or you have been refused before. I think you will find this article informational.

Before talking about how to apply for a Schengen visa, I think it is important to know what s Schengen visa  is.

A Schengen visa is a short-stay visa that allows a person to travel to any of the Schengen member states and stay for  a duration of 90 days either for tourist or business purpose. It allows anyone with this type of visa to enter, freely travel within and leave the Schengen zone within that specified period.

For the avoidance of doubt, the Schengen countries (states) are:  Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

From this list, you would see that twenty-six countries are in the Schengen . The list is growing by the day as more countries are joining  the Schengen state.

What this means is that if you happen to get a Schengen visa, you will be able to enter 26 countries with one single visa and be able to stay up to 90 (depending on the validity of your visa).

So, here comes the big question, “How do I get a Schengen visa?” Here are what you ned to do to get a Schengen visa:

1. Know the type of visa you are applying for: According to the purpose of travelling, the Uniform Schengen Visa applies to all of the two categories, “A” and “C”.

‘A” category stands for the Airport Transit Visa which allows its holders to travel through the international zone of the Schengen country Airport without entering the Schengen Area (county).

Airport transit visa is mandatory for the citizens travelling from one non-Schengen state to another non-Schengen state through a change of flight in a Schengen country airport.

“C” category stands for a short-term visa which allows its holders to reside in a Schengen Area for a certain period of time depending on the visa validity. This is particular category, according to the holder’s purpose of travel  can be obtained in a form of:

§  Single-entry visa

§  Double-entry visa

§  Multiple-entry visa