Schengen dossier May 2020
Questions about Schengen visas regularly pop up on Thailandblog. This Schengen visa file deals with the most important points of attention and questions. Good and timely preparation is very important for a successful visa application.
(File update: May 2020)
The Schengen visa
If a Thai wants to come to the Netherlands or Belgium for a holiday of up to 90 days, a Schengen visa is required for most situations. Only Thai people who hold a valid residence permit from one of the Schengen member states or those who hold a 'residence card for family members of a citizen of the Union' from one of the EU countries do not need a visa to enter the Schengen member states. visits.
The Schengen area is a cooperation of 26 European member states that have a common border and visa policy. The Member States are therefore bound by the same visa rules, which are laid down in the common Visa Code, EU Regulation 810/2009/EC. This enables travelers to move within the entire Schengen area without mutual border controls, visa holders only need one visa - the Schengen visa - to cross the external border of the Schengen area.
Officially, this visa is called a short-stay visa (VKV), or visa 'type C', but it is also popularly referred to as a 'tourist visa'. A residence permit is required for long stays (longer than 90 days), which is a different procedure that this file does not discuss.
The starting point: starting a visa application
You can apply for a visa at the authorities of the country that is the (main) purpose of the trip. For this you will have to make an appointment with VFS Global in Bangkok. Previously, it was also possible to apply at the embassy itself, but that is no longer possible for regular visa applications.
For the Netherlands you can contact:
- www.netherlandsandyou.nl/your-country-and-the-netherlands/thailand/travel-and-residence/applying-for-a-short-stay-schengen-visa
- www.vfsglobal.com/netherlands/thailand/
For Belgium you can contact:
- thailand.diplomatie.belgium.be/en/travel-to-belgium/visa
- www.vfsglobal.com/belgium/thailand/
The main requirements
The most important requirements at a glance, of course it can differ per individual and application what exactly is needed. In general, the traveler (is also the visa applicant) shows that he:
- Is in possession of a valid travel document (passport).
– The travel document must be valid for 3 months longer than the end of the visa period, and may not be older than 10 years. - Can afford the trip financially: has sufficient means of support.
– For the Netherlands, the requirement is 55 euros per day per traveler.
– For Belgium, 95 euros per day if he/she stays in a hotel or 45 euros per day if the traveler is accommodated with a private individual.
– If the traveler does not have sufficient means, a guarantor (the inviting party) must stand surety. The income of this person, the sponsor, is then looked at. - Has papers related to the place of residence, such as a hotel reservation or proof of residence (accommodation) with a private individual.
- For the Netherlands, an original form 'proof of guarantee and/or private accommodation' must be completed for this purpose. This form must be legalized at the municipality.
- For Belgium, an invitation letter and an original guarantee statement legalized by the municipality.
- Have medical travel insurance for the entire Schengen area with a cover of at least 30.000 euros. Request this from an insurer who will refund the money (minus administration costs) in the event of a visa rejection.
- Has an option or reservation on an airline ticket. Do not book (pay) the ticket until the visa has been granted! A return (reservation) is immediately one officially recognized piece of evidence that makes the traveler's return more plausible.
- Makes it plausible that he/she will return to Thailand in time. It is a combination of evidence. For example, previous visas for (Western) countries, a job, possession of real estate and other matters that demonstrate a strong social or economic bond with Thailand, such as care for minor children.
- Has not been reported to the European authorities and does not pose a threat to public order or national security.
- A recent passport photo that meets the requirements.
- A completed and signed application form for a Schengen visa.
- A copy of all submitted documents. Tip: also scan everything so that the applicant and sponsor have a copy of all submitted documents (for example to show at the border).
Annex: Schengen Visa Dossier
If an applicant can submit the above papers, in most cases (about 95%) a visa will be issued. The decision official wants to be able to see that the traveler has a genuine travel purpose, that the trip can be financially justified and that the chance that the traveler will comply with the rules is greater than the risk of illegal matters such as overstay or labour.
However, you will have to take your time and make sure you submit the forms and supporting documents correctly. To assist with this is the extensive Schengen visa file below. This is a PDF file and therefore easy to open or print. The file tries to answer most questions and points for attention. The file concludes with two official checklists drawn up by the Dutch and Belgian authorities.
- CLICK HERE TO OPEN THE FILE.
Finally, the author has made every effort to include the most recent information as accurately as possible. The file can be seen as a service to the readers and may nevertheless contain errors or outdated information. Therefore, always consult official sources such as the website of the Foreign Affairs or embassy for the most up-to-date information.
About this blogger
-
Regular visitor to Thailand since 2008. Works in the accounting department of a Dutch wholesaler.
In his spare time he likes to go cycling, walking or reading a book. Mainly non-fiction, especially the history, politics, economy and society of the Netherlands, Thailand and countries in the region. Likes to listen to heavy metal and other noise
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Great that you keep track of all this and make it available. Big kudos for your work and effort 🙂
Dear Rob,
The information below from the Schengen visa file is not entirely correct. After that date (02-02-2020), my girlfriend certainly received an MEV with a validity of THREE years (valid from 01-3-2020 to 02-05-2023 WITHOUT the previous 2 years an MEV issued earlier with a validity of to have received one year!!!
Best regards.
Bert Sugars
As of February 2, 2020, a multiple entry visa (MEV) must be issued to bona fide as standard
frequent travelers. This MEV is valid for 1 year, provided that the applicant has completed three in the previous two years
visas and used them lawfully.
This MEV is valid for 2 years, provided that the applicant has completed the previous two
year has received an MEV issued earlier with a validity of one year and
lawfully used.
This MEV is valid for 5 years, provided that the applicant has been in the previous three years
has received an MEV issued earlier with a validity of two years and
lawfully used.
An embassy may always be more generous (the Netherlands has been doing this for years), but never stricter than this obligation dictated by the Scheng Code.
I still hope one day that the file will be superfluous and that the official website will be so customer-friendly, clear and reliable that help from third parties is not really necessary. Unfortunately, BuZa, IND, etc. do not think primarily from the customer's point of view, but from their own point of view. The various authorities involved are therefore not even seamlessly connected.
That's how I stumbled again with this update
– the fragmentation of information: I have to dig at NetherlandsAndYou (previously that was the embassy website), VFS, IND, EU Home Affairs etc.
– the lack of Dutch support: with the VFS site, a Thai person can get by quite nicely, although he will not find 100% information in Thai either. For example, you will not see the minimum amount of 55 (previously 34) euros per day per foreign national on the VFS site. Do you have to dig at the IND (in English or Dutch). Are you a Thai-Dutch couple who speaks English poorly, then you quickly get stuck ...
– Due to the centralization, Ministry of Foreign Affairs is less accessible for feedback. In the past I sometimes e-mailed the embassy and if I found incompleteness it was adjusted fairly quickly. Now I have tried several times to point out an incompleteness or error on the official checklist, but Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Hague does not seem to be listening. Look at the checklist (why are they no longer on NetherlandsANdYou? the official Ministry of Foreign Affairs channel for consular affairs, including visa services!). If you take the 'visiting friends/family' checklist, then nothing is said about having to show a bank book to show that the foreign national has 55 euros per day per person in his own money. The checklist assumes that the Dutch friend/family provides accommodation AND guarantees. While this is a choice: the sponsor in the Netherlands is EITHER the accommodation provider, OR the guarantor OR both OR there is a Dutch person who provides accommodation + another Dutch person who acts as guarantor. That is not apparent from the checklist.
– The checklist of today (the English one they use in Thailand) is stricter than before. In the old English checklist you did not have to provide empty passport pages. Now it is. While Ministry of Foreign Affairs also knows that the risk profile of Thais has not changed in recent years. Why then ask for more paperwork for Thailand and not elsewhere? Logic?
Anyway, this update has been shelved for a bit longer. Every time I doubt whether I should treat something even more extensively, or shorten it. Or something is missing somewhere or could be better. Let me know, all feedback and additions are welcome. From heavy criticism to a thank you. 🙂
They do ask for the empty pages in the checklist, but at the counter they only use the ones with stamps and visas on them. At least last February. It remains a hazy situation, because everything works at cross purposes.
Kind regards W
Awesome Rob.
Thanks for making all that info available.
Dear Rob,
Much appreciation for your work.
I would absolutely not want to do it because I would really go crazy with all those bureaucratic rules, rules and exceptions, which make life very unpleasant for some who want to travel to the Schengen area for a limited period of time. A government should make citizens and guests happy….
As always appears from the data you sometimes report, a very small number of applications are refused. Why all the effort, wasted money, paperwork for the vast majority who are of good will?
It also gives me a headache Chris, and I received answers to various questions to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over time that also drove me insane. For example, I once asked that, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the applicant must provide a translation of documents that are not in an accepted language (Dutch, English, French). When I asked if by translation they meant an official translation, the answer was yes. I then said that it would be impossible to have dozens of pages of a passbook or employment contract officially translated and then legalized as well. That would cost hundreds of euros. So I asked whether a selection could be made between papers that are so important that an official translation is required (think of certain deeds) and supported documents or that already speak for themselves in terms of content (the bank book). The answer to that was that many applicants use such an approach.
Have you ever asked some questions with non-concrete responses in other ways or to other employees. Usually the same type of answers where it comes down to the fact that you have to correctly interpret the text as it can currently be read online on official sites. If you are wrong, you will find out for yourself…
The officials don't mean it badly, but think from their position and not from the customer/guest. So the service is never great. The procedure is no party. The costs are not too bad on an entire holiday budget, but it remains a waste of time and money. Certainly not a driver of more tourism, that's for sure.
NB: I also sometimes think about converting my file into Thai. If anyone wants to do that selflessly.. by the time that is done, another update will probably be needed. Maybe I'll be fluent enough in Thai in a year or so to try something like that, but I hope the whole visa procedure will be over by then. Practically only Asian countries still require a visa to come here for a short stay.
Dear Rob,
Thank you for collecting the latest Schengen Visa updates.
I have the following question regarding the 'Proof of Guarantee and/or Private Accommodation'.
The list, The Main Requirements, states that the applicant must submit an original legalized form.
Does this mean that I have to send the original proof to the applicant in Thailand or can this also be done via a scan and sending of a PDF and a printout in Thailand?
Sincerely, Manow
Dear Manow, you have to send the original form to Thailand. But in the PDF file I advise on page 17 to ”make a good scan of the guarantee form and other important documents. This way you always have a copy of the (original) documents. If the original guarantee form is lost, the decision official may agree to a good (colour) copy.”.