The European Schengen zone, made up of 27 countries, is home to 400 million people, says an article on Germany Visa. Citizens of the Schengen member countries travel almost 1.2 billion times within this zone itself each year. Including some of the most powerful and oldest countries in the world, the Schengen zone has taken stringent measures to strengthen the external borders to eradicate invasion by terrorists.
Almost 58% of the total night stays by tourists in Europe were in Italy, France and Spain, some of the most prominent countries falling within the Schengen area. Spain alone pulls 20% of the total tourists travelling to Europe each year. Within the Schengen countries, any individual, regardless of their nationality, can move about freely, without having to go through border checks within the internal national borders.
In this article…
Lithuania – The Schengen Country with Minimum Visa Rejections
If you are wondering where to apply for a Schengen visa so that you have the highest chances of getting your visa approved, it is Lithuania. This nation rejected only 1.3% of all the short-term Schengen visa applications it received in 2018. A total of 98.7% of the applicants who applied for a Schengen visa from Lithuania got a visa, without any hassle.
Lithuania does not receive a massive number of visa applications. Hence, the waiting time to schedule an appointment or receive a Schengen visa is also lower than in other countries. Nations like Germany and France have to deal with a massive number of applications, which means wait times could go into months.
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Other Schengen Countries with Low Rejection Rates
If you don’t wish to travel to Lithuania, the next best choice is Estonia. Only 1.6% of all the Schengen visa applications received by Estonian embassies worldwide were rejected, while 98.4% were successfully granted in 2018. Estonia ranks at #6 among countries receiving the least number of visa applications. Therefore, the embassies are less crowded as well.
If you’re still looking for options, Iceland is a wonderful choice to get a visa to the Schengen Area. In 2018, Iceland rejected only 1.7% of all the applications submitted at its embassies. However, the country is mostly represented by embassies of other nations. So, if the consulate representing Iceland is crowded in your home country, you might need to wait a little longer than usual to get the application processed.
How to Get Schengen Visa Easily
The first step towards visiting the Schengen countries is filling up the official Schengen Visa Application Form. You can either download the form and fill it by hand or fill it up online and take a printout. After this, you will need to pay the non-refundable visa fee of €60. The amount might differ, depending on your age and category under which you are applying for a visa. The last step is to schedule an appointment at your nearest consulate to submit all the required documents.
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Validity of a Schengen Visa
A visa is granted to you depending on the purpose of your visit. You can apply for a Schengen visit visa for short stays of up to 90 days within a period of six months. However, if you are likely to stay in the region for more than 90 days, you will need to apply for a national visa of the particular Schengen country that you will be staying in the longest.
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