From Tuesday onwards, the price of a short-stay Schengen visa has elevated by 12 per cent. Whereas the Schengen visa payment for adults has elevated to 90 euros from 80 euros, youngsters between the age of 6 and 12 will now pay 45 euros as a substitute of 40 euros. It’s nonetheless free for these beneath six years of age.
Schengen visa permits the holder to journey freely within the Schengen Space comprising 29 European international locations, for brief stays of a most of 90 days in any 180-day interval. The visas aren’t purpose-bound, however they don’t grant the correct to work.
Schengen international locations are among the many hottest locations for Indian travellers with a excessive choice for locations like France, Spain, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, amongst others. Schengen international locations account for round 20 per cent of India’s outbound visitors, as per estimates.
The hiked payment comes into impact globally as per an announcement by the European Fee. The EU visa prices had been reviewed in December 2023, as Schengen Visa Code mandates assessment each three years. The payment was elevated from 60 euros to 80 euros in February 2020.
Just a few weeks in the past, the EU had introduced a major reprieve for Indian travellers to Europe, providing a number of entry Schengen visas with longer validity. Frequent Indian travellers can now apply for five-year a number of entry visas, which places them on par with “visa-free nationals”.
Indian nationals can now be issued long-term, multi-entry Schengen visas legitimate for 2 years after having obtained and used two visas previously three years. “The 2-year visa will usually be adopted by a five-year visa, if the passport has adequate validity remaining,” stated an announcement by the European Fee in April.
The Schengen Space contains 29 European international locations, 25 of that are EU member states — Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Over 10.3 million functions for short-stay visas had been obtained within the Schengen Space in 2023, up 37 per cent from 2022 however nonetheless lower than the report of 17 million functions in 2019.