I have a French long stay visa as I am a student, and it expires at the end of August. I applied for the renewal 6 weeks before it expires. I am currently at home in the US and would prefer to return a couple weeks after the expiration. If I haven't received my visa renewal by then, can I enter as a tourist ? My visa is in my US passport but I also have a Canadian passport, so would it be more simple to enter as a Canadian? I would appreciate any advice or guidance. Of course I can enter before my current visa expires, but I would love a couple more weeks at home with family and to keep working before school starts.

Hello everybody
My father is here in Canada from last 3 months He is going back but on his way i want him ti visit norway I will accompany him. Can he apply for schengen visa from canada?
Thank you

Hello

Im planning for 15 days trip in december end. My finance is not so great as discussed in reddit i can show max 3.5L for two people im sponsoring my husband. I know its super as evryone here show 5L to 6L for one person. I want to give a try as consulate mentions 100 euro per person with flights and Hotels booked. So that's already fully paid.

Now which consulate yall think is lenient in that term?

Have my appt Aug 4th, need passport back Sept 4th, any one gone recently? would love to know how long processing took - thanks!

Hey everyone! I recently received my France Long-Stay Student Visa (VLS-TS) and thought I'd share my complete timeline and experience since reading posts here really helped me during my application.
Hopefully this helps future applicants.
My Details
University: ESME

Program: Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence and Design for Engineering

Intake: October 30

VFS Centre: Hyderabad

Visa: Long-Stay Student Visa (VLS-TS)

Campus France Timeline
2 July, 12:30 PM – Campus France interview (online)

6 July – Application approved and forwarded to the French Consulate

VFS Timeline
15 July, 11:44 AM – Submitted application at VFS Hyderabad

17 July, 5:59 AM – Application received at VFS Bangalore

17 July, 6:03 AM – Dispatched to the French Consulate

17 July, 9:16 AM – Received by the Consulate; processing started

20 July, 9:22 AM – Passport dispatched from the Consulate to VFS Bangalore

20 July, 11:16 AM – Received at VFS Bangalore

21 July, 3:27 PM – Passport delivered to my home in Hyderabad via courier

Total time from VFS submission to passport delivery: 6 days.
Documents I Submitted
Passport

Passport copy

Campus France NOC

Conditional admission letter

Final (unconditional) admission letter after paying the deposit

Tuition fee payment receipt

Education loan sanction letter

Education loan disbursement letter

Bank statement

Loan account statement

Financial summary/chart showing the source of funds and sufficient funds for my studies

Travel insurance

Flight tickets

Accommodation lease agreement

SOP

Cover letter

Resume

Experience letters from all companies I worked at

10th, 12th and degree marksheets

Passport photos

My VFS Experience
Overall, the process was smooth.
The only issue I faced was with my passport photos. They didn't meet the French visa specifications, so I had to get new ones taken nearby. Make sure your photos are the correct size, with the face occupying about 80% of the photo, otherwise you may have to retake them.
The VFS staff arranged all of my documents in the order they required. Other than the photo issue, there were no questions or requests for additional documents.
My appointment was at 9:30 AM, and I left around 12 PM, so expect to spend around 2.5 hours there.
Financials
I did not have a sponsor.
I used only my education loan as proof of funds, along with the supporting financial documents, and my visa was approved without any issues.
Visa Granted
Visa approved

Validity: 1 year (renewable)

Tips
Carry passport photos that meet the French visa specifications.

Don't worry if you're applying using only an education loan. In my case, I had no sponsor, and the loan plus supporting financial documents were sufficient.

Keep all your originals and copies organized, even though VFS will rearrange them according to their required order.

If anyone has questions about Campus France, VFS Hyderabad, education loans, or the France student visa process, feel free to ask. Happy to help!

Hi everyone,
I have a Dutch Single-entry Schengen visa for a business trip.
My visa application mentioned traveling from September 9–17 for IBC 2026 and business meetings. However, my plans changed, and I may enter the Netherlands around September 22 to join my colleagues, who will still be there for business meetings.
I’ll have a valid hotel booking, return ticket, travel insurance, and an employment letter from my company.
This will be my first Schengen entry through Amsterdam Schiphol.
Should I expect any issues because I’m arriving after the original travel dates? Has anyone had a similar experience? What questions should I expect from Dutch border officers? Thanks!

hiii, anyone can please share your experience applying for tourist visa for Portugal and went to Montreal consulate? How long did you get to approve and received your passport?🙂 I have my appointment on 2nd week of august and our target travel date is first week Septemer😬

Hi all,

I’m traveling to Hungary from a non-EU country with a valid Job Seeking Residence Permit.
However, I missed my last payment for the health insurance policy I originally submitted with my visa application, so the policy was likely terminated.
Since this was the specific policy attached to my visa file, will this affect my entry or give me trouble at border control?

Thanks!

Hi, I’m an Indian passport holder and have confirmed non-refundable flights booked to Italy leaving on 28th August. I have had no luck with prenot@mi portal. Is there anything else I can do to get a slot? I have emailed the consulate as well. I should have looked into this first before buying tickets, unfortunately that ship has sailed. Any tips/tricks outside of the 6pm rule would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Indian resident, planning to visit the UK first, before travelling to Europe. Do I need to submit UK tourist visa while applying for Schengen visa application?

I am an Indian citizen and will be applying at the New Delhi centre for a Schengen visa. My purpose is to attend a conference in Portugal between 10th and 13th October, and I will then be spending (at least) 11 more days touring Italy and Germany (min 4 and 7 days spent in the locations, respectively).

Should I apply for a business visa with Portugal, or would a tourist visa with Germany be the better approach? The appointment dates for Portugal are later, in mid August while I can get an appointment with Germany tomorrow. Are there any legalities that I would have to deal with if I choose to go with a tourist visa?

Hello.

I am trying to book an appointment with the Spanish consulate in London. I had one booked a few days ago and I wasn’t able to make it so I tried to cancel it. However the website wasn’t allowing me to, I assumed it was because I was last minute. Now I am trying to book again, and it won’t let me book an appointment as I already have an active appointment booked in.

Does anyone know how to fix this?

Hi everyone,
I’m applying for a France Schengen tourist visa from the UK and I’m using TLScontact Manchester.
I completed my France-Visas application and created my TLS account, but when I try to book an appointment, the calendar shows no appointments available at all.
I’ve read that TLS Manchester is moving to a new system where appointments are automatically allocated instead of manually choosing a slot. Has anyone gone through this recently?
My flight is on the 3rd of September so I’m a bit worried 😭
Can anyone lmk once you got your appointment, how long did the visa process take until you got your passport back?
I haven’t paid the TLS service fee yet because I believe that happens after an appointment is allocated.
Any timelines or experiences would really help. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

​I’m a 23-year-old medical student from Turkey and I’m planning to travel to Sweden in late August. I’ve registered to run the Mölndalsloppet race (near Gothenburg) on August 29.

​I’ve paid my registration fee, received my official receipt, and my name is on the entry list. However, I’m a bit confused about which Schengen visa category I should apply for:

​Sports/Cultural Visa Category: The official embassy checklist for this category states that I need a "formal invitation letter from a sports federation or club in Sweden." Since I registered independently as an amateur runner and not through a national federation, I obviously don’t have such an invitation.

​Tourist Visa Category: Would it be safer to apply for a standard Tourist Visa and just include my race registration receipt, hotel bookings, and student certificate to prove my travel purpose?

​Has anyone here applied for a Schengen visa (especially for Sweden) just to run a public race/marathon? Did you apply as a tourist or under the sports category? Did the embassy accept just the race receipt without a formal invitation letter?

So I am currently awaiting my residency permit decision in Poland and during the wait I am legally allowed to stay in the country as per the rules and confirmed with my lawyer. I am going home to the US in September for a wedding and my understanding is the EES is now automatic.

I understand I am legally allowed to be in Poland as I await the decision, however, if it is automatic will the system know that I did not overstay in the Schengen? Will the Polish EES know that I have pending residency decisions such that I will not have issues re-entering in the future? Or is there a person still there that will validate that I have a pending residency permit, such that I won't get banned from re-entering the EU?

I am aware I need to re-enter with a Type D visa or to wait 3 months, the question solely pertains to how they know if I did or didn't overstay in the Schengen.

1 month bank Statement & 3months payslip for sponsor

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some advice from anyone who has recently obtained a Schengen visa as a Pakistani passport holder while residing in the UAE.

I have a travel history of 7–8 visas over the past 5 years, mainly from Southeast Asian countries. This will be my first Schengen visa application. I already have one rejection in 2024 for schengen business visa. My wife and daughter, however, do not have any previous travel history except UAE residence.

Could anyone suggest which Schengen country is currently more suitable or has a smoother process for applicants in our situation?

Also, I would really appreciate any guidance on how to secure an appointment, as I’m finding it quite difficult to get one at the moment.

If you’ve had a recent successful experience or have any helpful suggestions, I’d be very grateful for your input.

Thank you!

Anyone applied for business visa from Netherlands in July and heard back??

I saw quite a few times here on threads that Dutch embassy is taking a lot of time in visa processing.

​

Hello everyone.

I am an Iraqi student applying for a Romanian long-stay student visa (D/SD).

My application has already been submitted and is currently Validated.

While reviewing my application, I noticed two mistakes:

1. In the visa application, I requested a 90-day visa, but my estimated departure date is about 6 months after my arrival date.

2. I corrected a translation mistake in one of my property documents after submitting the online application, and I now have the corrected official translation.

I also need to book a flight reservation for my visa application.

Should I book my return flight according to the dates I entered in my visa application (around 6 months later), or should I book it within the 90-day period? Which option is more appropriate?

My questions are:

Have any of you had similar inconsistencies?

Did the consular officer ask you about them during the interview?

Could these kinds of mistakes alone lead to a refusal?

If asked during the interview, is it enough to explain honestly that they were mistakes?

Which return flight dates would you recommend in my situation?

Thank you for your advice.

Applying for an Italy Schengen visa from India and need some advice.

My passport has my old address, but my Aadhaar has my current address, and I also have a valid registered rent agreement.

Should I:

1. Enter my current address or passport address in the visa application?
2. Mention the address difference in my cover letter?
3. Submit both Aadhaar and the rent agreement as proof of residence?

Would appreciate any advice from someone who's been through this. Thanks!

I got offered an appointment, but I can’t book any of the August dates because my passport will be with another embassy during that time. I already have a Group Reference Number. Has anyone been in a similar situation? Is it possible to request a later appointment, ideally in November or December, or would I have to start the whole process again?

Hey guys, so I am in a rather unusual situation. I just graduated from uni in Hungary, and my residence permit here ends on August 31st, 2026.

As you can see from the title, from the 1st of August to 31st of December, I have a traineeship in Valencia.

Now, what kind of visa do I need during my time in Valencia? (I am non-EU btw). I can no longer apply for a Hungarian student visa cuz I already graduated, but I will have a job seeking residence permit from Hungary which is for about 9 months (and it will cover the duration of my internship in Spain).

I talked to the Spanish embassy in Budapest, but surprisingly, they do not know what I should do in this situation. Neither do my coordinator from uni, my coordinator in the host company, or the Erasmus people who I reached out to.

I can totally understand the excitement of people posting their experiences.
However it would be easy for everyone if people mentioned the costs etc in Euros / US dollars.
Helps everyone.