Schengen visa for Spain

[bhem_bhem]

Hello, It's been a while since last I posted here. Just thought I would post my experience to give others some idea.

Me and my son went to vfs London 2 days ago to apply for our Spanish Schengen.

Documents required: (original and copy)

- fully completed application form (mine and my son)
- passport (mine, my son and hubby)
- uk residence permit (mine and my son)
- 1 passport size photo (mine and my son)
- travel tickets (they will ask for receipt if you have actually paid everything)
- accommodation reservation
- travel insurance
- birth certificate (my son)
- marriage certificate
- letter from school
- consent letter (even if you are travelling with your son)

Note:
- Check before you book your appointment of which vfs centre should you apply. I live close to Manchester but I have to apply in London because Staffordshire falls under the jurisdiction of London Consulate. One of the applicant's documents hasn't been accepted because the county she lives in falls under the jurisdiction of Manchester.
- Make sure you bring extra money as you have to pay the visa fee ( I also thought it was free cause I'm an EU spouse ). I have paid £91.30 for visa fee and courier and they prefer debit/credit card as they can't be bothered to look for change.
- Arrive early if you can. I nearly miss my train if I didn't arrive at the centre 2 hours early. I was there for 3 hours and there were 40 applicants before me.

Fingers crossed my visa will arrive on time as our flight is exactly 2 weeks from now.

[Terpe]

.....
Fingers crossed my visa will arrive on time as our flight is exactly 2 weeks from now.

Fingers crossed indeed.
That was quite a risk you took booking in advance, especially with Easter holidays.

Here's hoping it all comes good.

[Trefor]

Hopefully it will all go through OK, enjoy your holiday!

Next time (or for others thinking of getting a visa) when you call VFS ask them to book you in directly with the Embassy. VFS can make these appointments. There are a few each day at the ones we've used. VFS like to take your money so you have to be clear with them. Directly with an Embassy there is no charge!

The first Schengen we got was with the French, and it was very straightforward, they are located directly opposite the Natural History Museum (or is it the Science Museum?) in Kensington. Lots to see and do in the area. You go back and collect your passport with the visa 1 or 2 days later.

The second Shengen Visa we got was through the Dutch Embassy. In this case, since we live in the Midlands we booked an appointment at the Dutch Consulate in South Birmingham. Easy to do again and no cost involved.

Each time Rose has travelled they have not checked her passport to see if the Schengen has been 'started' with a first stamp from the visa issuing country.

We won't need another Schengen Visa as Rose will be a UK citizen before this one runs out.

Additional comment which may be useful: The US Embassy gave Rose a 10 year multi-entry visit visa when we needed a US visit visa for her last year. This cost around £100 (I forget the exact amount). US Embassy in Mayfair. Again, easy to do.

Edited to add: We didn't need hotel/travel bookings, even for the Dutch one last autumn. If you need one then go on booking.com and book a fully refundable hotel on your credit card and tell them you're driving to France/Spain/Italy - roadtrip!

[bhem_bhem]

Thanks. it's my husband's fault. i booked an appointment last week of March but he asked me to move it.

Forgot to tell him though that it'll take few weeks for the result to come.

[bhem_bhem]

Thanks Trefor.. I didn't know these things. Luckily, I won't have to do this again as I will apply for citizenship this July.

[stevewool]

Have a great holiday

[bhem_bhem]

Thanks Steve..

[Michael Parnham]

Hope you enjoy your break and good to see you back!

[bhem_bhem]

Thanks Michael..

[Donutz]

Note:
- Check before you book your appointment of which vfs centre should you apply. I live close to Manchester but I have to apply in London because Staffordshire falls under the jurisdiction of London Consulate. One of the applicant's documents hasn't been accepted because the county she lives in falls under the jurisdiction of Manchester.
- Make sure you bring extra money as you have to pay the visa fee ( I also thought it was free cause I'm an EU spouse ). I have paid £91.30 for visa fee and courier and they prefer debit/credit card as they can't be bothered to look for change.

If your husband is a UK citizen then a Schengen visa is entirely free! If one choses to go via VFS Global (they are an optional service provider) a service charge is due but the visa itself remains free!

For EU/EEA family members almost no documentation is required, the list below is that of a regular (non EU family member) application. For non-EU/EEA familymembers of an EU national the only requirement is 1) proof of family relation to the EU national such as marital papers (if need be translated into a language that the embassy can read and legalized though other means of evidence may be used aswell to show family relation) 2) ID of the applicant and EU national 3) evidence that the non-EU national will travel with or join the EU national, such as a written statement from the EU national.

One is not required to hand in hotelbookings, ferry/flight reservations, travelinsurance, financial funds etc. etc. These questions are marked with an * on the applicationform and thus can be skipped for EU/EEA applications. Ofcourse a transport reservation and/or hotelreservation can also be used as an alternative piece of evidence to show that the non-EU applicant travels or joins the EU national on their trip.

Hello, It's been a while since last I posted here. Just thought I would post my experience to give others some idea.

Me and my son went to vfs London 2 days ago to apply for our Spanish Schengen.

Documents required: (original and copy)

- fully completed application form (mine and my son)
- passport (mine, my son and hubby)
- uk residence permit (mine and my son)
- 1 passport size photo (mine and my son)
- travel tickets (they will ask for receipt if you have actually paid everything)
- accommodation reservation
- travel insurance
- birth certificate (my son)
- marriage certificate
- letter from school
- consent letter (even if you are travelling with your son)


- Arrive early if you can. I nearly miss my train if I didn't arrive at the centre 2 hours early. I was there for 3 hours and there were 40 applicants before me.

Fingers crossed my visa will arrive on time as our flight is exactly 2 weeks from now.

The above would be the requirements for the regular, 60 euro fee, application process.

If you are indeed the spouse of an EU national then you should ask your 60 euro visa fee back and complain about being processed as a regular applicant!

[Donutz]

EU/EEA family in brief:
http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens...y/index_en.htm

Applying for a visa

If your non-EU family members need an entry visa, they should apply for one in advance from the consulate or embassy of the country they wish to travel to. If they will be travelling together with you, or joining you in another EU country, their application should be processed quickly and free of charge:

Countries which are members of the border-free Schengen area should issue visas within 15 days, except in rare cases, when the authorities should provide an explanation of their decision.
All other countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Ireland, Romania, UK) should issues visas as quickly as possible.

In more detail:
EU/EEA applications (Directive 2004/38/EC - freedom of movement), is explained in the EU Handbook for embassies "Operational instructions for the application of the Visa Code are further specified in the Handbook for the processing of visa applications and the modification of issued visas" in great detail under chapter 3. It can be found here:
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs...y/index_en.htm

"3.6. Supporting documents
In order to prove that the applicant has the right to be issued with an entry visa under the Directive, he must establish that he is a
beneficiary of the Directive. This is done by presenting documents relevant for the purposes of the three questions referred to above, i.e. proving that:
• there is an EU citizen from whom the visa applicant can derive any rights;
• the visa applicant is a family member (e.g. a marriage certificate, birthcertificate, proof of dependency, serious health grounds,
durability of partnerships ...) and his identity (passport); and
• the visa applicant accompanies or joins an EU citizen (e.g. a proof that the EU
citizen already resides in the host Member State or a confirmation that the EU
citizen will travel to the host Member State).

It is an established principle of EU law in the area of free movement that visa applicants have
the right of choice of the documentary evidence by which they wish to prove that they are
covered by the Directive (i.e. of the family link, dependency ...) . Member States may,
however, ask for specific documents (e.g. a marriage certificate as the means of proving the
existence of marriage), but should not refuse other means of proof.

For further information in relation to the documentation, see Commission Communication
COM (2009) 313 final 22.

3.7. Burden of proof
The burden of proof applicable in the framework of the visa application under the Directive is
twofold:
Firstly, it is up to the visa applicant to prove that he is a beneficiary of the Directive. He must
be able to provide documentary evidence foreseen above as he must be able to present evidence to support his claim.

If he fails to provide such evidence, the consulate can conclude that the applicant is not
entitled to the specific treatment under the Directive. Additional documents may not be required regarding the purpose of travel and means of subsistence (e.g. proof of accommodation, proof of cost of travelling),which is reflected in the exemption for family members of EU citizens from filling in the following fields of the visa application form: (...)"

Embassies have to give direct access to their embassy (Schengen Visa Code, article 17.5), service providers are optional and it should be made clear that one does not have to go by them.
The handbook explains in the "Handbook for the organisation of visa sections and local Schengen cooperation" the following:

"4.4. Direct access
Maintaining the possibility for visa applicants to lodge their applications directly at the consulate instead of via an external service provider implies that there should be a genuine choice between these two possibilities.

Even if direct access does not have to be organised under identical or similar conditions to those for access to the service provider, the conditions should not make direct access impossible in practice. Even if it is acceptable to have a different waiting time for obtaining an appointment in the case of direct access, the waiting time should not be so long that it would render direct access impossible in practice.

The different options available for lodging a visa application should be presented plainly to the public, including clear information both on the choice and the cost of the additional services of the external service provider (see Part I, point 4.1)."

Sadly more and more embassies hide or simply not mention direct access as they lack the capacity or funds for direct access and rather see applicants go by TLS or VFS (which costs the applicant a service fee and then has to deal with less experienced and less knowledable clerks, great isn't it?!).

[Terpe]

Donutz,
You should also understand that many folks just prefer to accept an easy, quick and cheap option regardless of any technical regulation issues. Especially when Embassies demand all manner of information to prove, for example, marital status and to prove that indeed the applicant will be travelling with their spouse. All perfectly legal under the rules.
Besides which most folks also have no motivation to complain about the tough stance oftentimes exhibited by the Embassies, especially given the extraordinary length of time taken to resolve them.

Your links to the rules are of course technically correct, but sometimes it's just not practical to engage in battle when planning a nice European holiday soonest.

Try to consider both sides of the coins.
There are plenty of examples around showing how Embassies can be a pain.

[Donutz]

Donutz,
You should also understand that many folks just prefer to accept an easy, quick and cheap option regardless of any technical regulation issues.

I understand that though if the embassy would put the customer first they would for instance save the applicant money (by telling them they may chose VFS/TLS but do not have to).

Especially when Embassies demand all manner of information to prove, for example, marital status and to prove that indeed the applicant will be travelling with their spouse. All perfectly legal under the rules.

For EU/EEA they should only ask the bare minimum documentation: proof of mariage, ID of EU and non-EU national, one piece of evidence that they will travel together which could be something as simple as a written statement or statement in person at the embassies visa counter.

Asking for bookings, transportation etc by default is not in line with the EU directive or visa code: you can skip questions marked with an *. Immigration status in the UK is of no concern either (if you were a tourist you'd could also apply for a EU/EEA visa and technically even if you were illegal in the UK). And charging a fee is simply outright wrong (they must refund it when confronted about illegally charging a fee, I blame VFS incomptence, I'd avoid VFS/TLS like the plague for such reasons).

Besides which most folks also have no motivation to complain about the tough stance oftentimes exhibited by the Embassies, especially given the extraordinary length of time taken to resolve them.
Your links to the rules are of course technically correct, but sometimes it's just not practical to engage in battle when planning a nice European holiday soonest.

Try to consider both sides of the coins.
There are plenty of examples around showing how Embassies can be a pain.

I agree, breing practical and submitting documents you may have laying around anyway (transport, accomodation) is the way to go. But embassies are not putting the customer first, or even applying the rules entirely correct. Now one could excuse requesting papers regarding transport/accomodation as not entirely right but convinient for the embassy, so not much of an issue there. Of greater concern is both charging a fee when they shouldn't. And trying to hide information about being able to apply directly at the embassy, so you can face more experienced and knowledable staff for free rather then less well trained VFS/TLS staff at a fee (lol) isn't very nice either. Clearly embassies are most concerned about how convenient the visa application process is to them and that annoys me greatly.

A smooth middleground between customer first and embassy convenience would have been:
- tell the applicant to make an appointment via VFS, let them chose between the visa office (within a few days or without appointment?) or applying at the embassy (within 2 weeks at the most, the legal limit)
- Ask for the paperwork to confirm family relation (marital papers for spouses, birthcertificate for children)
- Ask for a copy of the ID of all involved (to make sure the before mentioned papers match the ID's)
- Ask for proof of traveling together (suggest a written statement from the EU spouse, and possible proof of transport and/or accomodation IF available and mention that any other evidence is also accepted)
- Charge no visa fee, get the visa process ASAP within 15 days. Do not ask for insurance or any other paperwork. With the above few pieces of paperwork the visa could in theory be processed within a few minutes to verify one is covered by the Directive and then simply would need to print a visa sticker and add it to the passport. Easy as pie.

[bhem_bhem]

I rang VFS (which was a nightmare), they never mention about applying direct.

[Donutz]

I rang VFS (which was a nightmare), they never mention about applying direct.

A shame but no suprise there, the embassies prefer people going to VFS instead.

More importantly, assuming your UK spouse joins you on a trip to Spain, the visa itself should have been free, in which case I'd request the visa fee back (wrongly charged visa fees have to be refunded).

Most important of all: getting the visa and enjoying your holidays in Spain.

[bhem_bhem]

Yeah, my husband is going as well. Where can I ask for a refund? thanks.

[Trefor]

Yeah, my husband is going as well. Where can I ask for a refund? thanks.

I believe what you have paid for is the VFS charge for processing. You have not paid the Embassy or anyone for the Visa itself. So I do not think there is any option for a refund. They are crafty.

[Arthur Little]

One thing Embassies around the Globe have in common ... they ALL like to play God!

[Donutz]

I believe what you have paid for is the VFS charge for processing. You have not paid the Embassy or anyone for the Visa itself. So I do not think there is any option for a refund. They are crafty.

The service fee is 15.8 per applicant, even including the courier fee that does not add up to the 91 GBP Bhem mentioned. Perhaps the receipt specifies the costs which add up to that number.

If indeed 60 euro's (about 43,5 GBP) was paid (adult fee for a regular visa, minors up to 12 years pay less -half?- or below a certain age are free), I'd contact both VFS and the embassy and ask for a refund of the visa fee(s). Obviously the courier and service fees cannot be refunded.

[Terpe]

I wish good luck in securing a refund.
I have some doubts though as the VFS website clearly gives an option for a no-charge visa fee for EU Spouse on their website.

[Donutz]

I wish good luck in securing a refund.
I have some doubts though as the VFS website clearly gives an option for a no-charge visa fee for EU Spouse on their website.

I can only wonder how many people (Non EU family traveling with their British family) are given incorrect instructions at VFS! If anything they should ask applicants if their UK family (spouse) is going to join them, as it must be a quite frequent type of Schengen application from the UK.

If indeed this is failure on the part of VFS and/or Spanish embassy and depending on how it plays out (how do the Spanish reapond) this type of issue can be adressed to the EU representative in the UK. They have regular meetings with memberstates including on Schengen visas. I did the same in Thailand, the EU representaive there put it on the agenda and within a few weeks all embassies gave correct EU/EEA instructions for the fast, free, minimal documentation visa procedure.

[Terpe]

I can only wonder how many people (Non EU family traveling with their British family) are given incorrect instructions at VFS! If anything they should ask applicants if their UK family (spouse) is going to join them, as it must be a quite frequent type of Schengen application from the UK.

If indeed this is failure on the part of VFS and/or Spanish embassy and depending on how it plays out (how do the Spanish respond) this type of issue can be adressed to the EU representative in the UK. They have regular meetings with memberstates including on Schengen visas. I did the same in Thailand, the EU representaive there put it on the agenda and within a few weeks all embassies gave correct EU/EEA instructions for the fast, free, minimal documentation visa procedure.

How would it be a failure on the part of VFS when they clearly state that EU Spouse is visa free and they give the options for selecting that service ?

Without the intention of being harsh on the OP I wonder how many EU spouses actually take time out to review the options on offer ?

As I said I doubt VFS will respond positively but one never knows.
I do hope they will show some understanding and return the visa fee.

Please, everyone reading this thread. Do check through the websites of VFS before handing over significant sums of money and unecessary documentation when applying for Schengen Visa.

[Donutz]

How would be a failure on the part of VFS when they clearly state that EU Spouse is visa free and they give the options for selecting that service ?

Without the intention of being harsh on the OP I wonder how many EU spouses actually take time out to review the options on offer ?

As I said I doubt VFS will respond positively but one never knows.
I do hope they will show some understanding and return the visa fee.

Please, everyone reading this thread. Do check through the websites of VFS before handing over significant sums of money and unecessary documentation when applying for Schengen Visa.

VFS charges a service fee, so I expect them to show atleast some service. Such as the very easy question: is your spouse a UK or EU citizen? I would think many Schengen applicants from the UK indeed have a UK/EU spouse. If the answer is "yes" it should be just 1-2 more questions to verify if one falls under EU/EEA spouse. Sadly not many people are aware that EU/EEA family members are eligable for a free, fast, simplified procedure visa to other EU countries.

If VFS ask no questions at all and are just zombies who take in the paperwork without any questions or comments, you might justaswell put everything in an envelope yourself and deliver it at the embassy or in a dropbox. VFS has to do something right, even though their primairy and silly job is just to forward applications to the embassy for processing.

VFS miight not respond postively but the embassy should, the rules clearly dicate that the visa should have been free. If the Spanish don't I'd inform Solvit (EU Ombudsman) and also the EU representative and EU council (EU Home Affairs). And the Spanish (and other EU nations) should be concerned about applicants not being given any proper service for the 15 pound "service??? fee".

I do agree that reading up on the embassy (primairy place to start) and VFS site (secondairy site to check on) is very important but that does not excuse poor service for people getting lost or misunderstanding the information provided.

----------------
Offtopic: same with UK visas, for EU/EEA spouses the UK visa is free. But visit the UKVI site and use the "do I need a visa?" tool and at no time does it say anything about EU/EEA. You'd need to leave the visa area and check out an other part of the site about permits, which then has a subsection on EU/EEA spouse. Easy to mis aswell and even if you find it the aplication form askes for a ton of irrelevant information (the 3 main points above should only be of concern: family relation? Identification of all involved? travelng together or joining EU/EEA national?) . Members just don't seem to be enthousiast about informing people on easy, free visas under freedom of movement even though it's a cornerstone of the whole EU.

[Terpe]

This is my last word on this Spain Schengen Visa topic.

Look to the VFS webpage

[Terpe]

.......
Offtopic: same with UK visas, for EU/EEA spouses the UK visa is free. But visit the UKVI site and use the "do I need a visa?" tool and at no time does it say anything about EU/EEA.You'd need to leave the visa area and check out an other part of the site about permits

From the UKVI webpage 'Check if you need a UK Visa' :-

Check if you need a UK visa
You’ll need a visa to join your family or partner in the UK
If you’re visiting family or partner for 6 months or less, you’ll need a family visit visa.

The visa you apply for depends on your family member’s situation.

They’re settled in the UK
Apply for a ‘family of a settled person’ visa if your family member or partner is either a British citizen or from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and settled in the UK.

They’re working or studying in the UK
You may be able to apply as a ‘dependant’ of your family member’s visa category if they’re from outside the EEA and they’re working or studying in the UK.

They’re from the EEA
Apply for a family permit to join your family or partner for a short or long stay if they’re living in the UK.

Previous answers

Start again
What passport do you have? Philippines Changeanswer to "What passport do you have?"
What are you coming to the UK to do? Join partner or family for a long stay Changeanswer to "What are you coming to the UK to do?"
Last updated: 10 April 2015

Is there anything wrong with this page?

If you look to the bottom you'll see only 2 questions were asked before reaching the needed information and a link to UK family permits
Here's the link to the webpage:-
https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y/philippines/family

[Donutz]

From the UKVI webpage 'Check if you need a UK Visa' :-

If you look to the bottom you'll see only 2 questions were asked before reaching the needed information and a link to UK family permits
Here's the link to the webpage:-
https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y/philippines/family

Thanks, looks like there was an update since last I checked (a few months ago and then reported the tool as insufficient).

Still the tool could use improvement. If I were non-EU person living on the European mainland with my EU spouse and we were to plan a 1-4 week holiday to the UK I'd fill in the fields with answers such as " What are you coming to the UK to do? --> TOURISM" as we are going on a holiday to the UK. I wouldn't look "Join partner or family for a long stay" ! I would then be told to get a visa, the page does not show any links to the EEA permit. I would then apply for a UK visa, go to a VAC not knowing any better then that I would need a UK visa and pay a fee, but at the VAC with one simple question they could find out that I would be eligible for EU/EEA-familymember procedure.

Or they could simply make the website more user friendly by taking common mistakes, oversights or unclear instructions/options into account. A holiday vistor needing to answer " long stay" is not logical and it must be a common " error" on the part of the applicant, therefor I would also consider it an error on the side&site of UKVI.

I hope Bhem reports back, if the Spanish embassy or VFS does not give a positive response they may wish to contact SOLVIT (EU ombudsman):
http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens...y/index_en.htm --> scroll down to the bottom.

From other migration sites/forums I know people in various EU countries successfully got their fee back from several embassies after Solvit intervened. In some cases the embassy choses to ignore Solvit as they have no legal powers. Still, Solvit reports all cases to the EU Commission and they are very much aware that member states too often mess around with people's rights. The proposed new Schengen visa rules are meant to tackle this among other improvements.

[bhem_bhem]

Thanks, looks like there was an update since last I checked (a few months ago and then reported the tool as insufficient).

Still the tool could use improvement. If I were non-EU person living on the European mainland with my EU spouse and we were to plan a 1-4 week holiday to the UK I'd fill in the fields with answers such as " What are you coming to the UK to do? --> TOURISM" as we are going on a holiday to the UK. I wouldn't look "Join partner or family for a long stay" ! I would then be told to get a visa, the page does not show any links to the EEA permit. I would then apply for a UK visa, go to a VAC not knowing any better then that I would need a UK visa and pay a fee, but at the VAC with one simple question they could find out that I would be eligible for EU/EEA-familymember procedure.

Or they could simply make the website more user friendly by taking common mistakes, oversights or unclear instructions/options into account. A holiday vistor needing to answer " long stay" is not logical and it must be a common " error" on the part of the applicant, therefor I would also consider it an error on the side&site of UKVI.

I hope Bhem reports back, if the Spanish embassy or VFS does not give a positive response they may wish to contact SOLVIT (EU ombudsman):
http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens...y/index_en.htm --> scroll down to the bottom.

From other migration sites/forums I know people in various EU countries successfully got their fee back from several embassies after Solvit intervened. In some cases the embassy choses to ignore Solvit as they have no legal powers. Still, Solvit reports all cases to the EU Commission and they are very much aware that member states too often mess around with people's rights. The proposed new Schengen visa rules are meant to tackle this among other improvements.

Hello donutz, hubby decided to just leave it. He can't be bothered to do it plus I got my visa on time anyway. He just want me to apply naturalisation as soon as I can so we don't need to go through all of these again.

[Donutz]

Hello donutz, hubby decided to just leave it. He can't be bothered to do it plus I got my visa on time anyway. He just want me to apply naturalisation as soon as I can so we don't need to go through all of these again.

Glad to hear you got your visa Bhem Bhem, that's the most important. I hadn't seen any updates while the visa should have been issued within 2 weeks so I started to worry. It's rather sad that embassies toy around with people and legislation though, and indeed the best solution to end any uncertainty like this is to naturlize. Save & happy travels!

[andy222]

What a game. We pay all that money to get our wives over here and then you have to apply for another visa for a 3 hour flight to have a vacation in a EU country . What a disgrace. Its like being on parole. Anyway I am happy you got your visa.

[Jentobeharrison]

Is it okay to apply Schengen visa for Spain even if my passport and BRP card are still my single name? I am married to a British, should I put my married name on the form or just the same as my passport name?

And also, I am confused now, is it really free or what? because it shows on Schengen visa for Spain which is the VFS, I need to pay £45 plus £17 service charge fee