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Schengen visa

63

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 10:49

Hi, I am hoping anybody will know if it is possible to pay extra to expedite the processing of a Schengen visa? I know for a UK tourist visa you can pay AED 800 more and get it done within 48 hours, is there anything similar for Schengen? I havent been able to find any info on the VFS site.

Thanks!

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21

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 19 June 2013 - 13:49

How long does processing take at VFS Germany? I applied on Wednesday and haven't heard back yet. The status online shows "Your application is under process at Consulate General of Germany,Dubai"

48

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 14:11

Sandy123 - depends from which country u are applying. I think Spain and France are the most busiest ones. i think you are right .. My friend also applied for Italy on Sunday and her appointment was today at 8:30 !! after two days only !!

116

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 13:51

Sandy123 - depends from which country u are applying. I think Spain and France are the most busiest ones.

48

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 13:41

WAW ... i must be so lucky .. Only last Wednesday i booked an appointment for German Schengen Visa and i got it on 12/JUN (tomorrow morning ) ... i didn't even know that booking an appointment is such a big deal !!!!

5452

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 13:27

Yes Spain is our main country, my DH went personally to Wafi VFS and he was told that they hv released June dates so i quickly went online and rescheduled the appointment which I had for 16 July to 23rd June. He was told just keep checking online as they hv many cancellations. U cant walk in and get the VIP thing anymore. Thanks for the tip.

116

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 13:25

Yes Spain is our main country, my DH went personally to Wafi VFS and he was told that they hv released June dates so i quickly went online and rescheduled the appointment which I had for 16 July to 23rd June. He was told just keep checking online as they hv many cancellations. U cant walk in and get the VIP thing anymore.

327

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 12:32

Shivi, how did you get a June appt? Is perhaps Spain your main country of stay or arrival? I'd really appreciate if you could let me know how/where you checked for those dates. We have four people checking the website everytime they get a minute to see if we can "jag" a cancellation slot, so we're pretty sure someone is checking the system every ten mins or so and there's still nothing till the end of August? mum2girls, apparently the system changed at the end of last year - hence no VIP, walk in appts or ability to apply via the embassy of a Shengen country with a shorter wait list if you really are going to France :( You're right though - perhaps just bowling up is worth a try - it's rare you get a consistent, correct answer here!

1097

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 12:06

Someone having the same problem as you posted this last year "Phew - there's a visa center opening in the Wafi mall on the 5th. Just in case someone else might be interested. You can walk in without prior appointment for extra 150 dhs ('VIP' - haha). Good stuff!" maybe follow up on that option by showing up in person ...........you know what it is like here when trying to get an accurate answer to something

116

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 11:37

Appointments are now open for End June dates. I just rescheduled my appoitment online. This is for Spain and France. Please try u might just be lucky like me :)

327

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 07:45

I asked if we could pay a premium service fee and they said no. More for VIP/express no. I asked to be on waitlist for a cancellation - they said no, you have to just keep checking the website and going through the process of trying to "catch" an earlier date when you "reschedule " your appointment. Talk about a needle in a haystack there! The earliest appointment is now 26th August. After that three weeks processing ( although I'm sure we'd be quicker as we've all travelled in Europe before on relatively recent Schengen visas) before we get the visa - we'll be back in teh school year by then!!!. I mean with appointments being made so for in advance surely there are many who do't bother to formally cancel? How can I capitalise on a cancellation? Apparently I can't :( We're going to give it a week, to see if we get a cancellation then find something else. If anyone has any ideas or successful experiences, I'd be really appreciative. edited by Kooky on 11/06/2013 <em>edited by Kooky on 11/06/2013</em>

1097

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 07:33

I remember someone posting here that they went to VFS global office in Jumeriah, and they were able to do a priority submission. Call VFS global office and see what can be done. Once you get past VFS and the restrictive appointment scheduling, the rest is usually really quick. Good luck.

21

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 07:27

The wait time on the visa is a nightmare! 2.5 months for the INTERVIEW?????????? We are having to cancel our French holiday - I never for a moment thought it would take so long :( Should have done it earlier - yeah yeah, but one of our party didn't have his holiday dates :( It is a nightmare. Try the premium processing service instead of cancelling your holiday. I noticed regular swiss appointments were available in July for an appointment fee of AED 50. For premium german appts you pay AED 150 more if I'm not mistaken.

327

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 03:02

The wait time on the visa is a nightmare! 2.5 months for the INTERVIEW?????????? We are having to cancel our French holiday - I never for a moment thought it would take so long :( Should have done it earlier - yeah yeah, but one of our party didn't have his holiday dates :(

269

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 11 June 2013 - 02:01

I just noticed the VFS German application form states "Two biometric identical passport size photographs (3.5cm x 4.5 cm), no older than 3 months, [b'>bright[/b'> background, one attached to application form and one loose" Will the visa center be fussy about the requirement? My photos are on a white background! Should i just go get a new set done? They had an issue with my photo.. I used the studio the have with in the premises.. Got them right away..

21

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 10 June 2013 - 19:41

I just noticed the VFS German application form states "Two biometric identical passport size photographs (3.5cm x 4.5 cm), no older than 3 months, [b'>bright[/b'> background, one attached to application form and one loose" Will the visa center be fussy about the requirement? My photos are on a white background! Should i just go get a new set done?

116

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 10 June 2013 - 10:50

Nopes this was when we were travelling to Greece last year. You hv to apply through the country u are travelling and staying most. For us it will be Spain coz we will be in Spain for 12 days and France 3 days. They say it take between 1-3 weeks depends on teh nationality. It helps if u hv travelled to Schegen countries in last 3 years. Process gets easy

269

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 22:21

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. We got ours for Italy in 7 days too.. Did you do it through the Italian embassy directly? Vfs global at wafi..

501

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 19:19

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. We got ours for Italy in 7 days too.. Did you do it through the Italian embassy directly?

269

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 18:20

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. We got ours for Italy in 7 days too..

63

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 16:50

We are travelling to Spain and France early Aug and we got an appoitment on 16th July. I applied though VFS 2 weeks back. It was def easy to apply through Greek Embassy in Abu Dhabi, took us 4 days. VFS is a nightmare. The site says u need to apply 1 mth in advance from your travel date. I belive u can walk in and apply as VIP by paying extra, what a way to make money. No gaurantee u will get the visa quicker. Hi Shivi Are you planning to travel through Greece at all or did you just apply there because it would be faster? It sounds tempting but would there be any issues if you dont do to the country that issued you the visa at all?

116

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 15:46

We are travelling to Spain and France early Aug and we got an appoitment on 16th July. I applied though VFS 2 weeks back. It was def easy to apply through Greek Embassy in Abu Dhabi, took us 4 days. VFS is a nightmare. The site says u need to apply 1 mth in advance from your travel date. I belive u can walk in and apply as VIP by paying extra, what a way to make money. No gaurantee u will get the visa quicker.

92

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 15:02

Unfortunately, you will have to wait. I had the same issue last year. But nothing could be done.

1097

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 14:55

It's getting the appointment with VFS Global which is the issue, it's such a pain, it can take weeks to get an appointment. Once we submitted the visa only took 1 week with the Swiss embassy.

431

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 14:40

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. Hey, super news! congrats.... I was just giving information as taught to us while working for a Schengen Consulate....that was a year ago. So Ichecked and this is the info I was given: It may take between 3 days and 3 weeks to have a Schengen visa application processed. Much depends on the nationality.

345

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 14:05

it's definitely easier to apply to some countries rather than others...when i last had to apply (many years ago now), France was easiest. Italy was a nightmare. might be worth calling a few EU embassies to find out processing times here in Dxb.

548

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 14:01

I recently heard it's easier to get an appintment with the Greek consulate compared to some other Schengen countries. Now when it comes to processing though I've no idea whether you'd be better off or not. One would hope there are uniform processing rules....

501

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 12:47

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. That is great news! Did you have to show a print out of airline tickets & hotel reservations? Yes, airline tickets, no hotel reservations as we were staying with friends. We did need insurance though, but while we were there, they told us where to get it, it was just a few minutes away and took less than an hour to sort it out.

21

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 12:46

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week. That is great news! Did you have to show a print out of airline tickets & hotel reservations?

63

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 12:45

I applied through Germany and have an appointment for Wednesday. i did apply in advance though.

501

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 09 June 2013 - 12:43

Schengen visa's take a minimum of 21 days to be processed. no exception. Some countries even take longer it all depends where you apply and what your nationality is. This is because your application has to go through and be cleared by all Schengen state immigration authorities. Yes, it is a pain but in the end you can travel at will in any of the member countries. And yes, you need to get an appointment and right now the earliest is in AUG. The have a special service, you pay 275 AED but not sure for what because they cant go any faster..... That is *not* true at all. We got a schegen visa through sweden in less than a week.

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