Top 5 easiest Schengen countries to apply for a visa
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PUBLISHED ONJuly 12, 2023 7:16 AM
When organising a journey to Europe, the process of applying for a Schengen visa can seem overwhelming. However, certain Schengen countries provide a more straightforward and accessible visa application experience compared to others.
These countries, recognised as the easiest Schengen countries to apply for a visa to, have simplified procedures, higher rates of approval, and lower visa rejection rates.
Keep reading to find out more about the easiest Schengen countries to apply visa to.
What is a Schengen visa?
A Schengen visa is a short-stay visa that permits an individual to travel to any member of the Schengen Area for up to 90 days per stay for tourism or business purposes. Presently, the Schengen Area comprises 27 member countries. These countries are:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Czech Republic
- Croatia
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Easiest Schengen countries to apply for a visa
Since Schengen nations typically receive a substantial number of visa applications each year, the risk of visa refusal increases, and therefore, there is no guarantee that your application will be approved. However, choosing Schengen countries with a low rate of visa rejections considerably improves the chances of your application being accepted
Given below is a list of the easiest Schengen countries to apply for visas to. Please note that the statistics may differ slightly from the ones given below. Hence, make sure to conduct your own research before travelling:
Iceland
For applicants seeking a visa application process with minimal waiting time for status updates, Iceland is an ideal choice. Iceland also has the lowest visa rejection rates making it one of the easiest Schengen countries to apply visa to. As per the reports from data from some sources, out of a total of 2,735 applicants, 2,410 were successfully granted visas to visit the Nordic island in 2021.
Moreover, according to the data on Schengen visas issued in 2022, Iceland had the lowest visa rejection rate of 1.9 per cent amongst all other Schengen countries.
Lithuania
As of now, Lithuania is the second European nation with the lowest visa rejection rates. Lithuania had a high visa approval rate in 2021, with 98.7 per cent of visa applications being granted.
The majority of visa applications were received from Kazakhstan, with 3,090 visas being approved out of 3,481 applications. Following closely, citizens of Armenia had the second-highest number of applicants, with 436 visas being issued out of 449 applications.
Moreover, according to recent data on Schengen visas issued in 2022, Lithuania had second-lowest visa rejection rates in 2022, that is, approximately 7.8 per cent.
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Latvia
Latvia falls third in the list of Schengen countries in 2022, with the lowest visa rejection rates of approximately 9.5 per cent. Moreover, in 2021, a remarkable 97.9 per cent of applications were approved, establishing Latvia as one of the easiest Schengen countries to apply visa to.
Furthermore, in 2021, 21 Latvian consulates received 13,764 visa applications, out of which 16,182 visas were issued. These included various types of visas, such as multiple Airport transit visas (ATVs), multiple entry visas, limited territorial entry visas, and more.
Finland
Finland boasts a commendable visa approval rate and, as per the reports, ranks among the Schengen countries where obtaining a visa is relatively easier and straightforward. According to some sources, in 2021, a significant number of 55,882 out of 61,018 visa applications were successfully granted in the country.
Moreover, according to the Schengen visa issuance data report, Finland has a rejection rate of approximately 9.7 per cent.
Slovakia
Slovakia is yet another Schengen country with one of the lowest visa rejection rates. As per the Schengen visa issuance data provided for 2022, the country has a similar visa rejection rate to Finland of approximately 9.7 per cent.
However, as Slovakia relatively receives fewer visa applications annually, it stands below Finland in the list of Schengen countries where applying for a visa is easier. Nonetheless, it is still recognized as one of the easiest Schengen countries to apply for a visa to.
Moreover, in 2021, out of the applicants who submitted their applications at the Slovak embassy, a substantial number of 3,806 were granted a visa out of a total of 3,886 applications.