BRUSSELS: Due to the implementation of the Updated Schengen Visa Code, adopted by the EU Council in June 2019, all representative missions of the Schengen Countries located abroad are obliged to apply the new rules.
As of February 2020, travelers applying for a Schengen Visa will need to pay a fee of 80 euros instead of 60 euros as they did so far. Children too will have to pay 40 euros instead of 35, as it is currently.
Third-country citizens will be subject to several changes in terms of visa application procedures, rules, and benefits, starting from Monday, February 2, 2020.
Due to the implementation of the Updated Schengen Visa Code, adopted by the EU Council in June 2019, all representative missions of the Schengen Countries located abroad are obliged to apply the new rules.
“Since Regulation (EU) 2019/1155 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 amending Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code) is binding in its entirety, and is directly applicable in all EU Member States in accordance with the Treaties, all Schengen countries, including Lithuania, will apply it from 2 February 2020,” an official from the Information Monitoring and Media Division of Lithuania explained for schengenvisainfo.com.
The new rules also permit travelers in need of a Schengen Visa to submit an application up to six months in advance of their trip, instead of three as it is now and foresee a harmonized approach to the issuing of multiple-entry visas with lengthier validity to regular travelers with a positive visa history.
According to SchengenVisaInfo.com, Member States that are not represented in third countries in terms of visa admission, are now obliged to cooperate with external service providers, in order to facilitate visa application for travelers.
The external service providers are allowed to charge a service fee, which cannot be higher than the visa fee. This means travelers applying at an external visa service provider may have to pay up to €160 per visa application if the external service providers set the maximum service fee permitted, which is €80.
In addition, the updated Visa Code introduces a mechanism that assesses whether the visa fees should change, every three years. Another mechanism that will use visa processing as leverage will be introduced, in a bid to improve cooperation with third countries on readmission.
According to Gent Ukehajdaraj from SchengenVisaInfo.com, due to this mechanism, the fees may increase even to 160 euros, if the EU authorities see it necessary.
“A visa fee of 120 euros or 160 euros will apply to non-cooperative third-countries, in cases when the EU Commission considers that action is needed in order to improve the level of cooperation of the third country concerned and the Union’s overall relations with that third country,” Ukehajdaraj explains, adding that this provision shall not apply to children under 12 years old. The mechanism may also shorten visa validity, and introduce prolonged visa processing periods.
Statistics by SchengenVisaInfo.com show that in 2018, Schengen embassies and consulates located abroad processed 16,016,599 Schengen Visa applications, 1,539,362 of which were turned down at a rejection rate of 9.6%
