How to apply for a Schengen Business visa in easy steps?

You have considered visiting one of the Schengen countries to develop business ties. A stable economy that is always growing sounds promising. But do you need a visa? You might need a Schengen business visa and not know. Yet, you could be exempt from it.

This article will explain who needs a Business Schengen visa, its requirements, the application process, validity, FAQs, and more.

Who Needs a Schengen Business visa?

Whether you need a Schengen Business visa or not depends on your nationality. First, you should know that the Schengen Business visa is a short-stay visa. It means you have permission to stay in the Schengen Area for 90 days. You may not stay longer by the law.

Only a few countries are free of a Schengen visa. So they don’t need the Schengen Business visa. The nationals of these countries can visit all the Schengen Areas without a visa. They just need to have a valid passport or travel document. They are as follows:

Asia

North America

South America

Africa

Oceania

Europe

Asia

Africa

The citizens or nationals of the mentioned countries do not need a Schengen Business visa. They can enter the Schengen Area with a passport or a travel document. However, they can not engage in any paid activity. A Business visa is just to visit or negotiate deals.

The nationals who do not come on the above list have to apply for a Schengen visa. They have to apply for the Schengen Business visa as well. The duration of stay for them does not matter.

What are the requirements for a Schengen Business visa?

The requirements for Business Schengen Visa are as follows:

1. Application form

Get the application form from the embassy or consulate’s website. Remember that you need a short-stay application form. Complete it, then print it twice, date, and sign the two copies.

Passport

Your current passport must hold validity for three months over the date you will leave Schengen Area. Also, it could not be older than ten years. You have to consider this point.

Two photo

Provide two photos that meet the standards:

• New, taken in the latest three months to the time of application.
• Clear-white background
• High quality
• Nothing should block your face:
  • unusual beard or mustache.
  • Hat or cap
  • Veil or scarf

Insurance

You have to buy insurance in your home country before your trip. It must hold validity in the whole Schengen Area. Its least coverage must be 30.000 EUR. Also, it must support all of your medical expenses. Private or public insurance does not make a difference.

Travel plan

It also gets called a Travel Itinerary. It will cover all of the things you will be doing on your trip:

• Places you will visit.
• People you will meet.
• Industry or companies you will have a look at.
• The cities you will be visiting.

Invitation letter

It is a key part of the application. As the nature of your visit is business, you have to provide an invitation letter. A company or industry located in the Schengen Area must provide you with this letter. It must:

• Be on the letterhead of the company
• State the guest’s name and the purpose of the visit.
• Mention any previous business ties between the two parties.
• State the dates the guest will enter and leave the Schengen Area.
• Explain who will cover the expenses of the trip.
• State where the guest will stay during his/her visit.

Permission leave

The guest must provide a letter from his/her employer who authorizes the trip. The letter must:

• Confirm the trip by the employer.
• Approve the employment of the representative.
• State the purpose of the visit.
• Hold general information about the company
• Provide proof of the previous relation.
• State who will cover the expenses of the trip.

Points to remember about requirements

There are some points you have to remember while gathering the requirements. They are useful tips that you have to consider:

• Provide two copies for each piece of the document
• Has the document translated into the language of the country you apply to? It depends on the embassy to accept the English translation. Ask them about this point.
• The documents must be on A4 paper.
• Do not staple any piece of the documents.

Bear in mind that the officials could ask for additional documents. Also, the embassy of the country you apply to could ask for specific requirements.

Are there Limits on the Schengen Business visa?

Every visa has limitations and rules. Schengen Business visa is no exception:

• You have no permission to participate in any paid activity.
• Studying under a Business visa is illegal.
• You may not extend a business visa.
• The number of times you can enter the Schengen Area depends on the type of visa.
• Schengen Business visa’s validity is 90 days over six months. You can not stay for longer than 90 days during six months in the Area.
• Valid health insurance is necessary for the whole area, not just one country.

The Application Process for Schengen Business visa

The application process for a Schengen Business visa is as follows:

Step 1. Do you need a visa?

You should know that not everyone needs a Schengen visa. It is true for the Schengen Business visa. The nationals of a few countries can visit the whole Schengen Area with their passport. Before you apply, see if you are a national of these countries or not. See the list of them in the above section. Bear in mind that the UK is no longer part of the EU. On 31 January 2020, the UK left the EU. The new rules and regulations are yet to get revealed.

If you come to the above list, you do not need to apply for a Schengen Business visa.

Step 2. Are you eligible?

Now that you need a visa, you must be eligible for a Schengen Business visa. Not everyone can apply for a Business visa. You have to comply with the eligibility principles. See the requirements section to know about them. You can only apply if you can collect the requirements. Also, the purpose of your trip must fit with the Schengen Business visa. You have no permission to work or study under a Business Schengen visa.

Step 3. Where to apply?

Let’s answer this question in a different way.

Will you be visiting one Schengen country? If yes, you should apply to the embassy or consulate of that country in your home country. For example, you will be visiting only France. So, you have to apply to the French embassy or consulate in your home country.

Will you be visiting more than one Schengen country? If yes, you should determine the lengths of stay in each country. For example, you are going to visit France and Italy. You will be staying for 15 days in Italy and 25 days in France. So, you have to apply to the French embassy or consulate. The mentioned rule is true even if you visit 10 Schengen countries. The country you will stay in longer, apply to its embassy.

What if you will stay for an equal time in two Schengen countries?

You will visit Germany and Sweden. But you will stay for 10 days in each one of them. Where to apply now? Apply to the country’s embassy or consulate where you will arrive first. You will arrive first in Germany, then go to Sweden? So you have to apply to the German embassy.

Step 4. Application form

An application form is the first document to complete. You could download the application form from the Schengen country’s embassy you will be visiting. They have it available on their website. Complete it with care and put all the required information. Bear in mind the provided information must be according to your document. One common mistake is the names. The spelling of your names must be the same as your passport.

When you complete the form, print, date, and sign it.

Step 5. Requirements

The officials need a few requirements to issue the Business Schengen Visa. The documents prove you are honest with the provided information in your application. You can see the list of requirements for the Schengen Business visa in the above section. Bear in mind that every piece of the document must be according to the details. The Schengen countries are strict with their visa rules and regulation.

If the authorities require more documents, the process will be longer. You have to wait for more for the visa.

Step 6. Visa appointment

Now is the time to schedule a visa appointment with the embassy or country. You have to do it with the Schengen country you will be visiting. Part three of the application process will help you with the country to apply.

Get to the embassy on time. You should be about half an hour early. Bear in mind to bring all the requirements and your passport. Submit all of them to the officials. Your passport will remain with the embassy until they issue the visa. Remember the point if you need your passport in the meantime.

The officials will take your fingerprints. This is when you have never visited the Schengen Area. They will ask you questions about the nature of your visit. Convince them that you will leave the Schengen Area.

Step 7. Processing

The embassy will work on your visa for a while. The processing time depends on various factors. When they issue the visa, they inform you to pick it up. Depending on the embassy, they might post it to you.

Do I Need a Residence Permit?

A Schengen Business visa is a short-stay visa. It means you can only stay in the Schengen Area for a limited time. So you do not need a Residence Permit. The rule is true for all Schengen areas.

How long is the Schengen Business visa Valid for?

The Schengen Business visa falls under the short-stay category. It is only valid for up to 90 days (three months). Yet, the visa’s validity depends on the authorities’ decision. They will give you a visa valid until you complete your task.

Bear in mind that you can enter the Schengen Area and leave it after 90 days. But you may not stay longer than 90 days. Also, It’s possible to leave and re-enter the Schengen Area. However, your visa must permit that. Again, this point is up to the embassy’s decision. When you received the visa, look at it for entry type:

• Single-entry
• Double-entry
• Multiple-entry

If you need a particular entry type, inform the officials. If you convince them, they will likely grant you one.

Do I Need Different visas to visit more than one Schengen Country?

The answer is NO. You do not need different or several visas. You can visit all the members of the Schengen Area with a visa from one country. Remember to apply for the right country visa. If you spend an equal amount of time in two Schengen countries, you have to apply for the country you will arrive at first.

When Can I Apply for a Schengen Business visa?

The time you can apply for the Schengen Business visa depends on the date you will travel. The earliest time you have permission to travel is six months earlier. Yet, the latest time is two weeks. Consider this point and apply it at the right time. Bear in mind the following items when you apply:

• Consider some time or delays to gather the requirements. You can not prepare everything in one blink of an eye.
• Bear in mind the embassy or consulate might be busy. You might have applied at the peak season. So, you might have to wait a few days for the visa appointment.
• The embassy or consulate might require additional documents. It could take some time for you to collect the new required documents.
• Consider some time for processing. When you finish everything with the embassy, it takes some time to process the visa—different elements influence the processing time. Consider one month (the most) for it.

Can I Extend the Schengen Business visa?

The initial answer is no. By the Schengen rule, it is not possible to extend a short-stay visa. The rule is true for the Schengen Business visa. You have to leave the area when your visa expires. A precondition to applying for a Schengen Business visa is the intention to leave. You have to convince the officials that you will leave the area in time. Yet, in some rare cases, you might be able to extend the visa.:

• Due to a Force majeure reason. It could be:
  • War
  • Political turmoil
  • Coup
  • A disaster like a storm, or earthquake makes you unable to leave the Area.
• Humanitarian basis. You need medical treatment, or one of your relatives has passed away.
• A compelling personal reason.

In the above cases, you could extend your visa, but you have to convince the officials.

Let’s sum up…

This text covered all you should know about the Schengen Business visa. It explained who needs it, the requirements, the application process, FAQs, and many more.

If you need to know about the Schengen n members’ visas, go to the home page of the Visa Library.

Please share your experience or knowledge about visas in the comment section below. They are valuable tips for applicants.