How to apply for Schengen Visa

How to apply for Schengen Visa

How and which embassy to apply?

In cases where the applicant will be traveling to one and only one Schengen country, the applicant has to apply at the appropriate embassy/consulate of the certain country.

If the applicant is planning to visit two or more Schengen countries, it is highly recommended to be applying for the visa in the embassy/consulate of the country you will be residing in for most of the traveling days, referred to as the main destination.
In case there is no main destination but just a random visit to several Schengen countries, the applicant has to apply for the visa in the embassy/consulate on the first Schengen country he/she will enter according to the itinerary.

Reference: http://www.schengenvisainfo.com/how-to-apply-schengen-visa/

Requirements for Schengen Visa in France Embassy:
– Detailed itinerary
– Round trip tickets (or reservation plane tickets)
– Passport (photocopy)
– Permanent Resident card (if applicable)
– Required photo (2 hard copies – passport sized photographs)
– 3 months bank statement
– Recent credit card statement (can be optional)
– Certificate of employment
– 3 most recent pay stubs
– Photocopies of all your travel stamps (I also included some in my old passport)
– and covered letter explaining why I’ll be visiting the schengen countries

And the day has come…surprisingly, I was the only one in the embassy, or we were two, after some time. I was there 20 mins early.

So the consular officer, asked for my requirements.
After scanning the documents, she asked where I’ll be going and when.
Then she checked the reservations for all of my accommodations, which I was questioned, because some of it, doesn’t include my check out time and some didn’t state the address of the hostel (my bad I didn’t check it before I print my confirmation email from the hostels). I asked that she can check my itinerary for the address, but she is so strict that she doesn’t care what my itinerary is, because she wanted to know the days I plan to stay on a certain countries and that should be stated in the reservations I presented. So I just explained it to her, so on and so forth.

After checking all of my requirements, she asked me to pay for the application (debit or cash only for C$88), and then wait for 10 working days(maximum). They will email me if the passport is ready for pick up.

The other applicant’s interview was quick compare to mine haha..he was asked where he will be going, and that’s it. We both leave at the same time.

After 5 working days, I received an email, that my visa was approved and I can pick it up on the said date and time.. I was granted multiple entries for 50 days..YAY! This is it Europe here I come!

Here’s my detailed itinerary and covered letter ?
Well it’s not detailed, as I didn’t state the places I will be visiting per city, just in France.

Note: Not all countries need a schengen visa. Go to this link, “who needs a schengen visa“, for more information.