SCHENGEN VISA INFORMATION

Schengen Territory

The 1985 Schengen Agreement abolished immigration controls at the borders of member countries, creating the Schengen Area. Members of the Schengen Agreement share a uniform short-term visa called the Schengen visa. The visa can be issued by any member state in lieu of its own national short-term visa, and it is valid for travel throughout the Schengen Area. Members of the Schengen Agreement also share passport and border controls.

The Schengen Convention is a great step towards freedom of circulation of people. Foreigners bearing a valid short-term visa delivered by one of the Schengen states can leave and later re-enter the Schengen Territory without having to ask for a visa again, on condition that they have a valid passport and relevant travel document and a multiple entry visa

The absence of border checks at the internal borders is compensated for by extensive cooperation and high Schengen standards setting out rules in many areas, including police and judicial cooperation, visa and consular matters, and personal data protection. In terms of security, all these measures should prevent the misuse of the freedom of movement for criminal purposes

The following (25) states now make up the Schengen Area:

22 EU (European Union) Members:

1)     Austria,

2)     Belgium,

3)     Czech rep.

4)     Denmark,

5)     Estonia,

6)     Finland,

7)     France,

8)     Germany,

9)     Greece,

10)  Hungary,

11)  Italy,

12)  Latvia,

13)  Lithuania,

14)  Luxembourg,

15)  Malta,

16)  Netherlands,

17)  Poland,

18)  Portugal,

19)  Slovak rep.,

20)  Slovenia

21)  Spain,

22)  Sweden

3 non-EU countries:

1.     Iceland,

2.     Norway

3.     Switzerland

Although Bulgaria, Cyprus, Ireland (rep. of), Romania and the United Kingdom are members of the European Union, they are not members of the Schengen area.        

THERE ARE 4 TYPES OF SCHENGEN VISAS:   

                     
TYPE A: Airport transit visa. Required for those nationals who cannot use the TWOV (Transit without Visa)-facility at all, being in direct transit in a Schengen country when arriving and departing from/to non-Schengen countries. in general, leaving the airport is not allowed.    

TYPE B: Transit visa. Required for passengers making a transit in the Schengen territory which is exceeding the allowed transit-time and for passengers who are     transiting in more than 1 Schengen country.

Attention! In case you have to transfer in Ferihegy 1 Airport or your flight arrives to Ferihegy 1 and your transfer flight departs from Ferihegy 2 (and vice versa), being in possession of a transit visa is necessary.

TYPE C: Short period visa (maximums stay allowed 3 months only). The common "Schengen visa” which is issued by any one of the 25 states and is valid for all the others.                
TYPE D: long period national visa. A visa for a longer period or for other special cases which may be issued by an individual Schengen state on a national basis (these are indicated as only valid for country of issue).  

 Application for Schengen visas sould be submitted with the competent Consular authorities, which are to be determined according to the following criteria.

1. If the Applicant intends to stay in one Country only, the application should be submitted at the Representation of the same Country.
2. If the Applicant wishes to travel to several Member States, the application should be submitted at the Representation of the Country where the main purpose of travel lies, determined by the duration of the stay.
3. If the main destination cannot be ascertained, the Country of the first port of entry into Schengen Territory is regarded as the competent Consular office for processing the application.

Long term visas are still subject to the laws of the Country of Destination. They must be applied for at the Consular Authorities of the concerned Member States.

When applying for either a type b or type c visa with the intension of visiting/transiting:                              
- only one Schengen state: applications should be made at the consulate or embassy of   
  that particular country?                                     
- Several Schengen states: applications should be made at the consulate or embassy of   
  the country which is the main destination?                   
- Several Schengen states but do not have a main destination:  applications should be made at the consulate or embassy of the country which is the first point of entry into the Schengen area.

Maximum Period of Stay

While Consulates and immigration officers may exercise discretion in determining the length of stay for any visitor, the normal validity of most business visas is 90 days within a given six month period. This is also the maximum total period of stay permitted in the Schengen countries. (For example, if a Business Visitor stays in Austria for 30 days, he/she may only spend up to 60 more days as a Business Visitor in Austria or any other Schengen country over the next five months).