Applying for a Schengen visa requires you to visit the nearest Schengen Embassy or a visa application center where you can go and apply for the visa. This includes scheduling your visa interview beforehand and then submitting the application form and the documents at the Embassy.
Even though this requires you to take one day out of your busy lives, some people find trouble taking time and want an easy way out. Hence, when applying for the visa, you can also mail in your documents and application if you wish to!
This is a quick way and does not require you to go all the way to the Embassy.
Who is Eligible to Send their Visa Through Mail-In?
Not everybody can send their application and other documents through mail to the Embassy if they want a visa to enter the Schengen territory.
Usually, individuals who applied for and received a visa in the duration of the last 59 months and provided their fingerprints for this visa can ask if they are eligible to send their visa through mail-in.
Additionally, those who have previously been issued a visa to enter the Schengen area can also contact the concerned authorities to find out whether or not they are eligible to send their application through the mail-in procedure.
What are the Requirements for the Schengen Visa?
If you are eligible for the mail-in of the visa application, you must ensure that you send your visa application at least 20 days before you have planned your trip. To know the status of your visa application, you will be required to wait at least 15 days.
Moreover, similar to application procedures of other visas, you are required to submit your correctly filled application. You must not leave any field empty unless it has been mentioned explicitly on the form that you can leave a field empty.
Moreover, you must pay the visa fees timely and submit your application.
Required Documents
The documents required for the mail-in application include submitting a valid passport. The passport should be valid for at least three months after you depart from the Schengen country once your visit ends. You must ensure that the passport has 2 blank pages. You need to submit the signed visa application form.
You are also required to submit a passport picture. Authorities prefer that the passport picture is not older than six months and should have a white background.
You must also submit some identification certificate such as an identification card and driver's license that proves that you are a citizen of the country you say to be from. Proof of residence permit from your home country is also needed.
Apart from submitting the passport, you have to submit the passport's data page as well.
If you have been invited to any Schengen country by any family member or friend, you must mail a letter stating the applicant's and host's details. The letter should state what you are planning to do on the trip so that the authorities know what the reason for the trip is!
You may have been invited by a company too if you are on a business trip and for that purpose, you must send in a letter by the organization describing the nature of your visit.
You have to provide proof of accommodation, a travel itinerary, and proof of sufficient funds, which can be provided in the form of bank statements.
When you travel to any of the Schengen member states, you must also provide proof of travel insurance.
Children traveling to Schengen states and wishing to mail in their Schengen visa application require a consent form that their parents should sign. A copy of the biometric data page of their parent will also be needed.
As you will be mailing in your documents, you must send them all in an envelope. The envelope should contain the visa application, the visa application fee, your passport, and all other required documents. If you want your passport to be mailed back, you need to provide the shipping fee, your address, and a delivery service slip.
When you apply for a visa through the mail-in procedure, ensure all these requirements are fulfilled.
Applying for a Schengen Visa Through Mail-In
Any visa applicant who wants to apply for the Schengen visa must fulfill all the abovementioned requirements. You can visit the site VisaHQ where you can get further details about the Schengen visa you want to apply to. You can also get your documents pre-checked so that you have the peace of mind that the documents you are mailing are not wrong. You only need to select your home country and the Schengen country you want to visit, and the site will show you the visa details.
VisaHQ also offers the service of applying for a visa online if you do not want to schedule a visa appointment! The procedure is convenient and takes no time!