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What happens at the Visa Application Centre

General information

  • Arrive in time for your appointment (15 minutes beforehand). Missing an appointment means you can only book a new appointment 24 hours after your original appointment time.

  • As a general rule, every customer has to submit the application in person.

  • Bring a printed copy of your visa application, as well as a valid passport or travel document with at least 2 pages that are blank on both sides.

  • Bring a complete set of all supporting documents (an original and a copy for each document).

Biometric data collection

According to Article 13 of the Visa Code, the Schengen Agreement member states are required to collect biometric data from the applicant, which includes a photo of the applicant of the established form and ten fingerprints.

For the first application, the client must appear in person. In such a case, the following biometric identifiers must be collected: a photograph scanned or taken at the time of application and 10 digitally collected fingerprints. If the fingerprints received from the client in an earlier application were first entered into the VIS system less than 59 months before the date of the new application, they are copied into the subsequent application. However, if there is reasonable doubt about the identity of the client, the embassy/consulate has the right to collect fingerprints without being guided by the deadlines mentioned above.

The following persons are exempt from the requirement to provide fingerprints:

  • children under the age of 12;

  • heads of state or government and members of the national government with their accompanying spouses, as well as members of their official delegation when they are invited by the governments of member states or international organizations for official purposes;

  • monarchs, and other senior members of the royal families who are invited by the governments of member states or international organizations for official purposes;

  • persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible; if the reason for not being fingerprinted was temporary, fingerprints are taken when a new application is submitted.

You can find photo requirements here.