Refusal with 2 and 3rd article

[hypothesis]

Hello fellas,
I have applied for Schengen visa for Greece ( first time Schengen with my wife ) and today I was rejected based on " justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay was not provided " and " you have not provided proof of sufficient means of subsistence, for the duration of the intended stay or for the return to the country of origin or residence, or for the transit to a third country into which you are certain to be admitted, or you are not in a position to acquire such means lawfully "
I did state in my letter of application that my purpose of traveling is tourism and sightseeing and also I presented them with 50.000 USD bank statement in the past 3 months. I am not sure why I received those 2 reasons and what my next steps are. How can I remove these 2 obstacles when I reapply?

[meself2]

There's too little information and background. What kind of itenary you had? How was the money acquired? Was accomodation/etc sorted reasonably?

If you had a big lumpsum paid into your account for 50k dollars, for example, it'll be a problem as it might be considered as if you've borrowed this from a friend.
Also if your traveling plan was 2 weeks in Athens, that could also ring alarm bells - tourists tend to be more spread out.
If you have an income that gets you a lot of money per year and your accomodation is in a hostel, it also raises questions.

Next steps depend on your situation.
You can appeal it (how - not sure) or wait a bit and apply somewhere else.

[hypothesis]

I did not have an itinerary since my stay was only in Athens but that missing could be the issue with the 2nd reason? The third reason, the money is obtained through means of financial gains and it is not lent since I have had it in the account for more than a year and I cannot do anything about that since the money is there. I cannot just magically reduce it. It is what it is, I have this much money in the account. The hotel was also reasonable, it was a 4 star hotel in keeping with my financial statement. The money however was in my time-deposit account and not my current account. This is reflect in the bank statement but the maturity date of the money was long before my actually travel date so I cannot understand how that can be of any issues.

[meself2]

Your stay was only in Athens - for how long?

While it's a beach city, it's not exactly ideal, people tend to stay in the islands for that.
That could've been seen as discrepancy.

[hypothesis]

I mean there are lots of great museums in Athens like national archelogy museum of Athens . Not every tourist has a beach body. It is false to assume every tourist goes to the islands. My stay was for 7 days only.

I am still baffled as how I can remove these obstacles.

[Angel99]

I did not have an itinerary since my stay was only in Athens but that missing could be the issue with the 2nd reason? The third reason, the money is obtained through means of financial gains and it is not lent since I have had it in the account for more than a year and I cannot do anything about that since the money is there. I cannot just magically reduce it. It is what it is, I have this much money in the account. The hotel was also reasonable, it was a 4 star hotel in keeping with my financial statement. The money however was in my time-deposit account and not my current account. This is reflect in the bank statement but the maturity date of the money was long before my actually travel date so I cannot understand how that can be of any issues.

The reason for that rejection 'justification of purpose of stay was not reliable or provided' is when your intentions are not clear. Some times it also depends on the country you are applying from.

*Best advise is either book a tour trip in Greece, hotel reservation and reapply again or
*Apply via a different EU country.

For the bank statement, since it is fixed in your account you need to also add payslips+employment leave letter or source of income. If you are a student you can add a school letter.

[hypothesis]

Thanks for your reply. I did add my paychecks albeit it was the minimum wage of Turkey, I added it nevertheless. The money however was in my time-deposit account and not current account. Could that be of an issue?

[meself2]

Did you show you can use this money freely? They might've seen it's in the deposit and thought you couldn't withdraw them before the trip.

[Angel99]

Thanks for your reply. I did add my paychecks albeit it was the minimum wage of Turkey, I added it nevertheless. The money however was in my time-deposit account and not current account. Could that be of an issue?

Yes the money not being in your current account or savings account could also be the problem. You must add your certificate of deposit or statement of your fixed deposit + another bank statement of saved money in your current account you have access to since your fixed deposit can not be accessible before the maturity date. The bank statement must show in/out flow.

Even if you had average wage with no savings which is accessible, you could be rejected.

They want to see after your expenses you still have money available to you any time.


With the purpose of stay sometimes hotel bookings and travel itinerary is not sufficient. As i said earlier depending on the country you are applying from. They consider the economic problems there.

[hypothesis]

Guess that kind of make sense about the financial nitpicking however I have no idea why sightseeing is not considered as the reason. Do they actually read the cover letter? I will be more specific next time I apply. How long should I wait before I apply again perhaps for another EU country?

[Angel99]

Guess that kind of make sense about the financial nitpicking however I have no idea why sightseeing is not considered as the reason. Do they actually read the cover letter? I will be more specific next time I apply. How long should I wait before I apply again perhaps for another EU country?

Yes they read the cover letter. Next time you can add hotel reservation + travel itinerary of the places you plan to visit or a tour voucher..

There is no time requirement but to rule out being desperate, best is give it a month or 2 to reapply. If you decide to change the country, do not add Greece to your itinerary.

[hypothesis]

You all have been very helpful. I appreciate the time and effort. I will keep you updated if my status changed in future.