Schengen visa

[monstro]

Hello, I hope this is the correct forum for me to post this.

My girlfriend is a Colombian national and she is living and working in England on a 2 year Post Study Work Visa.

She recently applied for and received a multiple entry 90 day class C Schengen visa.

Today we attempted to board a flight from england to greece for a one week holiday and were refused and turned away by the airlines check in clerk for not having the correct visa, the clerk stated that she should have a class D visa not a class C.

All our research and advice both in advance and since is in agreement that a date valid Class C Schengen multiple entry Schengen visa is the correct visa for her to enter Greece as a tourist for a short holiday.

This is a holiday we - my girlfriend especially had been looking forward to for a long time, it in total has cost us well over £1000, and yet we are now back at home typing this when we should be on the Greek island we had been so looking forward to visiting.

Does anyone have any advice regarding what we have been told - we think the airline have made a mistake and are pursuing them, but its difficult at the moment being the weekend.

[Lucapooka]

You have been royally screwed by the very inept, ill-trained check-in staff. National (D) visas are:

A national visa is required for stay longer than 90 days.
National visa are not issued for purposes of tourism.
Usually, national visa only allow the holder to reside in the issuing country. Permission to work or study has to be obtained separately, and is often a prerequisite to enter the visa application process.
Typically, a national visa can only be applied for in the future holder's country of current residence.
D-type visa only give access to the issuing country

.............and therefore entirely inappropriate to your GF's circumstances.


I assume the airline were worried about carrier's liability. Complain and seek compensation.

[EUsmileWEallsmile]

Which airline? I hope you got this in writing from them.

[monstro]

Hello, thank you both for your replies.

Lucapooka, yes we do feel like we have been royally screwed by inept staff, we have been in contact with the Duty Office today who made the call, and they are adamant still that their decision is the right one and they have pointed us to a paragraph within the Timatic manual that mentions a Type D visa, but when reading it fully in context, it is totally irrelevant, and in no way changes the fact that a Type C Schengen multiple entry visa should have been accepted.

You could be right about the carrier and their liability, either way it looks like they have made the wrong call.

EUsmiles, the airline was Thomson, yes I do have things in writing from them, including a photocopy of the extract from The Timatic manual that they are siting as their reason for refusal of boarding.

Hopefully I will be able to get some more sense later this morning when the organ grinders are back in office - I'm not overtly optimistic though as I can tell they really do not want to accept responsibility for this.

I'll post up any further developments here, cheers.

[Lucapooka]

they have pointed us to a paragraph within the Timatic manual that mentions a Type D visa, but when reading it fully in context, it is totally irrelevant, and in no way changes the fact that a Type C Schengen multiple entry visa should have been accepted.

A Travel Information Manual database controlled by IATA. You can't access that database unless you are an IATA member but here is the general Schengen information on the IATA website

http://www.iatatravelcentre.com/terms.php
Types of visa:
There are 4 types of Schengen visas:
Type A: airport transit visa; required for those nationals who cannot use the TWOV-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.
Type C: short period visa (max. 3 months); the common "SCHENGEN VISA" which is issued by any one of the 15 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 the country of issue).

Get a lawyer and sit back and watch them squirm in agony!

[acme4242]

which paragraph ?
You will find all the Timatic Manual database links here
http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewto ... 623#641623

here is the output
http://www.timaticweb.com/cgi-bin/tim_w ... r=DELTAB2C

National Colombia (CO) /Residence United Kingdom (GB)
Destination Greece (GR)


Greece (GR)



Passport required.
- Passport and/or passport replacing documents must be valid
for at least 3 months after the period of the intended stay.

Visa required, except for A max. stay of 90 days, those
irrespective of nationality holding a family member
residence permit issued by United Kingdom to a family member
of an EEA national For details, click here or national of Switzerland,
provided travelling with or travelling to join the EEA
national or national of Switzerland.

http://www.timaticweb.com/cgi-bin/tim_c ... ser=KLMB2C

Types of visa:
The main types of Schengen visas are:

Type A: airport transit visa; required for those nationals
who cannot use the TWOV-facility at all, being in direct
transit in a Schengen Member State when arriving and departing
from/to NON-Schengen Member States. Leaving the airport is not
allowed.

Type C: visa for transit through or short stay in the
territory of the member states (max. 3 months in any half year
period, from the date of first entry into the Schengen Area).
When applying for a Type C visa with the intension of
visiting/transiting:
only one Schengen Member State: applications should be made
at the Consulate or Embassy of that particular country;
several Schengen Member States: applications should be made
at the Consulate or Embassy of the country which is the main
destination. The country of main destination should also be
reflected in the passenger's itinerary/ticket;
several Schengen Member 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.
Failure to comply with these may result in an investigation by
immigration officers and possible refusal of entry.


Type D: long period national visa; a visa for a longer
period issued by an individual Schengen Member State on a
national basis. These are indicated as only valid for the
country of issue.
However, third country nationals legally residing in a
Schengen Member State on the basis of a long stay Type D
national visa are also permitted free circulation in the
Schengen Area for 3 months in a 6 month period, under the same
conditions as for holders of a residence permit.


- Type B and Type D+C visas are no longer issued.

Care should be taken when re-routing passengers from their
original itinerary.

[sierra]

what a joke on c class valid schengen visa you can travell i dont know how they manage to stop you with valid schengen visa .
did you loose on tickets?
and why you left the air line counter despite you had valid schengen visa .
what matter is you had a valid schengen visa air line should not stop you get on board unless they can prove a valid point like no visa expired passport etc.
did you get money back whatever you spend on tickets and make complain againts staff?