Which country to apply for Schengen Visa

[scoobydoolondon]

My wife has just been granted a Spouse Visa for 30 months (she was previously on a Fiance Visa), I am a British citizen by birth.

Now, we'd like to apply for a Schengen Visa as we want to travel through Europe. It'll probably be 4/5 days on each trip and we want to visit most countries over the next 2 years or so.

We want a Schengen Visa which will give us the longest expiry. We're both quite spontaneous so just want to head off for a weekend somewhere in Europe when the opportunity arises and don't really want the hassle of applying for visa's each time we travel.

So, question is really:

1) which country is best to apply for Schengen Visa that will give us the longest visa?
And how long will this be, can we ask for a 2 or 5 year Schengen Visa?

2) my wife has a Pakistani passport - how long does it typically take to grant the Schengen Visa (so we can plan our trip)?

Our first trip to Europe will be based on answers to the above so we're not overly concerned which country we visit first.

many thanks

[scoobydoolondon]

anyone able to help..

[Imshzd]

My wife has just been granted a Spouse Visa for 30 months (she was previously on a Fiance Visa), I am a British citizen by birth.

Now, we'd like to apply for a Schengen Visa as we want to travel through Europe. It'll probably be 4/5 days on each trip and we want to visit most countries over the next 2 years or so.

We want a Schengen Visa which will give us the longest expiry. We're both quite spontaneous so just want to head off for a weekend somewhere in Europe when the opportunity arises and don't really want the hassle of applying for visa's each time we travel.

So, question is really:

1) which country is best to apply for Schengen Visa that will give us the longest visa?
And how long will this be, can we ask for a 2 or 5 year Schengen Visa?

2) my wife has a Pakistani passport - how long does it typically take to grant the Schengen Visa (so we can plan our trip)?

Our first trip to Europe will be based on answers to the above so we're not overly concerned which country we visit first.

many thanks

1: first time there is no chance to get 2/5 years Schengen visa,so does not matter in which consulate you apply.
Schengen visa normally granted on the bases of your booked accommodation .
2:maximum 3 weeks in total.

[Donutz]

It is up to the embassy, commonly they issue a Multiple Entry Visa (MEV) after the second or third application but it seems to depend from embassy to embassy and more specifically the applicantion. If you can convince them that you will return frequently to to Schengen area they may issue a MEV for 1-5 years.

Currently the EU is working on new rules which will standardize this a bit more, some embassies never seem to issue MEVs even for those who entered and exited the Schengen area often and had a bunch of applications...

So just ask, and motivate the request. If the disagree you will get the standard single entry visa.

Processing legally takes a maximum of 15 calenderdays (and 2 weeks for a direct appointment at the embassy or you can chose to use an optional service provider such as TLS or VFS which may offer an appointment sooner).

If your wife was not your wife but your girlfriend: In individual cases (missing docs etc.) they can take 30 calenderdays and in exceptional cases 60 days. But since you are a UK national and she is your wife you fall under freedom of movement and they will need to issue the visa with minimum hassle, for FREE and as soon as possible. Basically the mariage document, legal translation and your passports plus statement from you that you will travel together will be sufficient for the visa. No legal need for hotelbookings etc. though some embassy do ask for this for some odd reason. And most certainly no need for insurance, sufficient funds etc. etc. See the sticky thread, EU webpage ( http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/tr ... dex_en.htm ) and ofcourse the embassy itself.


If you chose to use VFS/TLS then add a few days for them to process the visa aswell since the need to forward the application to the embassy, the embassy needs to mail it back to them and then they need to forward it to you. And they can charge a service fee, were as via direct applications the process should be entirely free.