How do I extend, my Schengen visa while traveling? This is a common question among many travelers going to the Schengen countries? Well, if you have a Schengen visa from Dubai you can extend it if only you have legitimate reasons to extend your stay in the region.
In this guide we will tell you all you need to know about extending a Schengen visa including reasons that can be allowed to extend the visa and the timelines for extension.
The Schengen visa is highly restricted and you will not be granted visa extension unless under verifiable special condition. If you want to extend your Schengen visa, you have to leave the Schengen zone, apply for a new visa and then come back again to the region to continue your stay.
Only people who have special and undeniable circumstances are allowed to apply for a visa extension in the Schengen area. The authority must see the reasons that you state as to why you want to continue staying in the region. After they review your reasons and approve them to be substantial enough, you will be granted the permission to extend your stay there.
You are allowed to extend the Schengen visa twice and for up to 90 days. You may be allowed more days depending on your reason and how you argue your extension case.
Schengen authorities are very strict when granting requests to extend the Schengen visas. The reason why you want to continue staying there should be very serious and not premeditated.
SYou must have been in in Schengen zone for less than 90 days period within the validity period of 180 days. You also should not have stayed in the region past the validity of your current visa.
you need to apply for visa extension before your visa reaches its expiry date. If you apply for the extension even a day after the visa has expired, the extension request will be rejected no matter how strong your case is.
Below we will discuss the exceptional circumstances when you will be granted your request to extend a Schengen visa.
Cases of 'Force Majeure', where serious events have happened back in your country and you can therefore not go back there immediately. Such events include natural disasters like tsunamis, volcanic eruption or earthquakes, extreme weather conditions like flooding, disturbances and political events like war and riots.
You may also be considered to extend your stay if there is a late modification or your flight has been cancelled by an airline or a shipping company due to bad weather or another serious factor.
The Schengen authorities often allow some people to extend their stay in the region for humanitarian reasons. This request is mainly granted for third-world nationalities so as to prevent or overcome the hardships they might be going through.
it is possible to extend your visa under this situation when you require an ongoing medical treatment like a surgery or medical treatment that is taking more time than you anticipated.
Another reason is when you have a critical family emergency such as death, illness or an injury and you need more time to offer support or make the necessary arrangements following these occurrences. To be considered for this, the affected person must be a 1st degree family who is living in a Schengen country.
If you had applied for the short-term single-entry visa and you entered the Schengen region after the start of your visa validity period, then you may apply to extend the visa. The single entry short-stay visas have a high likelihood for acceptance when you apply for visa extension.
For example, if you get a 30 days Schengen visa from Dubai and the validity starts from 1st January but then you arrive in the Schengen zone on 15 January, it is possible to apply for a two weeks extension. This type of application may be allowed because it will allow you to maximize your time in the region.
You may be allowed to extend your Schengen visa if you need to complete work-related obligations. You need to have legitimate and properly documented professional reasons of why you need more time in the Schengen zone.
You will be granted an extension if your reason is to attend business meetings and conferences, to do assignments allocated by your employer, if you are undergoing training or an internship program or if you are doing any research activities.
People with investment and business start-ups in a Schengen country are also allowed to apply for visa extension under this category. Another category of people allowed are cultural performers and artists that have to perform in a Schengen state past their visa validity period.
You can be permitted to extend your Schengen visa if you have compelling personal reasons such as family emergencies and personal celebrations. You may give out your reasons for wanting to stay for more days as an upcoming wedding, childbirth or legal processing in a Schengen country.
The most important thing is to have proof of whatever reason you give by backing the claims with documents. The authorities will keenly look at your reasons and supporting documents and then make a decision on whether to grant your request or deny it.
If you are sure that your reasons are legit enough to be accepted for visa renewal, you should then submit application to the authorities of the country where you are currently staying.
Even if the country you are in is not where you first entered when you arrived, or where you will be conducting your businesses after the visa extension approval, it is there that you should submit an application.
You can visit the immigration department in the country you are currently in to apply for visa extension. Every Schengen country has a department that handles issues about visas including those looking to extend their stay.
You can also reach out to a reputable visa agency like Arooha tours who will help you apply for the visa extension. At Arooha, we offer consultancy services, where we will advise you on whether your reason is serious enough, help you articulate your reason for extending you stay better and check out the documents and submit them on your behalf.
This ensures that you will have a hustle free experience when extending the visa and you will not have to handle the difficult part of the process.
You will be asked for the following documents when applying for a visa extension in the Schengen region:
It may take weeks up to a month for an extension request to be processed.. the authority takes time to evaluate each case and look at the submitted documents to verify if the case is genuine and serious enough.
After that, the authorities will either approve or deny your request and you will be notified of the result. As you wait for the visa to be processed, you can continue staying in the Schengen country that you submitted your application in but you cannot visit any other Schengen country.
When extending your Schengen visa for the first time, you will be asked to pay EUR 30 if the reason you are applying is because you entered the region after your visa validity start date or for personal reasons. If it is force majeure or for humanitarian reasons, you will not be charged anything.
When extending the visa for the second time, you will pay EURO 60 regardless of your reason to apply for it. If the applicant is a child below the age of 18, they will be charged EUR 30 to extend their visa for the second time.
Sometimes you may need to stay longer in the Schengen zone and you are not aware of the steps you need to follow to apply for extension. This guide gives detailed information the steps you need to follow to apply for extension. Make sure to follow and meet all the requirements and you will have a smooth process.
