Got Single Entry French Schengen but want to go to Spain??

Hi

I have applied for a French Schengen Visa. They have given me a single entry visa as Im in the last 3 months of My UK work permit that is currently being extended. We have made last minute travel changes and want to go to Ibiza (Spain). Will the fact that I have a single entry french shengen pose a problem at the border gate in Ibiza (Spain)????

Depends how you are going to Ibiza, if with the airplane: yes, because they check your passport, from france you can easily cross the border to spain by car because the chance of them checking your passport is very small. (at least, if they haven;t changed their attitude recently)

I flew into Malaga from London on a portuguese embassy issued schengen visa once and had no problem whatsoever, as well as into Barcelona on a french issued schengen visa coming from Israel. Didn't encounter any problems, no questions asked, just a stamp in the passport and on my way.

Saffa wrote:I have applied for a French Schengen Visa. They have given me a single entry visa as Im in the last 3 months of My UK work permit that is currently being extended. We have made last minute travel changes and want to go to Ibiza (Spain). Will the fact that I have a single entry french shengen pose a problem at the border gate in Ibiza (Spain)????

If you're travelling from France to Spain (by whatever means of transport, including by air) on the same trip then it won't be a problem, because the single-entry part refers to single entry into the Schengen area.

So, for example, a trip from London -> Paris -> Ibiza -> Paris -> London would be fine (provided you keep within the other requirements of the visa) because you are entering the Schengen area only once (i.e. when you arrive in Paris). But an itinerary of, say, London -> Paris -> London -> Ibiza would not work because your single-entry visa would not allow you to enter the Schengen area the second time (i.e. when you try to go from London to Ibiza).

You will have a problem, however, obtaining a future French schengen visa when they see that you did not use the visa to go to France. The French are very particular and sensitive about people using them to obtain visas to enter other Schengen countries that are perhaps a little more strict about issuing them. On a multiple entry visa this is no problem because as long as you went to France at least once they will not consider going to other Schengen countries a problem. However on a single-entry visa they will see immediately that you did not use it to go to France.

Not recommended in my opinion. I personally a few South Africans who have been caught out by this.

Dawie wrote:You will have a problem, however, obtaining a future French schengen visa when they see that you did not use the visa to go to France.

I had interpreted the OP as meaning that she wanted to go to Spain as well as to France - whether on the same trip or not I couldn't be sure.

If she wants to go to Spain instead of to France, then yes, that's a little different. It does rather depend on whether she is likely to want to a Schengen visa issued by France again soon. If so, then yes it would not be advisable to go to Spain instead of to France. At extra cost, of course, she could to Spain via France, entering the Schengen area in France...

Dawie wrote:You will have a problem, however, obtaining a future French schengen visa when they see that you did not use the visa to go to France. The French are very particular and sensitive about people using them to obtain visas to enter other Schengen countries that are perhaps a little more strict about issuing them. On a multiple entry visa this is no problem because as long as you went to France at least once they will not consider going to other Schengen countries a problem. However on a single-entry visa they will see immediately that you did not use it to go to France.

Not recommended in my opinion. I personally a few South Africans who have been caught out by this.

What if your main destination is France (say staying there 10 days), but you enter via Spain (only staying there 2 days). Under this scenario, you are required to apply visa from the French Embassy. However, once you enter Spain , there is no internal border control between Spain and France, how will the French ever figure out that you never went to France?

They won't have to, if there is any suspicion the burden of proof will be on you to prove that you were in France via bank statements showing you using your debit card in France, etc.

And if you can't prove you were in France and you really were there? Tough luck, they go by whatever stamps are in your passport.