Confused

Guys,

Please I need some clarify.

my wife is German and i am non Eu, whenever we travel together I do not need a visa for our standard trips within EU but say I wish to travel alone without my wife , say with friends within Europe, How can I get a long term visa.

Last I went to spain, i was only given two weeks, meaning if i want to go to another country, I will be apply for visa every now and then, I heard about Schengen, how do I apply for it or I'm i not eligible?

aghoghogh88 wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 13, 2021 9:37 pm

Guys,

Please I need some clarify.

my wife is German and i am non Eu, whenever we travel together I do not need a visa for our standard trips within EU but say I wish to travel alone without my wife , say with friends within Europe, How can I get a long term visa.

Last I went to spain, i was only given two weeks, meaning if i want to go to another country, I will be apply for visa every now and then, I heard about Schengen, how do I apply for it or I'm i not eligible?

What you had from Spain was a Schengen visa. Often, those are given with a validity of 90 days and multiple entry but it depends on the individual case. You might have to build up some travel history. You may also have to show evidence that you need to visit the Schengen area several times in the near future.

Also, for how long was your travel health insurance valid when you applied for the Spanish visa?

It was valid only for the duration for which I was travelling, would that have helped if it was longer, bear in mind I had a ticket going and coming for the period of my travels too, I did not have an open ticket...

aghoghogh88 wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 14, 2021 1:09 pm

It was valid only for the duration for which I was travelling, would that have helped if it was longer, bear in mind I had a ticket going and coming for the period of my travels too, I did not have an open ticket...

I am not sure whether this is a universal practice but at least in Germany, a Schengen visa will only be granted for the time health insurance has been evidenced. My father-in-law had to learn this the hard way, when he bought health insurance for a random three week period, not taking into account processing times, etc. and received a visa that was valid until the day after he had it in hand, because that's when his health insurance ended.

Personally, I'd get health insurance for a longer period, maybe six months or so, and explain in the application that you intend to travel again/frequently in the near future and add some evidence of that, if you have any.

There are a couple of things to consider re long term multi entry Schengen visas:
1. You need to build up your Schengen visa history. First timers normally get visas for the duration of the trip or - best case - 6 months visas. You can then get 1 year/multiple years.
2. It really helps to apply to one country several times (say, Germany) as it will help with point 1. If your spouse is German, it’s still worth traveling with visa even with her - just to build up history.
3. Not all Schengen countries have the same approach to long term visas: some are more forthcoming than others. I don’t have UK experience, I’m afraid, but in Russia France, Greece, Germany and Italy are the most generous with the length.
4. It really helps to have a good bank balance and at least a year long insurance.