New Delhi: There’s good news for Indian citizens who travel to Europe frequently.
The European Union (EU) said in a statement on Monday that Indians can now apply for a multiple entry Schengen visa with longer validity.
As per the new visa ‘cascade’ regime for Indian nationals residing in India, those travellers with an established travel history who apply for Schengen short-stay visas will be provided easier access to visas with multi-year validity, if the passport validity allows, the EU said.
Last week, European Commission adopted specific rules on issuing multiple entry visas to Indian nationals, which are more favourable than the standard rules of Visa Code that applied till now.
According to the new rule, Indian nationals can now be issued long-term, multi-entry Schengen visas valid for two years after having obtained and lawfully used two visas within the previous three years.
The two-year visa will be followed by a five-year visa, provided the passport has sufficient validity. During validity period of these visas, Indians will enjoy travel rights equivalent to visa-free nationals, EU said.
The EU-India Common Agenda on Migration and Mobility seeks cooperation on migration policy between the EU and India, with facilitation of people-to-people contacts being a key aspect.
Schengen covers 29 European countries — Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden, along with Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
