An alter in plans is not being considered the reason why some Armenians are being denied from entering Bulgaria after obtaining a Schengen visa.
Some Armenian nationals are claiming that they have been denied from reaching the EU, for “unreasonable reasons”, Schengen.News reports.
In this regard, Aram Mnatsakanyan, told Radio Free Europe, that he and his friends were sent back to Armenia by the Bulgarian border guards for an unreasonable reason.
The reason for the refusal was that it was allegedly not known why you were coming to Bulgaria, although we had all the reservations, the return ticket, the payments.
Mnatsakanyan said that from August 7, he stayed in an isolation ward of the airport for three days, claiming that he and his friend were subject to violence.
The Armenian citizen said that he filmed how the border guards treated him, but they were obliged to delete the videos.
Both I and my friend were laid on the ground, handcuffed, my friend’s back was broken, he was bleeding, and they forced us to delete the photos and videos because they also knew that they used illegal violence. Since we had only 2 hours left to return to Armenia, we had to give them the phone, they kept it with them for an hour, and they erased the evidence of violence.
A similar problem was also reported by another citizen of Armenia, Vachagan Ghazaryan from the city of Etchmiadzin. He told “Freedom” that he went to Bulgaria for recreational purposes, but ended up in the isolation room of Bulgaria’s Sofia airport.
Ghazaryan said that he had all the required documents with him when he left Bulgaria, including a return ticket and a hotel reservation. However, he was also subject to entry denial.
Ghazaryan said that he had no plans to leave Bulgaria for another European country.
Bulgaria Denies Entry to Armenians Due to Itinerary Changes Despite Holding Schengen Visas
Recently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia said that Armenians are being subject to entry bans, in spite of holding valid Schengen visas, after they are altering their plans once they obtain such a visa.
The Ministry said that Armenians submit their travel plans for a specific country, but as soon as their Schengen visa is approved, they change their itinerary and cancel their hotel reservations.
When obtaining a Schengen visa, in line with the Schengen Visa Code, internationals are recommended to spend most of their stay in the country where the Schengen visa was issued and provide a detailed itinerary.
In spite of the fact that the itinerary can be changed after obtaining a visa, it still should remain similar to the original one in order to avoid entry denial risks.
