The Chief Operating Officer and the Head of Public Affairs at the European Travel Commission, Teodora Marinska, has said that the digitalisation of the Schengen visa application will make it easier and more convenient for foreigners to reach the bloc.
During the Arabian travel market that was held on Monday in Dubai, Marinska emphasised that foreigners who need a visa to enter the Schengen Area often are unable to find available appointment slots due to the high demand.
She further said that there are also times when foreigners apply for a visa in a Schengen country embassy just because they know that the procedure is easier and due to a lack of appointments in the country they intend to visit.
Taking this into account, Marinska said that the digitalisation of the process will be a game changer as it will offer a seamless procedure for visa applicants and automatically allocate appointments, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
Digitalisation is key here. I think that we have the tools to have a super seamless travel experience for people very soon with just the digital visa.
She further added that once the process goes online, the EU authorities need to make sure that border delays are avoided and that no additional burden is put on transport operators.
What Will Change When Schengen Visa Application Goes Fully Online?
Once the application for a Schengen visa has been digitalised, applicants, excluding those applying for the first time, will be able to complete all the procedures online on one single platform.
Since applicants will no longer have to appear at an embassy or consulate physically, digitalisation will significantly reduce the costs as they will only have to pay for the visa fee.
In addition, once the application process goes fully online, applicants will no longer have to collect and print tons of documents.
On the platform, they will be able to upload electronic copies of their travel and other supporting documents and pay the fee.
As the EU authorities have explained, in addition to first-time applicants, persons whose biometric data is invalid and those who have a new travel document will have to appear physically for the application.
However, since the process will go online, those who need to show up at the consulate, embassy, or visa centre will not be subject to long waiting times.
All visa applicants will also have the option to indicate on the platform if they want their visa application to be processed by a certain member state.
Once the entire process is completed by the applicants and the relevant Schengen member states’ authorities, applicants will be informed about the decision on their application through the same platform.
Visas will be issued in a digital format and as a 2D barcode, and they will be cryptographically signed.
