SA_Traveller

Hi

I'm a South African, resident in London.

I have just received my multi entry Schengen Visa for two trips to:

- 18 days in Central Europe (Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland)
- 6 days in Spain (starts 2 weeks after I get back from the first trip)

I have the visa in hand, obtained through the Polish Embassy, but they have only given me 20 days "Duration Of Stay." I need 24, right?

I have tried contacting the Polish Embassy, but they are *extremely* unhelpful.

My vacation starts in a few days. Am I in trouble?

cdn1

You better go back to the Polish embassy in person and get it corrected so that it fits your plans.

I experienced the same when I applied for a Hungarian Visa (back when I wasn't Canadian yet), and they also gave less than the required days, so I had to request them to issue another/corrected visa.


Do it in person, trying to contact them online or by phone will not get you anywhere. Go get it done, or change your travel plans accordingly

Palal

Alternatively, get another Spanish visa?

adventureadam

Wouldn't two distinct trips require two distinct visas?

Christopher

Well, no, not if (a) the visa is a multiple-entry visa, (b) the dates of the first entry into and the last exit out of the Schengen area are within the valid dates of the visa, and (c) the total time spent in the Schengen area isn't in contravention of what is stipulated as part of the visa conditions.

It is the middle of these three requirements that the OP can't fulfil with the present visa, I think.

adventureadam

The last as well, from what I understand.

You're correct, but it doesn't sound like OP applied for the appropriate visa.

abhilife2001

As others have said one option u have is to ask the Polish embassy to extend the duration of stay on your existing visa.
Other option is to apply for another visa once u r back from ur 1st trip of 18days. You will need to submit usual documentation and fees again I guess if you do this..

flyingfkb

Why are the 20 days are not enough? First trip is 18 days which is less than 20 days. Second trip is 6 days which again is less then 20 days. I doubt that the twenty days are the summary of the duration of all trips combined but rather the maximum duration for every single entry.

What is the expiration date of the visa? I would say as long as the visa is valid you can enter as often you want the Schengen Area, since it is a multiple entry, but only allowed to stay maximum of 20 days every time yo enter.

I might be total wrong and since I'm not a immigration expert I suggest you contact the Polish Embassy again to clear it out.

abhilife2001

Nope.. IME and I have had multiple Schengen visas, the duration of stay is the maximum number of days you can stay in a period of 6 months.. If the visa is valid for 6 months or 1 year then the duration of stay is usually given as 90 meaning we can stay 90 days every 180 days. My experience with many schengen visas ( issued by Germany, Austria, Czech ).

To the OP -- In your instant case, whats the difference in the days given in the valid from and valid to place in the visa . IME, the duration of stay is the maximum stay possible in total of all trips within that period but u should ofcourse double check if needed. Do post the update for everyone's benefit.

B747-437B

What is the validity of the visa? As in the expiry date?

You may have a bigger problem. If Poland has issued you a Schengen visa with a limitation of 20 days in 180 days (6 month visa validity), no other Schengen state may issue you a visa with more liberal conditions.

This has the effect of reducing your permitted stay in Schengen to only 20 (rather than 90) days in a 180 day period and any subsequent visa application in the 180 day period must adhere to this.

You will need to sort this out with the Polish Embassy that issued you the visa PRIOR to your first trip, otherwise you may wind up having to cancel the second trip.

abhilife2001

While the OP needs to clarify this, I don't think Polish embassy would have issued a 6 month / 1 yr multiple entry visa with only 20 days stay limitation..

SA_Traveller

Hi everyone. Thank you all for the replies. I've just returned from the first part of my trip. Sorry about the delay in responding!

In the end, I decided to cut 5 days off my first trip. I am really angry about this, but I don't see anyway to effectively complain or get compensated (as if!) for any of it.

I only got transitguy1's reply after I had already left, but if anyone else ends up in this position, his sounds like the best course of action (although it's anyone's guess how you'll fare there).

@Palal The waiting period just to apply for the Spanish visa is 6 weeks (when I checked 2 weeks ago). It then takes another 2-3 weeks to process. I simply don't have the time to go that route.

@adventureadam It's a multi entry, and it is the correct one. I explained and documented everything. They just miscounted the number of days I needed.

@abhilife2001 @B747-437B Sorry, I should have been more specific on dates. Visa is valid from the 21st of April until the 1st of June. I was in Central Europe from the 21st until today (13 days in total). And should be in Spain from the 25th of May until the 30th.

GUWonder

There are some exceptions to the above, as some grounds used for seeking a visa will still result in a visa getting issued by another Schengen state even after some other Schengen state has issued a visa to the person. Most people, however, aren't going to find themselves in a ready position to take advantage of such exceptions when they may initially wish to have a more liberal regime for visits/stays.

Lito Raquiño

Hi! i would like to know about duration of stay in schengen state. I was in France last April 14 - 30 then back home to PI. When i left PI to go back to Schengen last July 12 I've been told by the KLM ground staff that my stay in France for 17 days will be included in the duration of my stay now. The reason is i went out and went in again in period of less than 3 months. Is this right? Is this correct? i want to know more about this.

Aviatrix

Welcome to Flyertalk.

You are allowed 90 days in any 180 day period. Your clock started on 14 April, so you are allowed 90 days between 14 April and 9 or 10 October (haven't worked out the precise date). You had 17 days in April, you're allowed another 73.