Does tourist visa (90 days) apply after a working holiday visa ends in Schengen countries?

Question

I am an Australian currently on a Netherlands working holiday visa that ends in May next year. I would like to know if when my visa ends I then get another 90 days just as a regular tourist visa as I would like to do some more travel within Europe when my visa ends before going home to Australia. Thanks for any help in advance!

Answer 1

I am 99.9% sure that it gives you no extra time.

The 90 days you refer to is the maximum duration of stay without a visa. As an Australian you can apply for a tourist visa in the Schengen Zone.

Answer 2

According to this (unofficial) website you can only apply for a Schengen visa while holding a residence permit up to 3 months before the permit ends, preventing exactly the thing you want to do. But that's for the UK, which is not a full Schengen member. And you're from Australia, so you don't actually need a visa to stay in the Schengen area as a tourist.

Interestingly, Australians also don't need a visa to stay in the (non-Schengen) UK, so a loophole might be to first go to the UK and then enter the Schengen area as a tourist.

But all in all this is a pretty special case and I'd suggest you ask the Australian embassy about this.

Answer 3

To corroborate what Paulinchen2 said:

From the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) website:

If you wish to stay in the Netherlands for longer than three months, you will need a residence permit. Check the residence wizard for further information.

From the FAQ regarding residence permits (emphasis mine):

Can I also apply for a residence permit if I am staying in the Netherlands as a tourist?

This will depend on your nationality. Most people must first have a provisional residence permit [Machtiging tot voorlopig verblijf, MVV] before they can apply for a residence permit. You can only apply for the provisional residence permit in your country of origin or permanent residence. The conditions for obtaining a provisional residence permit depend on your purpose of residence. In the Residence wizard select your purpose of residence, nationality and ‘longer than 3 months’. You can then find out whether you require a provisional residence permit and if so, how to apply.

And from the FAQ regarding holidays longer than three months:

It is not possible to apply for a short stay visa for a period exceeding 3 months. If you wish to stay in the Netherlands for longer than 3 months, you must apply for a residence permit. In order to be eligible for a residence permit you need a purpose of residence other than holiday and you must meet the conditions of the purpose of residence you have stipulated.

The wording and language seems pretty clear to me, although your exact situation hasn't been discussed. So, unfortunately for you, the answer seems to be that it's not possible unless you already have a Dutch resident permit (unlikely, as you only need it if you are staying for more than 90 days, and your current visa is valid for only three months).

Answer 4

I had the same situation as you. I decided to leave the Schengen area when my work visa expired (hopped over to London for the weekend) and came back through Paris. I had no trouble at border control with getting an entry stamp, and the border agent hardly looked at my expired visa.

So I don't know whether you can automatically get the 90 days, but at least in my case, I got the 90 days after a trip to the UK.

My relevant question on SE is here.

Update:
I have now left and entered the Schengen area twice just fine after my work visa expired. I have entered through both Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports (both in Paris), and the border guards flipped through my passport, saw the expired visa, and still stamped my entry.

Answer 5

I asked an Australian and this was their response:

From what I understand of the WHV program, a Working Holiday visa 'removes' that country from the rest of the tourist visa 90-day restriction.

So if you will have spent the last 90 days of your WHV visa in the Netherlands, then there shouldn't be an issue with travelling through the rest of the Schengen area for the next 90 days. I'm unsure as to whether that strikes the Netherlands as unvisitable, however.

Also, transitioning off your WHV to the regular tourist visa may require a run through somewhere like London to 'leave' the Schengen area on your WHV so you can re-enter as a tourist - but again, I cannot directly claim knowledge on this.

I would get in touch with the Australian embassy - they should at least be able to help you with more certainty than I.

Answer 6

Best place to ask this is IND (http://english.ind.nl/contact/), since you are already in Netherlands, the phone call costs €0.10 per min. They will for sure give you a solid and legally correct answer. In such matters, I would only trust the official authority.