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I got my Schengen visa approved from the Netherlands embassy today. On the visa in the "Valid For" column they filled in "Schengenstaten."

What is meant by that? Does it allow me to travel all countries in Schengen area?

During the visa application I gave itinerary of the Netherlands only. Am I allowed to visit Belgium and France too on this same visa? Please advise.

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  • Presumably if they wanted to restrict you to the Netherlands they would have put Nederland
    – mdewey
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 12:54
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    Schengenstaten means Schengen countries. I don't know the rules behind the Schengen visa but I think you're allowed to travel to all Schengen coutnries with that visum.
    – R-D
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 12:56
  • As a rule they give the 'all Schengen countries' visa, unless you have a very rare case, it means that you can enter the other Schengen states. But you will still have to stick to the plans you used to apply.
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 13:14
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    You may visit Belgium and France, but make sure that the Netherlands are still your main destination - there are a lot of questions here discussing how to identify the main destination of a trip.
    – Sabine
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 16:27
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    By "pls advice" you probably mean "please advise"
    – Azor Ahai -him-
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 19:57

2 Answers 2

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What does 'Schengenstaten' means in Schengen Visa

Schengen states.

Am I allowed to visit Belgium & France too on this same visa?

Yes

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    Note, you may visit or travel through the other Schengen countries but not unrestricted. Depending on the kind of visa and the length of time you got to travel. Usually small adjustments of the travel plans are allowed but not a completely different travel.
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Nov 22, 2017 at 16:35
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A Schengen C visa can be issued for specific member states or for all member states. The latter is done by writing "Schengen States" in the national language of the issuing state.

With a single-entry visa for "Schengenstaten" you can adjust your original itinerary, even to visit another Schengen state. For example, if you initially planned to fly to Schiphol and then spend two weeks in Amsterdam, you can instead decide to fly to Paris and take a train to Amsterdam instead. You might even spend a day in Belgium en route. The Netherlands would still be the main destination of your trip. You could not decide to go to Iceland instead.

With a long-validity, multiple-entry visa, the first visit should be roughly as described in the application. Again minor adjustments are possible, but a completely different itinerary would appear like fraud. On subsequent visits you are free to visit other Schengen states.

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