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I have a valid multiple entry Schengen visa from Netherlands Embassy. It says BNL2 and type of Visa as "C". I went to Netherlands on business visit.

I want to travel to Spain now for tennis training of my daughter. Can I travel to Spain on the same visa now?

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  • It is probably read as "Business NetherLands", unsure what 2 stands for. C-type visas are valid across the whole zone. – bipll Jun 27 '18 at 5:07
  • Thanks Bipil but as per other internet search, BNL2 means benelux 2 ( bruxelles, nederland, and Luxembourg). Hence, I am confused that whether it is a business Visa or I can also travel on leisure? Thanks! – Mandar Chaphalkar Jun 27 '18 at 5:55
  • Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg – hmakholm left over Monica Jun 27 '18 at 16:12
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There is no such thing as a "business" and "tourist" visa in the Schengen system. There are only uniform short-stay visas, which is what you have.

Given that the visa is multiple-entry, the point of being multiple entry is that you can use it for any subsequent visit to anywhere in the Schengen area that satisfies the rules for a short visit.

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  • this is not correct. There is the standard Visitor and a Business visa, where by Visitor is mostly included with a Business visa. Depending on the issuer this is an entry in the remark field of the Visa. – Mark Johnson Sep 16 '19 at 16:12
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    @MarkJohnson: Have they changed the rules within the last few months? Please provide a reliable source for that claim. – hmakholm left over Monica Sep 16 '19 at 16:18
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    @MarkJohnson some countries make that entry and others do not. The presence of such an annotation on a multiple-entry visa does not prevent the bearer from using the visa for a different purpose on a subsequent trip. – phoog Sep 16 '19 at 16:23
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    @MarkJohnson the application form requires the applicant to disclose the purpose of the visit. That does not cause the visa to be of a different category. The annotations you speak of are governed by national law, not the Schengen codes. See Annex 22 linked in my answer. – phoog Sep 16 '19 at 16:26
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    @MarkJohnson sure, but there's nothing in the codes that prevents someone with a multiple-entry visa issued for tourist purposes from later using that visa for a business trip, nor vice versa. I see nothing in the German Aufenthaltsgesetz or Aufenthaltsverordnung that forbids this, either. An annotation in the "comments" section of a visa does not create a new category of visa. – phoog Sep 16 '19 at 17:19
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According to Annex 22 of the Handbook for the processing of visa applications and the modification of issued visas, BNL2 is the code for a visa issued by Belgium, the Netherlands, or Luxembourg "ex officio." I don't quite know what that means, however.

Regardless, Henning Makholm's answer is correct: it does not restrict your use of the visa. To impose any restriction, there would be a less cryptic annotation describing the restriction.

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