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I am an Indian national with an Indian passport and I am planning to travel from New Delhi to the USA and from there to Amsterdam and then back to New Delhi.

I already have a 3 month US Visa and now I'm planning to apply for a Schengen visa to visit the Netherlands. I had a few questions, please help me out.

The current itinerary is,

New Delhi -> San Francisco 20 March

San Francisco -> Amsterdam

  • Starts on 26 March from San Francisco

    Reach London Gatwick on 27 March

    20-hour Layover in London

    London to Amsterdam on 28 March

Amsterdam -> New Delhi 3 April

  1. I have read that the schengen visa starts from the day you reach schengen area. In my case should I apply for a schengen visa from 27th March or 28th March as I will be on a layover in UK on 27th?

Also I'm hoping to get a Transit without visa concession in UK, but will they need a schengen visa for the same day as well?

  1. Will there be any issues if I book a round trip from New Delhi to Amsterdam just for visa application and then travel according to my plan above later once I have the visa? I was thinking to book through a travel agency for a reservation of 27th March to April 6th from New Delhi to Amsterdam round trip instead, and if I get the visa, then I can plan according to the itinerary above.

  2. Are there any issues if I travel directly from USA to Amsterdam without returning back to India in between?

  3. Does the immigration officer at border check the itinerary we submit to the visa application center? Can the dates of arrival or departure be changed later (provided they are still under the visa duration).

  4. Should I apply for a single entry or multiple entry schengen visa? Does it have any weightage in the visa decision?

Thanks for the help :)

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  • 1
    Will you enter the Schengen zone at all on March 26th?
    – Patricia Shanahan
    Feb 14, 2020 at 21:44
  • 1
    Q2 also not clear. Can you not apply at an embassy in India. If you suggest making a booking you intend to change, just for the application, then that does not sound like a good idea.
    – Tomas By
    Feb 14, 2020 at 21:50
  • 1
    Depending on issues like whether you will enter the Schengen zone on March 26th, your itinerary may require two entries.
    – Patricia Shanahan
    Feb 14, 2020 at 22:27
  • 1
    1. UK is not in Schengen 2. Should it be "San Francisco -> London 26 March"?
    – Anders
    Feb 14, 2020 at 22:38
  • Sorry for the confusion people, just explained my San Francisco to Amsterdam situation.
    – thedreamsaver
    Feb 15, 2020 at 12:45

1 Answer 1

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Rule Number 1 (for Q2): be truthful, give a realistic itinerary.

The enter and exit days counts as full days.

Q4: You may not enter before the first day stated on the visa.

Note: Some visas (often first time visas) are issued for a date range. More often a amount of days (duration). If nothing is given then 90 days within a 180 period.

So if the visa is issued on 2020-03-01 (valid for 6 months) and for 10 days duration, then you can stay for 10 full days (including enter and exit days) with the earliest enter date of 1st of March or the latest date of the last day that the visa is valid minus 10.

Q1: The United Kingdom is not part of the Schengen Area, so the dates there do not count. The day you leave the United Kingdom and enter the Schengen Area (The Netherlands) does count.

If you are a first time applicant and your itinerary shows you need only a single entry visa, then only a single enter visa will be issued. For a round trip a double entry will be issued.

Q5: Applying for a double entry that is not needed, gives a bad impression.

Slight changes in an itinerary are assumed (in most cases 10 extra days are added after the expected exit date).

Q3: It does not matter from where you enter the Schengen Area, so you do not need to return to India after visiting the United States.

With a good travel history (i. e. proper usage of previous visas) a multiple entry visa can be issued.

United Kingdom:

You do not state whether you are going through Border Control

  • such as leaving from another airport than Gatwick

So check which type of visa you may need:

  • Direct Airside Transit visa (DATV)
  • Visitor in Transit visa (going through Border Control, 48 hours)

at the link below.

Sources:

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  • Have you even ever seen a Schengen visa? It states both a “date range“ and an “amount of days“ (which could be “XX" when the 90/180 rule applies) and not just for “some visas”. The next paragraph is also utterly confusing, there is nothing stopping someone with such a visa to enter less than ten days before the end of its validity period. Besides, I have seen stranger things but it's highly unlikely to get a 6-month visa with only 10 days maximum stay. For such a restrictive visa, the validity period would closely match the proposed itinerary (as provided by the Schengen visa Handbook)
    – Relaxed
    Feb 17, 2020 at 8:27

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