Should I show mutual fund statements for Schengen visa or liquidate to my bank account?

Question

I'm in the process of applying for a Schengen tourist visa (Netherlands) from India. I invest a good amount of my salary in mutual funds every month (SIP). I've been setting aside some money (also in mutual funds) to fund this trip for the past 1.5 yrs. I have about 3,200 EUR in travel funds, with over 18,000 EUR in overall investments.

My monthly expenditure roughly looks like this --

SIPs + Travel fund (~50% of salary)
Credit card bill (~33%)
Rent (~7%)
Recurring bills etc. on credit card
Other misc. cash payments

By the end of the month, I have about 10% of my salary leftover in the bank. So, not too much in terms of net balance. I have a credit card with a decent limit, that I use for most expenses.

I was planning to withdraw the travel funds into the bank before the visa application (later this month). I can justify the deposit in my cover letter, as redeemed/liquidated from mutual funds, along with the statement. Is this advisable or could it look like funds parking? The reason I'm considering this is to top-up my bank balance so that it doesn't look inadequate in the application.

Along with bank statements, payslips etc., I'm planning to include my mutual fund statements, summary and credit card statements as proof of finances.

This is my first time applying for a Schengen visa and my first international trip, so I'm a bit paranoid and want to get it right. I'm sure a lot of you have experience with this and can guide me.

Answer 1

If you include your mutual fund statements as well as bank statements (and you should) then it will be clear what the origin of the transferred funds is and there will be no trouble.

On the other hand if you include your mutual fund statements there is no point in making the transfer. Visa officials will be as satisfied with money in a mutual fund as in a current bank account.

Don't transfer the money until you need it.

Answer 2

I applied Schengen visa recently. I provided my mutual fund and stock statements and it was accepted as a proof of funds.

A cover letter mentioning the details and your plan to liquidate as needed should be acceptable.