France is the most popular destination among Indian travellers within the Schengen area, according to a recent report by the Schengen Visa Statistics for 2022. However, the report also highlighted that France had the highest number of visa rejections among Schengen states during the same period.

The report revealed that France received a staggering 138,000 visa applications from Indian tourists, making it one of the top five preferred Schengen destinations. Switzerland followed closely with 106,000 applications, while Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands received 80,098, 76,352, and 52,616 applications, respectively.

Despite its popularity, France faced a visa rejection rate of 20.12%, resulting in 27,691 applications being denied. Spain ranked second in this category with a rejection rate of 18.5%, which amounted to 14,852 visa applications. Switzerland had a relatively lower rejection rate of 13.2%, but it still resulted in 13,984 visa denials due to the high volume of applications received.

Let us understand what is Schengen visa

A Schengen visa allows individuals to travel to any country within the Schengen area for a maximum duration of 90 days, primarily for tourism or business purposes. The Schengen area comprises most European countries and is known as the largest free travel zone in the world, where border controls are eliminated.

The report further added that Germany had the lowest visa rejection rate in 2022, standing at 11.33%, resulting in 8,615 visa rejections. Other countries with lower rejection rates included Iceland (5.5%), Hungary (12.1%), Belgium (12.2%), and Norway (14.5%), although the number of applications received by these countries was comparably lower.

Currently, there are 27 European countries within the Schengen Area, with 22 of them being member states of the European Union. These countries include Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Croatia.

For Indian travellers trying for a Schengen visa, it is advisable to schedule an appointment at the respective embassy or consulate 15-20 days before your travel date, as per the requirements of Schengen embassies/consulates in India. Recently, the ambassadors of European Union member states have given their approval to negotiate a proposal to digitize the visa application process, which could potentially streamline the application procedure and replace the current ‘Schengen’ sticker with a digital barcode.

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