In a significant development for Indian travellers planning to visit Europe during the upcoming holiday season, the European Union has announced that it will offer multiple-entry Schengen visas with extended validity. This new policy allows frequent Indian travellers to apply for five-year multiple-entry visas.
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Here are the updated regulations:
Two-Year Multiple Entry Visa: Indian citizens who have obtained and utilized two visas in the past three years can now be granted long-term, multi-entry Schengen visas valid for two years.
Five-Year Multiple Entry Visa: Typically, a Two-Year Visa will be succeeded by a Five-Year Visa, provided the passport remains valid for the duration.
The European Commission stated that the regulations, adopted on April 18, are more favorable than the existing standard visa code rules that have been applied until now.
The EU’s ambassador to India, Herve Delphin, highlighted that the updated visa regulations are a move towards strengthening ties between the regions. “Traveling to Europe has been simplified,” stated Delphin.
The Schengen area is composed of 29 European countries, including 25 European Union (EU) member states: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, and Sweden. Additionally, the area includes four non-EU countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
