Schengen visas

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A. General information 

The Schengen visa is issued to third-country nationals listed in Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806. This visa allows the holder to stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days (in any 180-day period) for the purposes of tourism, business, visiting family, medical treatment, studies, training placements or volunteer activities that last under 3 months, or for other non-gainful activities. It also allows transit through the territory and airports. 

​Korean citizens are not required a visa for stays under 90 days in any 180 days period.

The Schengen area encompasses 27 European countries without border controls between them: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. 

The Schengen visa allows the holder to travel to any of the Schengen States and to transit through their territory, but it does not automatically entitle them to enter the Schengen area. The border authorities can refuse entry if the visa holder does not provide proof of the purpose and specifics of the trip, or if any of the other entry requirements are not met (please refer to the section “Conditions for entry into Spain​").

The Embassy of Spain in Seoul will process the Schengen visa applications submitted by applicants living in the consular jurisdiction (only those who have Korean Alien Registration Card). 

B. Required documents 

NOTICE: All documents issued neither in English nor Spanish need to be translated into Spanish and the translation must be certified (sworn translation). Also, all documents issued outside of Spain need to be legalised through Spanish consular representations of  the issuing country or, in the case of signatory countries to the Hague Convention of October5, 1961, hold the Hague Apostille.

NOTICE: In case of a minor, the application must be submitted by a legal representative. (Both the applicant and one of the parents/legal representative should come to the Embassy) ​​​​

1. Schengen visa application form (click to download): 1) each of its sections should be filled in. 2) On the page 4, the applicant must date and sign it. *If the applicant is a minor, one of the parents must sign the application form. 

2. A colour photograph: 1) passport-sized, 2) facing forward without reflective glasses or garments concealing the oval of the face, 3) with white background. *Photographs of minors must not show any part of the adult holding them.  

3. Valid, unexpired passport: Original and a copy of the page(s) of the biometric data 

1) The passport must be valid for at least 3 months beyond the planned departure date from the Schengen territory. 2) It must have at least two blank pages. 3) Passports issued more than 10 years ago will not be accepted.  

4. Overseas ins​urance policy: 1) It should state the name of the applicant and policy period; start date and end date. 2) It must cover entire period of stay. 3) It must offer a minimum coverage of 30,000 euros or its equivalent in local currency. 4) The policy must specify all the insurance coverage and include "repatriation". 

5. Payment of the visa fee: Please refer to the section Consular Service fees​.

6. Proof of residence in Republic of Korea: Original and a copy of unexpired Korean Alien Registration Card (ARC)

1) The ARC must be valid for at least 3 months beyond the planned departure date from the Schengen territory. 

7. Flight reserva​tion: roundtrip airline ticket reservation(s) including all destinations in the Schengen area; in case of travelling to more than one country, all the flights, train, bus, ferry or Eurotunnel tickets between the countries. *Please purchase your tickets after visa approval is guaranteed.  

8. Documents corroborating the specifics of the stay:  Evidence of reserved accommodation; a or b (specified below)

a) ​detailed hotel reservation with the complete address for all Schengen countries. *In case of a tour or cruise, include a letter from your travel agent stating a complete itinerary of cities and hotels. 

b) If you are going to stay with a friend or relative in Spain, it is necessary to submit an ORIGINAL LOCAL POLICE INVITATION issued by a "Comisaría de Policía" in Spain.

9. Proof of financial means: a, b or c (specified below)

a. For an employee who is working in Korea:

1) certificate of income (소득금액증명원) of the last 1 year, issued by Korean National Tax Service or payrolls issued by company with employment certificate 

​2) deposit certificate and transaction details for the last three months, issued by bank (은행 계좌 잔고증명서 and 거래내역서)

b. For self-employment:

1) certificate of income (소득금액증명원) of the last 1 year, issued by Korean National Tax Service or payrolls issued by company with employment certificate 

​2) deposit certificate and transaction details for the last three months, issued by bank (은행 계좌 잔고증명서 and 거래내역서)

3) certificate of business registration (사업자등록증)

c. In case that the applicant needs financial support from a family member or company:​ 

1) sponsor's bank statements fo​r the last three months, issued by bank (은행 계좌 잔고증명서 and 거래내역서)

2) sponsor's Income statements or payrolls​

3) sponsor's employment certificate or certificate of business registration

4) family certificate which proves the family relationship between the applicant and sponsor (in case of financial support from a family member) 

OR employment certificate of the applicant (in case of financial support from the company)  

(duly legalised through Spanish consular representations of the issuing country or, in the case of signatory countries to the Hague Convention of October5, 1961, hold the Hague Apostille)

​10. Supporting documents concerning the purpose of travel: 

• For visiting relatives or friends: travel itinerary
  
• For tourism: travel itinerary
  
• For business meetings: an invitation from the enterprise that you are going to visit and a letter from your employer stating your position within the company and the reason for your business travel. Either letter should clarify who is responsible for expenses. 
  
• For conference, events or study: a letter of confirmation/admission from an organization, academic institution or company
  

​11. In the case of underage applicant (apart from the documents mentioned above): a and b + If it's the case, c and d, as well​

a. Birth certificate, legal custody or legal guardian certificate: Original and a copy (duly legalised through Spanish consular representations of the issuing country or, in the case of signatory countries to the Hague Convention of October5, 1961, with the Hague Apostille. Sworn translation into Spanish also is required)

b. Copy of the passport of parents or legal guardian 

*In the case of minors travelling without their parents or legal guardians, or travelling with one single parent, in addition to the documents mentioned above, the applicant must submit: 

c. Notarised authorisation of parents or legal guardians for travel to Spain, with evidence of the person responsible for looking after the minor in Spain, residence address in Spain and period of the intended stay (duly legalised through Spanish consular representations of the issuing country or, in the case of signatory countries to the Hague Convention of October5, 1961, with the Hague Apostille. Sworn translation into Spanish also is required)

d. In case of sole custody, an official document proving it (duly legalised through Spanish consular representations of the issuing country or, in the case of signatory countries to the Hague Convention of October5, 1961, with the Hague Apostille. Sworn translation into Spanish also is required)

When it's necessary to assess the application, the Consular Office may request additional documents or data, and may also ask the applicant to come in for a personal interview. 

Only those applications meeting the requirements specified above will be accepted. 

C. Procedure​ 

1. The applicant must prepare all the requirements mentioned above (2. Required documents). 

2. After preparing all the required documents, the applicant should book an appointment for visa interview through the following link: Book your APPOINTMENT here. (1 applicant = 1 appointment)

- The applicant can book the visa interview appointment from 6 months before their travel/conference/activity. (In case of seafasrers, they are allowed to apply for visa from 9 months before their scheduled travel.)

- Only the available dates shown on the website are available spots. (If you don't see earlier appointments, it's because they all are already booked by other applicants. When somebody cancels it, the canceled spot will appear on the website.)

- All the applicants should make appointments for their visa interview through the website above. (Request through e-mail or phone call will not be answered)

3. After making an appointment for a visa interview, the applicant must confirm the appointment. 

- Apart from the notification e-mail sent to the e-mail address of the account right after making an appointment, the applicant will recieve a "confirmation e-mail" 3 days before their scheduled interview, and will have 3 days to confirm the appointment.

- The appointment will be automatically canceled if the applicant doesn't confirm the attendance. In this case, the applicant must reschedule their appointment to be able to apply for visa at this Embassy.   

- During the visa application procedure, the applicant's facial image and fingerprints will be captured. Applicants under 12 and applicants whose fingerprints have been taken in the last 59 months are exempt from fingerprint taking. However, in the latter case, if the applicant's prints are of poor quality, the applicant can be asked to come back for a fingerprint.​

4. After the visa interview, the applicant will recieve a proof of visa application called "Visa Enrollment Receipt (Resguardo)". 

- With the information shown on the papar, the applicant can check the visa satus.

​​* After the visa interview, the Embassy will keep your passport until you collect your visa/visa refusal paper. 

[Submission of additional documents] 

Additional documents can be submitted on Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 10:00AM-12:00PM. It's not necessary to make an appointment, but the applicants must bring with them their "visa enrollment receipt". 

[How to check your visa status] 

1) Enter this website: https://sutramiteconsular.maec.es/Ho​me.aspx 

2) Input the required information. VISA STATUS CHECK 

3) If you correctly input the information, you will be able to see the visa status and the application. 

- If you detect any wrong information on your application, please contact us (emb.seul.sc@maec.es). 

4) When the status appears as "resuelto (like in this image)", you can come to check your visa result. 

- In general, the visa process takes around 3 weeks from the date of application or the final submission of additional documents. 

5. After seeing "resuelto", the applicant can come to the Embassy to check the visa result. 

- The applicant can visit the Embassy on Monday, Wednesday or Friday between 12:00-12:50PM without appointment. (Or earlier with an appointment for visa pick-up)​ In case of a minor, one of the parents or legal representative can come on be half of the applicant.

- The applicant can only check the visa result by visiting this Embassy with the "Visa Enrollment Receipt". (The applicant can't check the visa result without this receipt. Likewise, the visa result can not be informed through e-mail nor phone call.

- All the applicants must come within a maximum period of 1 month from the date of visa result notification.

​F. Data protection​ 

The processing of personal data of visa applicants is done in accordance with the General Data Pr​otection Regulation. 

Persons wishing to exercise their rights of access, rectification and erasure of their personal data in the Visa Information System (VIS) may do so by addressing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation: 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation
Inspección General de Servicios
Postal address: Plaza de la Provincia, 1, Madrid, España
Email: dpd@maec.es​ 

The following forms may be used to do so: 

• Right of access (Spanish-English version)
• Right to rectification (Spanish-English version)
• Right to erasure (Spanish-English version) 

Persons whose visa application has been refused because they are banned from entering the Schengen area may exercise their rights of access, rectification and erasure of their personal data in the Schengen Information System (SIS) by addressing the Ministry of the Interior.   

To obtain more information on your rights and duties and on how to exercise your rights of access, rectification and erasure of data included in the SIS, please refer to the website of the Spanish Data Protection Agency.

G. Basic legislation 

 Community Code on Visas 

• Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code). 

• Regulation (EU) 2019/1155 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 amending Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code).

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