The Easiest Country to Get a Schengen Visa: What the Official Data Says

When planning your trip to Europe, getting a Schengen visa can feel like an intimidating part of your journey.

The EU shares data about how many people apply for Schengen visas each year, by country. They also include what percentage of those applications are denied. This information can be interesting to travelers, as it gives you a general idea about the likelihood of approval… but it also isn’t that simple.

In this guide, we'll take a look at this data and explain why, while yes, it’s accurate, there’s more to it than that.

Do keep in mind that while you’ll learn about countries that have varying rejection rates, visa approval, and rejection rates, change frequently and can also vary based on your country of nationality, the type of visa that you are applying for, and more.

When applying for a Schengen visa, approval is never guaranteed, regardless of rejection rate data.

What are the easiest countries to get a Schengen visa from?

This is a very nuanced topic because there are many variables at play.

Unfortunately, looking at the visa rejection rates won’t give you a clear picture of whether or not your visa application will be approved or denied.

Visa rejection rates are a global average, but they don’t reflect how visas are actually approved or denied.

Many different factors go into the decision process for visa applications, including:

• The nationality of the applicant
• The specific type of visa being applied for
• How strong the application is (for example, are all of the necessary documents included, and have the bare requirements been met?)
• Migration flows
• And more

Not only that, rejection rates are fluid, meaning they can (and do!) change at any time.

While yes, we can look at a global rejection rate, each nationality has its own rejection rate depending on the type of visa, the strength of an application, and other variables. This also means that each visa-type has its own rejection rate too! It’s truly case-by-case.

So, as you can see, global rejection rates aren’t a one-size-fits-all, and they also aren’t a reliable indicator as to whether or not your visa application will be approved or denied.

While visa approvals are never guaranteed, the best way to help your visa get approved is to have a strong application and meet all of the requirements set by the Schengen area.

With all of that being said, here are the 2023 global rejection rates for each country in the Schengen area.

Austria visa rejection rates

14.34% of Austria visas were rejected out of the 229,613 applications processed in 2023.

Belgium visa rejection rates

26.62% of Belgium visas were rejected out of 225,951 applications processed in 2023.

Bulgaria visa rejection rates

Bulgaria, as it’s a new member of the Schengen area, doesn’t have annual data available yet.

Croatia visa rejection rates

This data isn’t readily available from the European Union.

Czech Republic visa rejection rates

17.44% of Czechia visas were rejected. This is out of the 138,840 that were processed in 2023.

Denmark visa rejection rates

19.94% of Denmark visas were rejected. This is out of the 107,872 applications processed in 2023.

Estonia visa rejection rates

32.96% of Estonia visa applications were rejected out of the 13,190 processed in 2023.

Finland visa rejection rates

18.03% of Finland visa applications were rejected in 2023, out of the 92,078 processed.

France visa rejection rates

16.64% of France visas were denied in 2023. This is out of the 2,625,846 applications processed.

Germany visa rejection rates

14.26% of Germany visas were rejected in 2023. This is out of the 1,459,560 applications processed.

Greece visa rejection rates

14.57% of Greek visas were denied out of the 627,008 applications processed in 2023.

Hungary visa rejection rates

15.13% of Hungary visas were rejected in 2023. This is out of the 215,799 applications processed.

Iceland visa rejection rates

2.10% of Iceland visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 22,541 applications processed.

Italy visa rejection rates

12.05% of Italy visas were denied in 2023 out of the 1,108,035 applications received.

Latvia visa rejection rates

11.68% of Latvia visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 18,897 applications processed.

Liechtenstein visa rejection rates

This data isn’t readily available from the European Union. Liechtenstein visas are processed by Swiss embassies.

Lithuania visa rejection rates

12.75% of Lithuania visas were denied in 2023 out of the 30,668 applications received.

Luxembourg visa rejection rates

12.06% of Luxembourg visas were denied in 2023 out of the 11,227 applications processed,

Malta visa rejection rates

36.81% of Malta visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 33,306 applications received.

The Netherlands visa rejection rates

17.07% of Dutch visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 669,291 applications processed.

Norway visa rejection rates

16.08% of Norway visas were denied in 2023 out of the 108,536 applications received.

Portugal visa rejection rates

16.0% of Portugal visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 207,654 applications received.

Poland visa rejection rates

14.96% of Poland visas were denied in 2023 out of the 124,057 applications processed.

Romania visa rejection rates

Romania is a new member of the Schengen area, so we do not have annual data available yet.

Slovakia visa rejection rates

13.01% of Slovakia visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 13,468 applications processed.

Slovenia visa rejection rates

15.49% of Slovenia visa applications were denied in 2023 out of the 19,990 processed.

Spain visa rejection rates

17.79% of Spain visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 1,413,222 applications received.

Sweden visa rejection rates

22.87% of Sweden visas were denied in 2023 out of the 169,151 applications processed.

Switzerland visa rejection rates

10.67% of Switzerland visas were rejected in 2023 out of the 603,261 applications received.

These metrics were taken from the EU Migration and Home Affairs

Why is it more difficult to get a visa from some Schengen countries than others?

Some Schengen countries enforce stricter visa policies due to various factors, such as high tourist demand, stringent immigration laws, or higher rates of visa overstays.

Based on the global rejection rates above, countries like Malta and Sweden, in 2023, were more selective in approving visa applications.

Which country gives the quickest Schengen visa?

There isn’t a country that processes applications faster than others.

How fast your visa application is processed depends more on seasonality (low or peak season). During peak season, it can take more time to get a visa appointment, which will lengthen the time it takes to receive visa approval from the embassy.

During peak season, it can take to multiple months.

How fast can you get a Schengen visa?

On average, Schengen visa processing takes anywhere from 10 to 15 working days, but it varies greatly depending on seasonality.

It’s highly recommended that you apply for your visa at least 3 months before your intended travel date to ensure you don’t have a time crunch as your travels approach.

How can I increase my chances of getting a Schengen visa?

There are a few things that you can do! To increase your chances of approval, make sure to:

• Submit all required documents
• Be organized and double-check all documents for accuracy
• Ensure all of the dates in your documents match (travel dates, accommodation dates, and insurance dates)

With that being said, only the embassy/consulate can approve or deny a Schengen visa application. Even when adhering to all of the Schengen visa application qualifications, a visa can still be rejected.

The easiest country to get a Schengen visa: key takeaways

• Schengen visa approval rates depend on many varying factors - especially visa type and the applicant’s country of nationality.
• Processing length has seasonality. During peak season getting an appointment can take significantly longer than low season.
• Global rejection rates aren't a reliable indicator as to whether or not your Schengen visa will be approved or denied.