Dutch officials have said that the high Schengen visa rejection rates for Turkish nationals are a result of incomplete applications rather than a political matter.
Such a claim from officials of the Netherlands was made following complaints from the Turkish authorities saying that the country’s citizens are being discriminated against, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
“Applications from Türkiye and other countries with longer waiting times have been prioritised. As a result, waiting times have been reduced significantly. In no way has this been a political matter,” the statement of the Dutch authorities reads.
Instead of it being a political matter, the Dutch officials said that the high number of visa rejections for nationals of Türkiye is closely linked to incomplete applications.
According to the Dutch authorities, the majority of Turkish nationals who had their visa rejected did not submit all the required documents. For this reason, the rejection rate increased, pushing the authorities to issue advice on the list of required documents.
“Rejections of visa applications were often based on incomplete applications being handed in. Although the final responsibility to hand in a complete application to increase the chance for it to be successful lies with the applicant, the Embassy and Consulate General have taken a proactive stance by advising applicants on this issue,” the Dutch authorities stressed.
In order to avoid a high number of rejections in the future, the Dutch authorities have recommended that all Turkish applicants make sure to submit all the needed documents containing the required information and details.
Data show that in 2022, the highest number of short-stay visa applications for Netherlands Schengen Visa came from Türkiye. During the same year, the Netherlands granted 38,290 visas to Turkish nationals.
As for this year, the authorities said that they expect to receive around 90,000 visa applications.
The same noted that currently, the average time to get a visa appointment is around five and a half weeks, and a decision is generally made within 15 days.
Since Türkiye has not reached a visa-free travel agreement, all of its citizens are required to obtain a visa in order to be permitted entry into the Schengen Area.
Turkish citizens planning to reach the Netherlands or any other Member States for tourism purposes need to apply for a Tourist Schengen Visa. This type of visa permits all of its holders to stay in the area for a maximum of 90 days within any 180-day period.
Everyone applying for this visa type needs to submit the completed visa application form, their passport, and two recent photos.
Tourist Schengen visa applicants are also required to submit proof of accommodation, a roundtrip reservation, proof of having purchased travel health insurance, and proof of financial means, among others.
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