Farang applying for a Schengen visa in Bangkok

[MichaelHunt]

I am a Westerner living in Bangkok on a "retirement" visa. I am a citizen of a country for which a visa is necessary to enter the Schengen area.

 

I have a friend in Europe with whom I plan to stay (as a base for travels to other parts of Europe). So my first inclination was to apply under the category of "visiting a friend, who would then sponsor me - and for which I would not need a hotel booking. However, to apply in this way, it is necessary to provide copies of my friend's bank statement (as well as mine), but my friend is understandably reluctant to do this. 

 

But if I go as an ordinary tourist, then I will need to provide a hotel booking for the duration of my planned trip (nearly two months). It would be easy enough for me to book a hotel for a couple of months on booking.com and then to cancel the booking if and when I get the visa. But my travel agent here in Bangkok told me that the immigration officers in Europe sometimes call the hotel that you say you have booked - to check if they have a reservation for you. So is this strategy viable - to book on booking.com and then to cancel after getting the visa, and then stay with my friend?

 

As an alternative, would it be possible for my friend to say that she is renting me an apartment in her home (she actually has a separate apartment in her home that she uses for guests). Maybe she could provide a letter/contract saying that i will rent her apartment for the duration of my stay, for X amount? Or is it not possible to use a private apartment as accommodation for the purpose of the Schengen visa? Or must it be something booked on a known accommodation booking platform?

 

Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks very much in advance.

[retarius]

I did it last year. Pretty straight forward in all respects. They made a big fuss about one thing, and that was that my host sent the invitation on email....they said email wasn't allowed and the invitation had to be a handwritten letter. Because we were then short of time,  we got stung for DHL fees both ways. 

[Hummin]

11 minutes ago, retarius said:

I did it last year. Pretty straight forward in all respects. They made a big fuss about one thing, and that was that my host sent the invitation on email....they said email wasn't allowed and the invitation had to be a handwritten letter. Because we were then short of time,  we got stung for DHL fees both ways. 

You have to use a signed document with place and date.

 

 

 

 

[MichaelHunt]

15 minutes ago, retarius said:

I did it last year. Pretty straight forward in all respects. They made a big fuss about one thing, and that was that my host sent the invitation on email....they said email wasn't allowed and the invitation had to be a handwritten letter. Because we were then short of time,  we got stung for DHL fees both ways. 

And did your host have to provide his financial statements as well as the invitation letter? Here are the relevant parts of the list of required documents that I was provided with:

 

☐ Private invitation letter + legal residence of invitor + bank statement of inviter

☐ Letter of intent from the inviter stating purpose of travel, plan trip, relationship between the inviter and the applicant

☐ Bank statement for last 3 months – savings is also accepted, preferably where we can see the salary

 

As I said, my friend is not willing to provide her bank statement - so I guess that leaves just the "book a hotel and cancel it after I get the visa" option for me.

[ipeterrobinson17]

No doubt each nation does things a little differently, but the visa advice I've seen explicitly say don't book flight+hotel until you get your visa.

 

Reading recent posts on here, 1 person said he just did a search for suitable flights/hotels and they accepted it.

 

I paid a separate company for something similar, so they gave me a valid reference for both flight/hotel that will show as valid for up to 3 weeks. Once i got visa, i actually booked a totally different flight and hotel.

[jasonsamui55]

Making lots of bookings on booking.com works just fine to get the visa and keep them all active until you actually arrive in Europe. Then change or cancel them. Maybe eat the first night at the first destination because if you said one hotel on your application and then when you arrive the border agent might also call to confirm that the reservation is still valid. But once you clear immigration feel free to cancel them all. Just choose ones that are no payment until check in and only pay if you cancel with less than 24 hours notice. I have a passport from a Schengen visa territory so no problem for me but had to go through all the same BS because I wanted to take my maid with us to see our home and life there, and she was going to stay at our house, but since we lived in Thailand, we didn’t have proof of residence and banks and all that. So we did the booking.com route and canceled after clearing immigration and took our holiday and went back to Thailand. Stupid rules deserve stupid responses. It’s not like it’s reality and actually keeping good guys in and bad guys out but more like those tests you took in high school to see who can follow directions and jump through hoops.

Edited May 17 by jasonsamui55

[Bangkok Barry]

There might be different rules and a different attitude depending on what country you are from. As you bizarrely want to keep that a secret from us there is only limited advice that can be given.

[MichaelHunt]

2 hours ago, jasonsamui55 said:

Making lots of bookings on booking.com works just fine to get the visa and keep them all active until you actually arrive in Europe. Then change or cancel them. Maybe eat the first night at the first destination because if you said one hotel on your application and then when you arrive the border agent might also call to confirm that the reservation is still valid. But once you clear immigration feel free to cancel them all. Just choose ones that are no payment until check in and only pay if you cancel with less than 24 hours notice. I have a passport from a Schengen visa territory so no problem for me but had to go through all the same BS because I wanted to take my maid with us to see our home and life there, and she was going to stay at our house, but since we lived in Thailand, we didn’t have proof of residence and banks and all that. So we did the booking.com route and canceled after clearing immigration and took our holiday and went back to Thailand. Stupid rules deserve stupid responses. It’s not like it’s reality and actually keeping good guys in and bad guys out but more like those tests you took in high school to see who can follow directions and jump through hoops.

Excellent Jason! Thanks very much. This is very helpful.

 

By the way, I totally agree with your comment about them letting in (not to mention paying to support) millions of unassimilable Third World nation wreckers, while giving people like me who can fund their own stays a hard time.

 

Thanks again. I'll start jumping through the hoops now.

[MichaelHunt]

4 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

There might be different rules and a different attitude depending on what country you are from. As you bizarrely want to keep that a secret from us there is only limited advice that can be given.

I didn't think it mattered. I thought that either a person needs a visa - or doesn't. And I do.

 

Anyway, I spent my first 50 years as a (U.S.) American citizen, but I have renounced that citizenship and now I am a citizen of Belize. Does that change anything?

[Bangkok Barry]

3 minutes ago, MichaelHunt said:

I didn't think it mattered. I thought that either a person needs a visa - or doesn't. And I do.

 

Anyway, I spent my first 50 years as a (U.S.) American citizen, but I have renounced that citizenship and now I am a citizen of Belize. Does that change anything?

 

I'm not qualified to say. Different rules often apply to people from different countries. Others may be better able to advise.

[Andrew65]

1 hour ago, MichaelHunt said:

I didn't think it mattered. I thought that either a person needs a visa - or doesn't. And I do.

 

Anyway, I spent my first 50 years as a (U.S.) American citizen, but I have renounced that citizenship and now I am a citizen of Belize. Does that change anything?

I would think that being a citizen of a third world country does change things in this regard.

[LukKrueng]

On 5/17/2024 at 7:40 AM, MichaelHunt said:

So is this strategy viable - to book on booking.com and then to cancel after getting the visa, and then stay with my friend?

I did it a couple of years ago. While I was at the visa service place (VHS?) I booked a hotel through one of the hotel booking sites, made sure that hotel didn't take any advance payment and can cancel up to 24 hours before check in. Showed them the confirmation on my computer screen and that was accepted. I cancelled the booking just few days before the flight.

No problems at all.

[Letseng]

5 hours ago, MichaelHunt said:

I didn't think it mattered. I thought that either a person needs a visa - or doesn't. And I do.

 

Anyway, I spent my first 50 years as a (U.S.) American citizen, but I have renounced that citizenship and now I am a citizen of Belize. Does that change anything?

How difficult or easy it is to get a Schengen visa also depends on which embassy you apply for it. I hope it won't be Germany or Austria.

[theoldgit]

1 hour ago, Letseng said:

How difficult or easy it is to get a Schengen visa also depends on which embassy you apply for it. I hope it won't be Germany or Austria.

You can’t pick and choose unfortunately, I realise you’re not suggesting you can.

You need to apply via the Consulate with jurisdiction for your main destination, or if touring and spending and equal amount of time in more than one member state, then you should apply via the Consulate’ with jurisdiction for your point of entry into Schengen.

[khunPer]

On 5/17/2024 at 6:40 AM, MichaelHunt said:

I am a Westerner living in Bangkok on a "retirement" visa. I am a citizen of a country for which a visa is necessary to enter the Schengen area.

 

I have a friend in Europe with whom I plan to stay (as a base for travels to other parts of Europe). So my first inclination was to apply under the category of "visiting a friend, who would then sponsor me - and for which I would not need a hotel booking. However, to apply in this way, it is necessary to provide copies of my friend's bank statement (as well as mine), but my friend is understandably reluctant to do this. 

 

But if I go as an ordinary tourist, then I will need to provide a hotel booking for the duration of my planned trip (nearly two months). It would be easy enough for me to book a hotel for a couple of months on booking.com and then to cancel the booking if and when I get the visa. But my travel agent here in Bangkok told me that the immigration officers in Europe sometimes call the hotel that you say you have booked - to check if they have a reservation for you. So is this strategy viable - to book on booking.com and then to cancel after getting the visa, and then stay with my friend?

 

As an alternative, would it be possible for my friend to say that she is renting me an apartment in her home (she actually has a separate apartment in her home that she uses for guests). Maybe she could provide a letter/contract saying that i will rent her apartment for the duration of my stay, for X amount? Or is it not possible to use a private apartment as accommodation for the purpose of the Schengen visa? Or must it be something booked on a known accommodation booking platform?

 

Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks very much in advance.

To my knowledge you shall apply for Schengen visa at the embassy or consulate of the Schengen-country with your primary stay. However – and do check that – you might need to apply from your home country, it might be between difficult or impossible to apply from a third country.

 

When applying for a tourist visa, you need confirmed hotel bookings, return ticket and insurance certificate (when collecting visa; don't buy any ticket before visa is approved), proof of funds, and a full agenda for your stay.

 

When visiting a friend you'll need an invitation letter, proof of your friend's accommodation size (big enough to accommodate you) and your friend's financial status; furthermore you need to proof you have a certain level of fund yourself, and of course return ticket and insurance when collecting visa.

[geisha]

Check with the embassy concerned. My understanding is you apply for a Schengen visa for citizens of Belize  .

You can legally do this twice a year ( 90 days or less in 180 days ). Take a multi entry visa if you’re planning to visit a few countries in the Schengen area. 

[ipeterrobinson17]

On the application form i filled in, the financial question is separate to the questions about where you will stay so i think you should be able to state your friend as the inviter, giving all their contact details as requested (but it doesn't request financial details).

 

Then, to answer the following question about who is covering costs of your stay, you put yourself and so then have to provide the necessary evidence to show them that.

 

This seems to be the truth of your situation so surely is the safest option?

 

I'm assuming your friend would be happy to be contacted to corroborate this.

[MichaelHunt]

6 hours ago, ipeterrobinson17 said:

On the application form i filled in, the financial question is separate to the questions about where you will stay so i think you should be able to state your friend as the inviter, giving all their contact details as requested (but it doesn't request financial details).

 

Then, to answer the following question about who is covering costs of your stay, you put yourself and so then have to provide the necessary evidence to show them that.

 

This seems to be the truth of your situation so surely is the safest option?

 

I'm assuming your friend would be happy to be contacted to corroborate this.

That would be my preferred option - to tell them that I will be staying with my friend, but that I will be supporting myself. (I have more than enough resources to support myself, not only for the duration of this trip, but for the rest of my life.) If that's not enough, then I just won't go.

 

I will call the visa processing center today to ask if I can pursue this option without needing to submit my friend's bank statement.

 

Thanks.

[theoldgit]

Off topic post removed 

[GypsyT]

On 5/18/2024 at 4:51 AM, MichaelHunt said:

I didn't think it mattered. I thought that either a person needs a visa - or doesn't. And I do.

Financial requirement per day are different and poorer countries ask for less money.

 

On 5/18/2024 at 9:21 PM, geisha said:

Take a multi entry visa if you’re planning to visit a few countries in the Schengen area. 

All 27 countries are open to visit on one visa and most don't have border checks.

 

However, it's OK to add 1 in & out entry for same price in case your want to visit Putin or Erdogan for kicks....