AHMEDABAD: Planning to travel to Europe for a holiday, business trip or to meet friends and family? Give yourself at least four months of buffer time as Schengen visa issues may affect your plans. Even after the European Union offered multi-year visas to Indian nationals, delays in bookings, high processing charges and rising rejection rates are plaguing travellers. Travel agents estimate that the waiting time for Schengen visa is at least 60-90 days. With conferences, exhibitions and symposiums scheduled in Europe from August, students, professionals, researchers and businessmen have started planning their Europe trips. People who prefer to travel in the off-season have also started making plans. Ankit Bajaj, owner of an Ahmedabad-based travel agency, said, “I advise my clients to strictly plan their Europe trips at least four to five months in advance so that their trips go as planned. Bookings are not being easily taken even if there are special reasons like urgent visits. Moreover, rising visa processing fees and high rejection rates are putting travellers in a bind,” Bajaj said. “It makes things worse as those who are rejected don't have a clear idea as to why their visa application has been rejected.” Schengen visa allows travel within the Schengen area, i.e. around 27 countries, and eliminates the need for border checks for visa holders. “While applying for a tourist visa, a pre-booked air ticket has to be submitted, which means customers have to spend lakhs of rupees without any visa guarantee. People plan their European trips years in advance and save money, but such delays in processing act as a deterrent,” said Birendra Shah, president, Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), Gujarat. To make matters worse, the European Union has increased visa processing fees for children and adults by 12 percent. The fee hike for Schengen visa (Type C) came into effect from June 12. The visa application fee is 90 euros (around 8,200 rupees) per adult and 45 euros (around 4,100 rupees) per child between the ages of 6 and 12.
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