European destinations continue to remain one of the main choices for summer holidays for travellers from all over the world including Indians.
Recent data from Atlys, a visa processing platform, show that the demand for Schengen visas among Indian passport holders has increased significantly ahead of summer, Schengen.News reports.
While the platform did not provide any specific numbers, it is believed that Schengen member states will receive an even higher number of visa applications by Indians in 2025 than in the previous year.
As the platform explained many Indians have already filed their applications, with them seeking more diverse cultural experiences, making the bloc their perfect destination.
The surge isn’t just about numbers. It’s about Indians actively seeking diverse cultural experiences and making international travel an integral part of their lives.
In addition to the above-mentioned, the spokesperson disclosed that Indians are showing increased interest in countries that process their visas within a shorter period of time and are more accessible for first-time applicants.
In general, Schengen countries that receive the highest number of visitors during the summer months have the longest visa processing times. However, everything differs from one country to another.
Delays are registered due to other reasons too as they are not always related to the high demand.
Czechia Taking Longer to Process Visa Applications Filed by Indians Due to Incomplete Applications
In addition to the high demand, the Czech authorities said earlier in December that they are facing delays in processing Schengen visas for Indians due to incomplete applications.
Following complaints from travel agencies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Czechia said that many Indian applicants do not submit all the required supporting documents.
In these cases, the applicants are invited to provide the missing documents and this adds to the processing times.
To deal with the high number of applications and tackle these delays, Czechia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Department spokesperson said that the country has increased the capacity for short-term visa applications to be able to meet the demand.
Indians filed the third-highest number of Schengen visa applications in 2023. On the other hand, 2024 data is not yet available.
Statistics published by SchengenVisaInfo show that Indians applied for a total of 966,687 Schengen visas in 2023.
Of the total number of applicants, 811,290 received a positive decision on their application whereas 151,752 had their application rejected.