Can I extend my Schengen visa?

Congratulations! You’ve received a Schengen visa and you’re busy making the most of your trip, traveling around the Schengen area and exploring new countries and cultures. You know your Schengen visa duration is 90 days, but you wish you could stay longer. Can you extend your visa and have more time?

This scenario is a common one for many travelers who successfully receive a Schengen visa but end up dreaming about spending more time in the Schengen area. If this situation applies to you, read on to find out further information about the Schengen visa extension process, including Schengen visa extension fees, and for general information about how to extend periods of travel to the Schengen area. 

Quick Summary:

• “Can I extend my Schengen visa?” In short, yes. It is possible to get more time on your Schengen visa. However, the process to extend the Schengen visa is serious – in order for your extension to be accepted, you must have an extraordinary reason for seeking it.  

Schengen Visa Validity

• You probably have already heard the basic description of a Schengen visa duration as being 90 days, i.e. being valid for “90 days within a 180 period.” Let’s break down what this actually means:
  • Schengen visas are “valid for 90 days” = you can spend up to 90 days in the Schengen area on that particular Schengen visa. Once you have spent a total of 90 days in the area, you must exit the zone so as to not be found in violation of your visa validity period. 
  • …”within a 180-day period” = This aspect of Schengen visa validity refers to the fact that a Schengen visa can only be used once in a space of 180 days. This stipulation is meant to prevent people from applying for successive Schengen visas and essentially stacking them on top of each other to create one large visa validity period, which would effectively allow someone to stay in the Schengen area for more than 90 days within a 180 period. 
• All Schengen visas countries, categories and types are valid for the same amount of time. For example, a Schengen visa for France is valid for the same length of time as a Schengen visa from the Netherlands; a Schengen business visa is valid for the same length of time as a Schengen tourism visa. 
• Simply put, your Schengen visa is valid for 90 days. After you have spent 90 days in the Schengen area, you must leave in order not to be in violation of your visa validity terms. 

Schengen Visa Extension Requirements

• While it is possible to extend your Schengen visa, most countries only approve extension requests for extraordinary reasons. 
• The Schengen visa extension requirements are as follows:
  • To have your Schengen visa extended, your situation has to be considered extreme (an emergency). A common scenario in which an extension would likely be granted is if you became extremely sick while you were about to leave-so sick as to rule out the possibility of travel.  
  • You have to provide credible evidence in the form of materials/physical proof for why you need an extension. For example, if you are currently hospitalized, you should provide official papers from your doctor expressing the severity of your condition. 
  • Please note, your extension will almost certainly be rejected if your stated explanation for an extension is found to be a cover for your true purpose of wanting to seek a more permanent form of residency in the Schengen area.  
  • You must hold a passport/travel document that is less than 10 years old and will not expire in 6 months or less. 
  • Extensions will only be given to those who can continue to financially support themselves while on their trip, so in order to be approved for one, you must supply evidence that you have enough funds to cover your living expenses in the Schengen area going forward, throughout the extension period. 
  •  If you’re going to extend your visa, you must also extend your travel health insurance so that covers you throughout your extension period (if it would not cover you already). 

Extended Schengen Visas

• Newly extended Schengen visas are valid for an additional 90 days.  
• Theoretically, all Schengen visa extensions should be valid for the same period of time/territory as your original Schengen visas. This means that if your original Schengen was a uniform Schengen (i.e. one that granted you access to all 26 Schengen countries), your extension should also be uniform in nature. Similarly, if your original Schengen visa was a Limited Territorial Visa (LTV) for one specific Schengen country, your newly extended Schengen visa will also be an LTV for that same country. 
• However, certain Schengen visa extensions may only be valid for the country you receive it through. This would be in contrast to your pre-extension Schengen visa, which is likely valid for entry and use throughout the entire Schengen area, rather than just one country. 
• Schengen visa extensions come in the form of a visa sticker, which is pasted within your travel document (passport). 

Where to apply to extend a Schengen visa?

• If you’re confused about where to apply to extend a Schengen Visa, don’t worry – the process can appear perplexing!
• You must apply for your Schengen visa extension from within the Schengen area, once you are already there on your Schengen visa. 
• In general, the process to extend the Schengen visa lies with the relevant immigration authorities of the Schengen country in which you are currently present (i.e. whatever country you are in when you choose to apply for an extension). To apply for an extension, you should therefore contact the relevant consular authorities of the country you wish to apply from.  
• Different countries may have different authorities responsible for processing Schengen visa extensions. For example, if you are seeking an extension from within the Netherlands, you should contact the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to begin your Schengen visa online extension. 
• Remember, if you applied for a Schengen visa to the Netherlands, you don’t necessarily have to apply for your extension through the Netherlands, so long as you are present in, and apply from, a Schengen country.  

Schengen Visa Extension Fees

• Schengen visa extensions are subject to a basic fee of 30 EUR. 
• Please note that all visa extension fees will be waived in the event that an applicant can credibly prove that her or she cannot return home for humanitarian reasons within his visa validity period. 

How to extend periods of travel in the Schengen area?

• In addition to applying for a visa extension, there are several options for how to extend periods of travel in the Schengen area. These include the following:
  • Apply for a National Visa (D):
    • If you are looking to extend your period of travel in the Schengen area, you could try to apply for a National Visa to a specific-Schengen country. 
    • National Visas are not Schengen visas – they are country-specific visas that theoretically may be obtained from any Schengen or European country. National Visa application processes are entirely separate from that of the Schengen, and national visas are often obtainable for periods of long stay (i.e. stays longer than 90 days). 
  • Apply for asylum:
    • If you fear that returning to your home country could result in your serious injury or death, you might try to claim asylum in a particular Schengen country. 
    • Because this process is so complex, time consuming, and fraught (if your claim is denied, you probably be immediately deported back to your home country, and likely banned from future entries to the Schengen area). It is only recommended in extreme circumstances. 
• Please remember there is no such thing as a “Schengen visa renewal process.” Visa renewal processes exist exclusively for non-Schengen National Visas. Schengen visas can never be renewed, only extended. 
• Remember, however you try to extend your stay in the Schengen area, it is important that you pursue extension options prior to your current Schengen visa expiration date. 
• Illegally staying in the Schengen area after your visa expires in order to acquire more time in the area is highly discouraged, could result in your deportation, and could ultimately include your being banned from future trips to the Schengen area.