Sweden Schengen Visa Interview

If you decide to apply for a Schengen visa to Sweden, you will need to fulfill a number of requirements throughout the application process, which culminates for most applicants in a  Schengen visa interview. What is asked in your Schengen visa interview will vary depending on what country you are applying to. If you are asked to attend an interview for a Schengen visa from Sweden, you should be prepared to answer specific Sweden Schengen visa interview questions. This blog will teach you how to pass a Sweden visa interview by preparing you to answer the most commonly asked Sweden Schengen visa interview questions. Read on to discover country-specific information for Sweden, and for more general information applicable to all Schengen visa interviews, such as the top 10 most asked questions during a Schengen visa interview. Discover what mistakes to avoid during a Schengen visa interview and find out how long does a Schengen visa interview take, so that you are completely prepared in the event you are called to interview! 

Schengen visa interview

• If you apply for a Schengen visa, you will likely be asked to attend an interview for a Schengen visa at the embassy, consulate, or visa application center affiliated with the country you are applying to. 
• For example, if you are applying for a Swedish Schengen visa, you will attend your Schengen visa interview at the Swedish Embassy, Consulate, or visa application center closest to you. 
• Your Schengen visa interview will likely be scheduled to coincide with your general Schengen visa appointment. Most Schengen countries require applicants to make a Schengen visa appointment in order to hand in their complete application. In addition to officially submitting their complete application and all of the associated required documents, the Schengen visa appointment is where the applicant will submit his or her biometric information (photos and fingerprints) and pay the Schengen visa fee. It is at this Schengen visa appointment that most applicants will attend their Schengen visa interview. 
• The majority of Schengen countries require all applicants, regardless of where they are applying from, to sit for a short interview. At this interview, they will be asked basic questions about themselves and about their upcoming trip to Sweden.

How to pass a Sweden visa interview

• The advice for passing an interview for Sweden is not necessarily country specific; these same guidelines apply universally to all Schengen visa applicants, regardless of where they are applying to or from. 
• In asking the below Schengen visa questions, the interviewer is attempting to confirm that what you wrote on your written application matches your verbal answers. 
• Whether your verbal answers match your written questions will help answer the overriding question the interview is trying to determine: Is this person a good candidate for a Schengen visa?
• A good candidate for a Schengen visa is someone who:
  • Does not present a security/criminal risk to Sweden/the Schengen area.
  • Will leave Sweden/the Schengen area before their visa expires.
  • Has enough money to afford their trip to Sweden/the Schengen area.
  • Understands their visa terms and conditions.
• In responding to the below questions you should remember that the interviewer is looking to assess if you have strong ties to your home country. Therefore, the more ways you can emphasize all of the connections to your home, the better. 
• This means that Schengen visa applicants for Sweden or any country should try to convey to the interviewer how much they enjoy living in their home country and how full their life is there. 
• As an applicant, you should emphasize your personal relationships in your home country, and how important they are to you. Applicants who are married, have children, and are close to their parents are considered less likely to attempt to overstay their time in the Schengen area, or try to seek asylum somewhere there.  
• Similarly, candidates who are enrolled in degree-seeking programs, or have secure, stable jobs, are more likely to be considered good candidates, as are those who own their own home/businesses. 

Basic questions

• Some of the questions you are asked in your interview will be country-specific (i.e. about your trip to Sweden specifically). Others will be simple biographical questions about you and your life. Some of the top 10 most asked questions during a Schengen visa interview include basic biographical questions like:
  • Where specifically were you born? 
  • Where do currently reside?
  • What do you do for a living? 
  • What is your monthly/yearly salary?
  • Are you married? 
  • Do you have a girlfriend? 
  • Do you have children?
  • Where do your parents live and what do they do for a living?
  • Are you currently enrolled as a student? What is the highest level of education that you have achieved? 
  • Do you own your own home/appartement? 
  • Have you ever been part of a terrorist organization?
• As you can see, the above biographical questions are basic and are relevant to applicants for Schengen visas from any country, including Sweden. 

Sweden Schengen visa interview questions

• Unlike the above basic biographical questions, the below Sweden Schengen visa interview questions will specifically relate to Sweden and therefore require you to do a little research about the country beforehand. Make sure you are prepared to demonstrate your knowledge of basic information about the country, particularly when it comes to how much things cost there.  
• Sweden takes the Swedish Kroner; your interviewer knows how much things cost in the country and will try to determine that you have enough money to afford your trip. This is a main reason why they will ask you questions like where you will stay in Sweden once you arrive—they want to know that you can afford the option you have chosen. 
• Possible Sweden questions could include the following:
  • Why do you want to come to Sweden?
  • When will you enter/leave Sweden?
  • Do you know anyone in Sweden/have friends and family there?
  • Why do you need so much time in Sweden? Why don’t you get a visa for a shorter period?
  • How will you fund your trip to Sweden?
  • What do you intend to see/do in Sweden?
  • Do you know how much things cost in Sweden? 
  • Where do you intend to stay in Sweden?
• In asking the above questions, your interviewer is trying to make sure that you have a specific, valid reason for visiting Sweden. Talk about the specific reason why you are coming to Sweden, and everything you want to see there. 
• For example, if you are coming to Sweden for the purpose of tourism, talk about your interest in Scandinavian culture, your intention to Stockholm and see the colorful houses there, and your interest in visiting the Vasa Maritime Museum. 
• Make sure that you have an idea of where you are going to stay once you arrive in Sweden and talk about how where you intend to stay reflects your budget. 
• Makes sure you have a specific timeframe for when you are going to enter and leave Sweden. Talk about a specific future event you have to attend in your home country, such as a graduation or wedding. This will help convey to your interviewer that you need to be back to your home country. 

Schengen interview questions

• In addition to answering basic biographical questions and questions about your trip to Sweden, you will also likely be asked specific questions meant to probe your knowledge of the terms and conditions of your Schengen visa. Pursuant to this objective, you could be asked any of the following questions:
  • Do you know how long your Schengen visa is valid for?
  • Do you know how long you can stay in Sweden on your visa?
  • Do you know where you can go in the Schengen area on your visa?
  • Have you purchased travel medical insurance in advance of your trip?
• Make sure you demonstrate your awareness of the fact that a Schengen visa is valid for 90 days within a 180-day period, and that you can go anywhere in the Schengen area with one (so long as your visa is a Uniform Visa, rather than Limited Territorial Visa (LTV).

How long does the Schengen visa interview take?

• Most Schengen visa interviews are over in under 20 minutes.  

Mistakes to avoid during a Schengen visa interview

• Avoid the below mistakes in order to pass your Schengen visa interview:
  • Lying (you should never lie during your Schengen visa interview. If you are found to have been dishonest on your application or during your interview, your application will almost certainly be rejected). 
  • Arriving late (make an effort to show up on time to your appointment. If you are late, your appointment might be rescheduled). 
  • Lacking confidence (look your interviewer in the eye, respond firmly and directly to questions). 
  • Dressing sloppily (while you don’t need to dress up for your interview, you should make sure that you arrive looking presentable). 
  • Being impolite (always speak courteously to your interviewer).