Getting a visa to Spain

[josh2203]

Spanish embassies in general are a pita to deal with. Not sure if they have the same system in the DR but here you have to make an appointment online (which is difficult) and they don’t let you in if you didn’t. As for flights AirEuropa has cheap direct flights between SDQ and Madrid.

Out of curiosity, just went to the Spanish embassy / VAC page, appears that they use the same appointment reservation system as does my own country but for passport renewals. Yes, that system (VFSGlobal) is a piece of s**t. A couple of weeks ago I had to make appointments to renew the kids passports and even the official admitted that it does not matter what I enter in the system, just need to have a booking number, period. That's what I did.

But obviously, if you have no appointment, they would not let you in... I just consider this one of those things one has to put up with dealing with the/any govt...

 

[Drperson]

yesterday they didnt give visas to about 80 of the top producers of a company who won a european cruise. all had return tickets, criuse tickets, and european visas but were rejected as the flight had to go to madrid then to london.i am sure the company lost over $100,000.

 

[tht]

Did these eighty top producers go to the Spanish embassy to apply for a visa to the UK (London)? The UK is not in Schengen so that wouldn' work very well. If the final destination was London those eighty would need a visa for the UK. Just to clarify this.. the European continent is not the same as the European Union which is not the same as the Schengen (I believe ¨European Visa") area.

 

[Kricke87]

Did these eighty top producers go to the Spanish embassy to apply for a visa to the UK (London)? The UK is not in Schengen so that wouldn' work very well. If the final destination was London those eighty would need a visa for the UK. Just to clarify this.. the European continent is not the same as the European Union which is not the same as the Schengen (I believe ¨European Visa") area.

You must have not read that the reason why they needed the visa was because the flight had to go to Madrid.. So yeah they would need a visa to Schengen (Spain) but also to the UK...
@Drperson
Do you know why they were rejected? Because I've heard a couple that were rejected because the embassy thought that they were going to stay in Spain/Schengen. But in this case it's safe to say that they were NOT going to overstay if they were only going to do a Transit.

 

[tht]

You must have not read that the reason why they needed the visa was because the flight had to go to Madrid.. So yeah they would need a visa to Schengen (Spain) but also to the UK...

Yes I read the post. The final destination was London where to you get a UK visa? Not at the Spanish embassy.

 

[Drperson]

Did these eighty top producers go to the Spanish embassy to apply for a visa to the UK (London)? The UK is not in Schengen so that wouldn' work very well. If the final destination was London those eighty would need a visa for the UK. Just to clarify this.. the European continent is not the same as the European Union which is not the same as the Schengen (I believe ¨European Visa") area.

they all have schenegen visas.my understanding is because the flight had. a stop in madrid they needed a spanish visa ie first port of entry.
unbelievable as there is no tel you can call and they never answer emails.
they treat people so very badly without any conscience. people were crying as they worked hard to get the trip and were looking forward to it.

 

[josh2203]

they all have schenegen visas.my understanding is because the flight had. a stop in madrid they needed a spanish visa ie first port of entry.

That unfortunately makes no sense as Spain is part of Schengen...

 

[josh2203]

That unfortunately makes no sense as Spain is part of Schengen...

I might have misread/misunderstood, so asking: From which embassy did they have the Schengen visas?

 

[Notengo]

Doesn’t make sense to me either.
If they are not entering or staying in an EU country and do not need to cross border control they might not even need a Schengen visa.

For a transit only (within the transit area) in Spain to the UK they would only need a Spain Airport Transit Visa.

To be clear the Schengen Agreement was set up to eliminate extra border controls between associated EU countries. That doesn’t apply here.

I guess someone messed up the visa requirements..

 

[tht]

If they are not entering or staying in an EU country and do not need to cross border control they might not even need a Schengen visa.

For a transit only (within the transit area) in Spain to the UK they would only need a Spain Airport Transit Visa.

From Spain to the UK they would need a UK visa, the UK is not in Schengen. If these eighty tried to make the connection in Spain they would not be allowed to board without a UK visa.

 

[Notengo]

From Spain to the UK they would need a UK visa, the UK is not in Schengen. If these eighty tried to make the connection in Spain they would not be allowed to board without a UK visa.

Of course they need a UK visa. It is not about that, it is what more they need for a transit in Spain itself.

For comparison: If I fly from the EU to the DR via the US I need an Esta, even if it is only in transit.

 

[Drperson]

You must have not read that the reason why they needed the visa was because the flight had to go to Madrid.. So yeah they would need a visa to Schengen (Spain) but also to the UK...
@Drperson
Do you know why they were rejected? Because I've heard a couple that were rejected because the embassy thought that they were going to stay in Spain/Schengen. But in this case it's safe to say that they were NOT going to overstay if they were only going to do a Transit.

they just gave everybody a form letter of rejectioin.. yes. they had the tickets to go from madrid to spain and the Schengen visas which i think is for all of europe and the ports of call for the cruise.

Schengen

 

[Drperson]

I might have misread/misunderstood, so asking: From which embassy did they have the Schengen visas?

sorry i dont know. a different office . not spain.

 

[Drperson]

some people had net worth of over $ 1million dollars,good proven income, money in the bank, children and husbands here.written guarentees from the president of the company(a large well known company with over 1 thousand employees).
the spanish office was open 2 hours a couple of days a week. didnt answer the tel ever or emails.

this is one of the worst examples of bad customer service.
i am surprised thd cruise line and airlines and tour companies didnt protect and or pull strings

 

[Kricke87]

they just gave everybody a form letter of rejectioin.. yes. they had the tickets to go from madrid to spain and the Schengen visas which i think is for all of europe and the ports of call for the cruise.

Well then that doesn't make any sense, because if you already have a VALID Schengen visa, no matter which country approved it, you don't need a "special" visa to enter just into Spain, that's just NOT how it works. If you have a VALID Schengen visa you are eligible to enter any of the member countries, which Spain is a part of.

 

[tht]

Of course they need a UK visa. It is not about that, it is what more they need for a transit in Spain itself.

For comparison: If I fly from the EU to the DR via the US I need an Esta, even if it is only in transit.

If they already had a valid Schengen visa they would be allowed to enter the Schengen area. If the final destination was the UK (or any country not in Schengen) they could even be denied boarding at SDQ if they did not hold required entry docs to the final destination.

US is different there's no transit. You go through immigration and back through security. In other words you enter the US and you leave the US. You may miss your connection, but that's how it is. That's why you need ESTA even for international connections.

they just gave everybody a form letter of rejectioin.. yes. they had the tickets to go from madrid to spain and the Schengen visas which i think is for all of europe and the ports of call for the cruise.

I'm just curious here. What sort of visa was rejected if they already had the Schengen visa? With a Schengen visa you are allowed to enter the Schengen area no other visa required. I can't see any reason why someone would apply for a visa the already have.

 

[johne]

The Schengen Agreement

Citizens of Schengen countries can cross the internal borders of all member states without passport checks. The Schengen visa entitles the holder to visits of up to 90 days every 6 months in the entire Schengen area.

www.auswaertiges-amt.de

For the key points

 

[Liberator]

Back to post #1, satisfied with the answers?

 

[josh2203]

If they already had a valid Schengen visa they would be allowed to enter the Schengen area.

I'm wondering here (could not find an exact answer), if your entry point into the Schengen area can be other country than who issued your visa? You can indeed freely travel once in the area, but can your entry point differ from the visa issuer land?

For US/ESTA, this is clear as this was the reason my wife's first ever Schengen visa in 2010 was not approved. I made the mistake (I was young and naive back then) of purchasing the cheapest flights that took the routing via MIA... Obviously without US visa that was not going to work and as she showed up with the itinerary I had provided to the embassy, she was sent straight back out... I was so embarrassed and angry at myself then...

 

[Liberator]

I'm wondering here (could not find an exact answer), if your entry point into the Schengen area can be other country than who issued your visa? You can indeed freely travel once in the area, but can your entry point differ from the visa issuer land?

No, you cannot, free travelling is possible, Spain is the hub for many Latin people to enter Europe. Remember that you need a guarantor in most European countries.