Experts told what difficulties tourists from Turkey and Morocco face in obtaining Schengen visas.
So, at the moment, every third applicant from Turkey is denied Schengen visas – this is twice as many as before. In 2021, 16.5% of those who applied for a visa did not receive it, in 2020 – 12.5%.
The cost of a Schengen visa in Turkey is about 100 euros. Citizens have to wait for slots to apply for a visa for two to four months.
The Turkish authorities believe that the long processing times and the increase in the number of refusals are “hidden sanctions” of the EU. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that the agency will appeal to the ambassadors of Western countries in September with a demand to take action, but if the situation does not change, Turkey is ready to apply counter restrictions.
A similar situation with Schengen visas is also developing in Morocco – this is also how an increase in the number of refusals is observed. In 2021, 157,000 visa applications were submitted in the country, of which almost a third – 28% – were rejected. In this regard, two public organizations in Morocco filed suits in European courts.