Belgium is a country that is included in the Schengen area, therefore, when entering a foreign citizen, a valid Schengen visa is required. How to arrange it yourself, where to submit the documents, what certificates need to be prepared, how much the registration costs, the terms of consideration and much more, you will learn from our article.
All the most interesting facts about Belgium in our article.
Types of visas
To be able to visit the country, two types of visas are issued - type "C" visa, type "D" visa. These visas have certain differences. A "C" type visa is issued for a short stay in the country, no more than ninety days from the moment of crossing the border. The purpose of entry can be tourism, visiting relatives, sightseeing.
The second type of visa - "D", is valid for a much longer period of time. There may be such purposes for entry - treatment, education, marriage. This visa is long-term in validity.
Visa category "C"
The "C" type visa is the most popular type of document for our compatriots to cross the Belgian border. A Russian citizen who wants to obtain a visa to visit Belgium must submit a package of documents to the Belgian Embassy in Russia.
At the time of contacting the consulate, a citizen is obliged to provide a number of documents:
1. Original foreign passport. Document requirements:
- at the time of departure from the territory of Belgium, the passport must be valid for another three months
- at least one last page in the document must be blank
2. A copy of all significant pages of the international passport.
3. Visa application form, which can be downloaded free of charge on the website of the Belgian Embassy. The application form must be completed personally by the applicant in a foreign language (English), certified by a signature.
4. Confirmation of the issuance of previous visas, if any. It can be a copy of an expired foreign passport with a visa stamp.
5. Two color photographs, the requirements for which are described below.
6. Insurance confirming and covering the possibility of treatment, transportation to the homeland in case of accidents or other unforeseen circumstances. The insurance must cover the cost of 30 thousand euros. Insurance guarantees must be valid in any of the countries of the European Union. Insurance is issued with the help of insurance companies, a list of which, in the territory of the applicant's country of residence, is given on the official website of the Embassy.
7. When visiting a country on a private visit, you need to prepare additional documents. These include the following:
- the original invitation of the receiving party, which should display information about the purpose of the visit, the time spent in the country, as well as general information about the invited party. The invitation is drawn up in no particular order
- documents that can prove the relationship of the inviting party and the applicant
- obligation of the inviting party to take the applicant for maintenance, drawn up on the official letterhead of Belgium
- confirmation of the material security of the receiving party - bank statements, wages, etc.
- a document from Belgium of the inviting party, which confirms the legality of his stay in the country.
8. If the applicant intends to visit the country solely for tourist purposes, the embassy needs the following information as a confirmation: a copy of the agreement on the booked hotel room, either with partial payment (first installment), or with a fully paid amount per room. The contract can be sent by e-mail or fax.
If the stay in the country is of a transit nature and at the same time the tourist is going to visit the territory of the country outside the airport, confirmation of the hotel reservation will also be required.
9. When visiting Belgium on a working visit, additional documents are drawn up for the embassy. These include an invitation from the host - a company in Belgium. The invitation states that the company is obliged to bear all the costs of the applicant. Original and copy provided.
10. Travel plan for each day, drawn up in a foreign language. Use of English is preferred.
11. Confirmation of booking tickets, always in two directions.
12. Provision of evidence of the applicant's solvency. These can be bank statements, traveler's checks, payroll statements. The amount of financial support for the trip is calculated taking into account the expenses of fifty euros per day per person.
13. Certificate issued at the place of work of the applicant. This document must be printed on the company's letterhead, indicating information about the length of service, the size of the salary, confirmation of official leave for the duration of stay in the country, as well as the safety of the place of work at this time.
14. Students to visit Belgium provide the embassy with a student card, a certificate from the dean's office; pensioners - a pension certificate. Also, to the above documents, both in the first and in the second case, it is necessary to provide information on the salary of the receiving party and a document on the readiness to take on the applicant's maintenance for the duration of the trip.
The embassy has the right to request additional documents to consider the possibility of issuing a visa!
Transit visa
This type of visa through the territory of Belgium is not required if two conditions are met:
- if the applicant does not plan to leave the airport area
- if the applicant stays in Belgium for no more than one day
In other cases, a transit visa is required!
Visa documents for a child
To visit Belgium with a child, parents submit the following documents to the embassy:
1. Permission to take out the child, which is issued in the form of a questionnaire. Signatures of two parents are required here. This document must be provided even if one of the parents is traveling with the child.
2. Obligatory submission to the Embassy of the birth certificate.
A visa for children under 14 years old is affixed to the parents' document, if the child is more than 14 years old, then to his own passport.
3. A notarized power of attorney for the removal of a child from the country of nationality is drawn up if a third person accompanies him on the trip. A copy of the national passport of the parent on whose behalf the power of attorney was issued is attached here.
4. A copy of the significant pages of the parents' national passport if the child is sent to Belgium accompanied by one of the parents. In this case, the parents must be married at the moment.
Photo requirements
For the above documents, two photographs are submitted, which are attached to the visa application form. Photos must meet certain requirements:
- photographs should be printed only on matte paper, without corners, frames or other marks
- the background should be monochromatic, predominantly light shades
- it is recommended to take a photo just before contacting the Embassy
- in the photo, the person should not be wearing glasses, a hat or other accessories
- it is necessary to submit two photos, one of which should be pasted on the first page of the visa application form, in the place intended for this, the other should be pinned to it with a paper clip
Service fee for visa processing
The amount of fees is calculated per person. Obligatory consular and service fees.The amount of the consular fee depends on the type of visa requested, on the length of stay in the country. The consular fee is not charged for children under 6 years old who are citizens of the CIS. The service fee set for everyone is the same - 1274 rubles.
Visa processing time
You should take care of obtaining a visa in advance. The best time is two to three weeks before the check-out date. In general, this process is not long and takes from 4 to 10 working days. Delays are possible if the Embassy sends an information request about the applicant to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgium.
Visa validity period
Visa "C" can be issued to the applicant for no more than ninety days. However, in this case, most often the validity of the visa is the time spent on the trip, with the specified dates of entry and exit from the country. It is possible to issue a visa with multiple entry, then in the application form submitted to the consulate, the total number of days for a six-month period is indicated, taking into account multiple trips. The terms of validity of a transit visa and the rules of action are the same as with the type "C" visa.
More detailed information on the amount of payment for a visa, on the types of visas and on the list of documents, can be obtained by visiting the official website of the Belgian Embassy in Russia. Here is a complete, up-to-date information on all services provided. On the official website, the applicant will have access to download the application form for submission to the embassy.
We recommend reading the article: What to see in Brussels.
