Applying for Schengen visa is 'soul-crushing', says investor: '1 page print for Rs 150'

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An Indian investor who has applied for a Schengen visa to Norway has called the experience worse than "soul-crushing" and questioned the amount of paperwork required for the long process while being charged Rs 150 for each print.

Ujjavala Bothra, an investor with Lightrock India, took to Twitter on Wednesday to share the thick dossier required for the Schengen visa and wrote, "The amount of paperwork for a Schengen visa is insane! Why is it so difficult to understand: 1. We are not interested in marrying your men, thank you. 2. We are actually adding to the GDP of your country!"

The amount of paperwork for a Schengen visa is insane! Why is it so difficult to understand:
1. We are not interested in marrying your men, thank you2. We are actually adding to the GDP of your country!! pic.twitter.com/ovul90ZsuQ Ujjavala Bothra (@ujjavalabothra) April 25, 2023

Bothra, who had an appointment with VFS Global on Wednesday said that every step of the process followed by the visa services specialist firm was "broken". "Had my VFS Global appointment today, I am convinced every step of this process is broken. My turn, for an 11:30 appointment came at 2 pm -- what is the point of booking a slot?" she said. "Apparently, the document checklist on Norway's website is outdated - Speechless!"

Bothra added that she was charged Rs 150 for each print of the enormous docket. "Soul-crushing would be an understatement to describe my visa experience. We 100 percent need more competition to VFS Global. Monopolies s****!" she tweeted.

Reacting to this incident, the visa services specialist firm told Moneycontrol, “VFS Global manages only the non-judgmental and administrative tasks related to applications for visa, passport, and consular services for its client governments, enabling them to focus entirely on the critical assessment task."

"The checklist of the documentation required for visa applications for each country is as per the requirements of the respective governments and the same is available on the VFS Global website."

Commenting on Bothra's remark on prints being charged Rs 150 each, VFS Global clarified that it's only a booklet of about five pages for which Rs 150 was charged. "VFS Global value-added services such as printouts of visa documents are optional and are available for select client governments only, as per agreed service level agreements with those governments," the firm added.

Responding to the complaints of the visa process being slow, VFS Global requested clients to be patient during this "peak travel season". "We have observed unprecedented demand in outbound travel from India since the opening of international borders in 2021 which has resulted in extended wait times occasionally at visa application centres. We, therefore, request visa applicants to be patient during this peak travel season," it said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Bothra's tweet found resonance among other Twitter users. Neha Srivastav tweeted, "I was just discussing this with my friend last night. I don’t even mind the paperwork if it's a one-time deal like the US. The US takes like bazillion details but at least gives you 10 yrs of tourist visa. These guys want this much paperwork for a 3-month visa window."

"Getting an appointment has become so difficult. They shud just make VOA for Europe. I can bet, half of India will be there for the summer. Visa is really cumbersome," added productivity coach Chetan Yallapurkar.

Twitter user Benja (@akawrh) commented "Norway is way too strict. I haven’t been able to bring my foreign family here once for visits. we always have to leave Norway to meet."

There were some others, however, who pointed out that some of the costs could be been avoided if the dossier was prepared in advance.

"Indeed it's painful, I too have paid at times. The point was, it is not a service to be used but just an arrangement that comes at high cost (besides all mint money) if we are not well prepared. Imagine the pain of going again for a new appointment," tweeted Shridhar Kodhe (@Skodhe).

While a UK national commented that it's about the same amount of paperwork required for a European to get a visa in India. "Not only that but when we study or work in India we are banned from owning property or making investments, and have to report to the police station (FRRO) every few weeks so