Schengen visa processing times have been reduced for foreign residents in the United Arab Emirates who plan to travel to Europe.
The wait times will now average two weeks, or less, and foreign residents can also benefit from cheaper airfares.
The change
Gulf News reported that there was an increase in the number of GCC and UAE residents visiting European holiday destinations in the recent winter travel season.
This was particularly obvious during the Christmas and New Year holidays. There are no visa requirements applicable to passport holders of the UAE.
However, foreigners who live in the United Arab Emirates have to fulfill visa requirements before they can travel to Schengen countries.
However, travelers were often discouraged because the processing time for appointments for Schengen visa from October to the end of December was around two months or more.
Now, booking slots have been opened up by European embassies in the United Arab Emirates and it will take less than two weeks for visas to be processed.
This further allows foreign travelers to make plans of visiting Europe, as they have already shown interest in doing so.
Early booking
Even though booking times have now improved, VFS Global’s Regional Head, Monaz Billimoria, suggested that visa processing appointments should be booked by UAE residents in advance.
This is to avoid any potential delays, which are likely to happen during busy travel seasons. As compared to 2019, there was a 12% rise in visa applications in 2023.
Between 2021 and 2023, the visa applications experienced a staggering 145% increase. Moreover, it should also be noted that even in 2024, Europe still remains the top choice of travelers from the UAE.
This is despite an increase in travel expenses by 22%. Travelers are willing to pay higher prices for getting the best experiences and there is optimism that 2024 would also be a strong year.
World Trips disclosed that on average, the total amount spent by travelers during their European travels stood at €2,602 as compared to €2,326 in 2022.
Airfares decline
Not only has the visa process become more streamlined, airfares to a number of European cities have also declined to less than €276.
In April, the main European destinations for UAE travelers are France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Spain.
In the previous year, there was a 40% to 50% surge in the travel demand to Europe, which even surpassed levels recorded in 2019.
Director of the Spanish Tourism Office located in Abu Dhabi, Daniel Rosado, also highlighted the growth in demand.
He revealed that there was a 7.9% increase in the projected seats from the UAE for the winter campaign in Spain.
Meanwhile, there was a 27% increase in searches from UAE to Spain, while a 29.1% increase was seen in airline bookings.
As for airlines, they have also become more competitive in terms of main routes. The economy fares for flights scheduled between January 10th and January 24th from Dubai to Paris stand at €131.
This is by Wizz Air, while Emirates fare for the same route is €248. The same cost €414 in December.
