PAKISTAN TOPS LIST FOR MOST SCHENGEN VISA REJECTIONS
In 2023, out of the 10.3 million Schengen visa applications, 16% were rejected, with France turning down the most requests. Among all countries, Comoros faced the highest rejection rate, with 61% of its 3,700 applications denied, according to Schengen Statistics.
Following Comoros, applicants from foreign nations seeking visas in Greece encountered a rejection rate of 56.4% from Greek visa application centers, especially for visas bound for Norway.
Although applicants from certain countries didn’t file the highest number of visa applications, their rejection rates, compared to the total number of requests, were notably higher than those from countries with larger populations and more applications. Data indicates that African and Asian countries face higher rejection rates from Schengen consulates.
Six of the top ten nationalities with the highest rejection rates were from Africa: Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Mali, Guinea, and Sudan.
– Comoros: 57.6% of visa applications to France were rejected.
– Greece (for Norway-bound visas): 37% of 4,900 applications were denied.
– Guinea-Bissau: 47.6% of 5,500 applications to Spain and Portugal were denied.
– Pakistan: 49.6% of 86,700 applications were rejected, making it the highest number of rejected applications worldwide.
– Ghana: 47.6% of 21,200 applications were denied.
– Mali: 46.1% of applications were rejected.
Other countries with high rejection rates included Syria (46%), Guinea (43.7%), Bangladesh (43.3%), and Sudan (42.3%).
