Organization : Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
Type of Facility : Apply For Visa
Country: Slovakia
Website : http://www.foreign.gov.sk/en/consular_info/visa
Apply For Visa :
The Schengen area is a part of the territory of the European Union in which the rules of free movement of persons, goods, services and capital apply. People may freely travel around this area without any border checks at internal borders of Schengen Member States.
Related : Migration Information Center Application For Slovak Citizenship & Necessary Documents Slovakia : www.statusin.org/9583.html
In fact, the internal borders were abolished and border checks at Schengen external borders have been reinforced in order to safeguard the security of Member States. The joint border check rules and effective oversight on the external borders aim at preventing illegal migration, drug trafficking and other illegal activities. The Schengen Member States also apply a uniform visa policy regime.
Members of the Schengen area: Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, the Netherlands, Iceland, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Germany, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Swiss Confederation, Sweden and Italy.
More information about the Schengen area is available at: ec.europa.eu
Do I need a visa to enter the Schengen area? Where can I apply for a visa?:
Foreign nationals who are subject to visa requirement and want to enter the Schengen area, with Slovakia being their target destination, must file a visa application with the competent Slovak embassy or consulate general. Foreign nationals legally residing in a third country (i.e. other than the country of their citizenship) may apply for a visa at the embassy/consulate general competent for the country of their current residence.
What is a visa?:
A visa is issued in the form of a visa sticker. Visas are issued by Slovak embassies and consulates general abroad or, under extraordinary circumstances (e.g. humanitarian reasons), by the Slovak police at a border crossing point.
The visa entitles the foreign national to transit through or to stay in the Schengen area for the period of validity of the respective visa. The length of stay and expiry date of the visa is specified on the visa sticker. Within local Schengen co-operation the Schengen Member States issue a uniform visa valid for all Schengen countries.
List of border crossings:
Land border between Slovakia and Ukraine:
1. Cierna nad Tisou – Cop (railway border crossing)
2. Ubla – Malyj Bereznyj
3. Velké Slemence – Mali Selmenici
4. Vyšné Nemecké – Užhorod
5. Matovské Vojkovce – Pavlovo (railway border crossing; cargo only)
Air borders:
1. Bratislava airport
2. Košice airport
3. Poprad airport
What type of visa do I need?:
The type of visa you will need depends on the length and purpose of your visit. A decision on the particular type of visa is made by the competent embassy or consulate general.
Types of visas currently available:
Type A Schengen visa: airport transit visa
You can normally stay in the international transit area at the airport without a visa while waiting for a connecting flight. However, some natinalities are required to have a valid visa, even if they do not leave the international transit area. The Airport Transit Visa only authorises the holder to transit through the airport’s international transit area.
Type C Schengen visa: entry visa
The visa entitles its holder to enter and stay in the Schengen area for not more than a total of 90 days within a six-month period subsequent to the date of the first entry. This visa may be issued for one or several entries (single entry and multiple entry visa).
National visa type D (long-stay):
National (long-stay) visa may be issued in relation to the granted residence permit or in connection with Slovakia´s commitments under international treaties or for the benefit of the Slovak Republic. It si allowed for long-term visa holders to travel to other member states (outside the frontier of the state who issued the visa), however the total of stay cannot exceed 90 days in any six month period.
When should I apply for a visa?:
The visa application procedure may be lengthy in some cases. Therefore, you should file your application well in advance, but not sooner than three months prior to your planned trip. Under the applicable law, the visa application procedure shall not take longer than 15 days, in exceptional cases the decision may take up to 60 days.
Exemptions apply to the nationals of the third countries which have signed Community-level visa facilitation agreements. Such countries include Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Serbia, Georgia and Ukraine. With respect to the nationals of the aforementioned countries, the decision must be delivered within 10 calendar days of the delivery of a completed visa application. Nationals of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia don´t need visa, if they are holders of biometric passports.
Do I need to file my visa application in person?:
You must visit the embassy or consulate general in person in order to submit your visa application and verbally explain the purpose and circumstances of your journey. In the case of minors, the application is submitted by their legal guardian.
You may be exempt from the requirement to submit your visa application in person in certain exceptional cases. To learn if you are exempted from requirement of personal apprearance, you should contact the competent embassy or consulate general.
Can I apply for visa at the Slovak consulate even if I intend to visit other Schengen countries?:
The consulate of the Schengen state which is the main destination of your visit is always competent to process your visa application.
If you are going to visit several Schengen states, the Slovak consulate will be competent to process your application only if Slovakia is the main destination of your stay(s) in Schengen and Slovakia is the state in which you intend to spend most of your time.
I applied for visa. What does the admissibility stamp in my passport mean?:
Upon submission of the application a stamp indicating that the application is admissible shall be placed in the passport or the travel document. This stamp has no legal implications and will be covered by a visa sticker if the visa is granted.
I have a valid Schengen visa in my passport. Can I be denied entry to Slovakia?:
Your Schengen visa allows you to travel to Slovakia and usually to other Schengen States. But it does not automatically entitle you to enter the Schengen area. You may have to provide certain information at border or other controls. You may, for instance, have to provide information on your means of support, how long you intend to stay in Slovakia, and why you are visiting Slovakia. In some cases, such checks may result in a refusal for you to enter Slovakia.
It is therefore recommended that you carry with you copies of the documents which you presented when you applied for the visa (e.g. letters of invitation, travel confirmations, other documents stating the purpose of your stay). This will help to make the border control procedure easier and avoid delays at the border.
Warning:
You must keep to the period of stay allowed by your visa. Misuse and overstay may result in your being expelled and banned from obtaining a new visa for a certain period of time.
What happens if my visa application has been refused?:
The decision on and the motivation of the refusal of a visa are notified to the visa applicant in writing by means of a standard form.
May I file an appeal if my application has been refused?:
If your application has been refused you have the right to appeal. A written decision on visa refusal you have received provides detailed information on available remedies.
The appeal shall be lodged at the Embassy/Consulate General of the Slovak Republic which has issued the decision. The appeal must be lodged within 15 days of receipt of the decision. It must contain information about the appellant; specify what is the incorrectness in the decision and its discrepancy with the legal regulations. The appeal must be submitted in the Slovak language; otherwise an official certified translation must be attached. When lodging an appeal the appellant is required to pay an administrative fee of EUR 30 (in respective currency). If the appeal has been allowed (the application will be re-opened) the Embassy/Consulate General shall reimburse the fee.
Is my visa valid only in Slovakia?:
Territorial validity of the visa is specified on a visa sticker in the “Platné pre/Valid for” line. The visa may be valid for all Schengen Member States. In that case, “Valid for: Schengen countries” is specified on the visa sticker entitling its holder to move freely within the entire Schengen area for the period of the visa validity and duration of stay.
In the case of a visa with limited territorial validity, the following may be specified on the visa sticker: “Valid for: the Slovak Republic” (i.e., the visa is valid only for the Slovak Republic), or “Schengen countries – GR” (i.e., the visa is valid for all Schengen countries except Greece), or “Valid for: SK, AT” (i.e., the visa is valid only for the Slovak Republic and Austria).