10 countries most likely to reject your Schengen visa application

The summer holidays are upon us, and many UAE residents are looking to travel to European countries to escape the sweltering heat in the country. With temperatures having crossed 50.4°C on Friday, there could be no better time to head to the snow-capped mountains in northern Europe.

However, for most, all travel plans hinge on securing a Schengen visa on time. As earlier reported by Gulf News, Schengen visa appointment slots in the UAE are already booked until August because of the Eid and the summer holiday rush.

Germany, too, is rolling back its remonstration procedure for visa rejections worldwide. This means that candidates whose visa applications have been rejected will no longer be able to file an appeal.

Therefore, many residents are also exploring attractive tourist destinations outside the Schengen area.

But that doesn’t mean that you wave your Europe travel plans goodbye.

Highest Schengen visa rejections

The European Commission has recently released data on countries that have the highest Schengen visa rejection rates.

Schengen countries received over 11.7 million visa applications in 2024, of which 14.8 percent were rejected, data showed.

So to maximise your chances of getting a Schengen visa, avoid applying at these countries.

Malta

At the top of the list is Malta, with a rejection rate of 38.5 percent. Of the 45,578 visa applications received, 16,905 were rejected.

Estonia

Next on the list is Estonia, with a rejection rate of 27.2 percent. The country received 12,125 applications, turning down 3,291 of them.

Belgium

Belgium follows next, with a rejection rate of 24.6 percent. The country received 255,564 applications, and turned down 61,724 of those.

Slovenia

Slovenia received 18,171 visa applications in 2024, and turned down 4,417 of those, resulting in a rejection rate of 24.5 percent.

Sweden

Sweden turned down as many as 44,576 of the 188,623 applications it received last year, leading to a rejection rate of 24.0 percent.

Denmark

With a rejection rate of 23.7 percent, Denmark is next on the list. The country received 132,158 applications, and turned down 31,013 of them.

Croatia

Croatia received 42,165 applications last year, and rejected 8,003 of those, leading to a rejection rate of 19.3 percent.

Poland

Poland has a rejection rate of 17.2 percent, having turned down 19,277 applications of the 111,538 it received.

France

France received 3,072,728 visa applications in 2024, the highest received by any Schengen country. Of these, 481,139 were rejected, leading to a rejection rate of 15.8 percent.

Czech Republic

Last on the list is Czech Republic, which received 150,629 visa applications. Of these, 23,735 were turned down. This resulted in a rejection rate of 15.8 percent.