This article is about the Short-stay Tourist Visa Application experience at VFS Delhi shared by “Adya Kumar” in the “Indian Community in France” Facebook group. Except for some minor corrections and the official references, in the end, the article has been published as written, with her permission.
If you would like to contribute with articles about your personal experiences, feel free to write to me at the following email contact@prasanthragupathy.com
Short-stay visitor visa and tourist visa are not the same, even if they both can be applied for stays upto 90 days. The documents required are completely different.
Visa Application Summary
Hi all, I’d like to share my experience of getting a short-stay (tourist) Schengen visa for my father and brother.
- Type of visa applied: Short stay schengen visa (Tourist visa)
- Duration of your stay : Court séjour (≤ 90 jours) / Short stay (≤ 90 days)
- Why are you making this trip?: Tourisme / Tourist
- Visa main purpose of stay: Tourisme or Visite privée / Tourist or Private Visit
- Applied at: VFS Delhi, India
- Applied on: 12th June 2023
- Visa received on: 21st June 2023
- Visa processing time: 9 days, including weekends
- My situation: Master student in France
List of Documents submitted at VFS office
The following documents were submitted by Adya. You can also refer to a complete list of documents covering all the scenarios in this article VFS Checklist: Documents for Schengen Tourist Visa
- Original Passport and its copy.
- VFS appointment letter
- Visa Application form, duly dated and signed with 2 passport sized photo
- France-Visas Registration Receipt
- Strong Cover letter (explaining the purpose of travel, i.e tourism and meeting me, flight details and dates of travel, travel plans explaining cities to be visited and the accommodation address, explanation of the source of funds, the reason for mandatory return to India and all the list of documents attached in the file.)
- Detailed travel itinerary (showing daily travel plans, places to be visited, etc)
- Confirmed flight tickets with invoices and credit card statement
- Travel insurance of x days, covering the entire period of travel from Reliance taken via Policy Bazaar
- Employment contract and Letter from the HR (stating the period of leave taken by my father and that he will return to work)
- Father’s payslips
- Bonafide certificate from college (for my brother who is doing his bachelors in India)
- Attendance certificate and college ID (of my brother, proving that he is a student in India and will return to maintain a good percentage of his attendance)
- Marriage certificate (for my father, showing ties to the country of residence, i.e India)
- Birth certificate (for my brother, showing ties to the country of residence, i.e India)
- Savings a/c statements of my father (3 months)
- Fixed deposit statements
- Income Tax return (FY 2021-22)
- Income Tax acknowledgement (FY 2021-22)
- Airbnb receipts (for all bookings in every city to be visited)
- My passport (as I study here and they will meet me)
- My residence permit
- My French university certificate
- COVID19 vaccination certificate (3 vaccines)
- Aadhar card
Note: For people who are self employed or have a business of their own, they can provide the following documents.
- Company registration certificate
- GST registration certificate
- Last 3 months GST returns
- Last 3 months current account bank statements.
Hope this helps the people, who are trying to apply for their own family
Cover Letter for Tourist Visa
To Visa Officer,
Consulate General of France
2/50-E, Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, India – 110021
June 12, 2023
Subject: Application for Short-stay (tourist) visa for <NAME> (India Passport No. XXXXXX)
Dear Sir/Ma’am,
I, <NAME> (Application No. XXXXX) wish to apply for a Short-stay (tourist) Schengen visa upon my intention to travel and explore the beautiful country of France and Belgium. I will be travelling with my son, <NAME> (Indian Passport No. XXXXX). The purpose of my travel entails tourism and a visit to my daughter, <NAME> (Indian Passport No. XXXXX), who is pursuing her master’s education from XXXXXX. My son and I will be in the Schengen area for X days, between <EXACT TRAVEL DATES>.
My son and I will be landing in Paris on <DATE> via <FLIGHT NAME & NUMBER> which shall depart from <CITY>. Upon our arrival, we will be joined by my daughter and we will check into our prepaid AirBnB accommodation, hosted by <HOST NAME> located at <AIRBNB ADDRESS>. We will travel in and around the beautiful city and explore different museums, cafes and historical landmarks. We will also make day trips to Versailles, Fontainebleau and Lille, which is where my daughter is pursuing her master’s education. We shall depart Paris on <DATE> to arrive in <CITY> on the same day. Due to extreme uncertainties regarding ongoing strikes in France, our train tickets to Brussels will be booked in the month of July.
We intend to stay in <CITY> between <EXACT DATES>, wherein we will be exploring Belgian architecture, food and its history. We will be staying in a prepaid AirBnB hosted by <HOST NAME> located at <AIRBNB ADDRESS>.
We will return to Paris on <DATE> and will stay in a prepaid AirBnB accommodation hosted by <HOST NAME> located at <AIRBNB ADDRESS>. We shall explore the rest of the city, go for a day trip to Etretat and end our trip in France at Disneyland Park.
On <DATE>, my son and I shall catch our confirmed flight back to <CITY> via <FLIGHT NAME & NUMBER>. It is imperative that we return to India as I will be required to join back to work at <COMPANY NAME> as stated in the letter provided by my HR (attached) and my son will be required to join back to his classes at <COLLEGE NAME> to maintain his attendance and complete his undergraduate program.
I will be sponsoring the entire trip for myself and my son through my regular salary and savings in the form of fixed deposits. Our flight tickets and accommodations are fully paid and confirmed. The rest of our expenses will be funded through my existing bank account balance and fixed deposit savings.
Please find the following documents to support my visa application enclosed herewith:
- Application form, duly dated and signed with passport sized photo
- France-Visas Registration Receipt
- Original valid passport
- Copy of passport
- Detailed travel itinerary
- Confirmed flight tickets with credit card statement
- Travel insurance covering the entire period of travel
- Proof of socio-professional status (employment) in India:
- a. Letter from the HR
- b. Pay slips of the last 3 months
- Marriage certificate proving link to country of residence 10. Savings a/c statements (3 months)
- Fixed deposit statement
- Income Tax return (FY 2021-22)
- Income Tax acknowledgement (FY 2021-22)
- Fully paid AirBnB bookings for Paris and Brussels
- My daughter <NAME>’s documents:
- a. <NAME> passport
- b. <NAME> visa
- c. <NAME> school certificate
- 16. COVID-19 vaccination certificate (3 vaccines)
- 17. Aadhar card
I request the Consulate to consider my application for a Short-stay (tourist) Schengen visa for the purpose of tourism and a visit to see my daughter.
I hope you find my application in order.
Your Sincerely,
<NAME>
Mobile: XXXXXX | Email: XXXXXXXX
Travel Itinerary
Date | Place | Schedule |
Mon, 31 July, 2023 | Paris | Land in Paris (6:30 PM) |
Tue, 1 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Wed, 2 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Thu, 3 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Fri, 4 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Sat, 5 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Sun, 6 August, 2023 | Paris | Rest day and little exploration |
Mon, 7 August, 2023 | Paris | Day trip to Versailles |
Tue, 8 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Wed, 9 August, 2023 | Lille | Day trip to Lille |
Thu, 10 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Fri, 11 August, 2023 | Fontainebleau | Day trip to Fontainebleau |
Sat, 12 August, 2023 | Paris | Shopping in Paris |
Sun, 13 August, 2023 | Brussels | Travel to Brussels |
Mon, 14 August, 2023 | Brussels | Sight-seeing in Brussels |
Tue, 15 August, 2023 | Ghent | Day trip to Ghent |
Wed, 16 August, 2023 | Paris | Return to Paris |
Thu, 17 August, 2023 | Etretat | Day trip to Etretat |
Fri, 18 August, 2023 | Paris | Sight-seeing in Paris |
Sat, 19 August, 2023 | Paris | Disneyland |
Sun, 20 August, 2023 | Paris | Flight to Delhi, India |
Who can apply for a Tourist Visa?
The official answer from the France Visa website.
