Schengen visas

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General information 

The Schengen visa is issued to third-country nationals listed in Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806. This visa allows the holder to stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days (in any 180-day period) for the purposes of tourism, business, visiting family, medical treatment, studies, training placements or volunteer activities that last under 3 months, or for other non-gainful activities. It also allows transit through the territory and airports. 

The Schengen area encompasses 26 European countries without border controls between them: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. 

The Schengen visa allows the holder to travel to any of the Schengen States and to transit through their territory, but it does not automatically entitle them to enter the Schengen area. The border authorities can refuse entry if the visa holder does not provide proof of the purpose and specifics of the trip, or if any of the other entry requirements are not met (please refer to the section “Conditions for entry into Spain").

Please make sure that your main destination is Spain, you need to apply in the Consulate of your main destination. 

 You MUST apply in person: ​You must request an appointment in the following email: cog.washington.vis@maec.es.  Please send us​ as an attachment in an email a copy of your ID or Driver License and a copy of your passport and your tentative travel dates. IMPORTANT: The appointments will be assigned in one and half /two months since we received your email. ​

Required documents 

1. Schengen visa application form. Each applicant must complete and sign an official application form, filling in each of its sections. If the applicant is a minor, one of their parents must sign the application. 

2. Photograph. A recent, passport-size, colour photograph, taken against a light background, facing forward, without dark or reflective glasses, or any garments concealing the oval of the face. Photographs of minors must not show any part of the adult holding them.  

3. Passport issued in the last ten years (otherwise it will have to be renewed) and valid for at least six months counting from the expected date of returned to the US. Green Card or valid visa in the United States. The visa or Green Card must be valid to renter the US after your trip to Spain. B1/B2 visa holders do not qualify to apply for a visa in this Consulate Office. ​​

4. Travel medical insurance. The insurance must cover the costs of repatriation for medical reasons or death, as well as for urgent healthcare and/or emergency hospital treatment for the entire stay and throughout the Schengen area. Coverage must be of at least $32,000. If the application is for a multiple entry visa, the medical insurance must be valid for all the planned entry. 

5. Payment of the visa fee. The amount of the visa fee is $85 for people aged over 12 and $45 for children of 6 to 11. Children aged 5 and under are exempt from the fee. Different fees are applied for nationals of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus and Cabo Verde, pursuant to the respective Visa Facilitation Agreements formalized with these countries: $68. EXACT CASH OR MONEY ORDER under: Embassy of Spain. ​

6. Documents corroborating the purpose of travel and the specifics of the stay, that the visa applicant has sufficient financial means, as well as the intention of the visa applicant to leave the Schengen area before the visa expires:

-Planned travel itinerary/printout of a round trip airline ticket reservation, we need to see the entry and the exit from the Schengen area.  If you visit more than one country you need to have all ticket reservations inside of the Schengen area. 

-Hotel reservations or a letter of invitation from a Citizen or a Legal Resident of Spain issued by the local police station. We need the original “Letter of invitation."​ If you visit more than one country you need to have all reservations inside of the Schengen area. 

-Letter of employment stating your job title, length of time employed and annual salary. For professional or business trips the letter should also indicate the dates and purpose of the trip. WE DO NOT ACCEPT PAYSTUB. If you are self-employed, you must bring the last tax return (in this case additional documents may be required at the moment of the application). 

-Your 3 latest bank statement printed with at least $110 per day in the Schengen area in the last one​. ​

7. Pre-Paid US “Express Mail" envelope from the Post Office to have your passport returned by mail. We do NOT accept any other type of courier or messenger service (No FEDEX –No UPS). Tracking of mailed items is the sole responsibility of the applicant. ​

8. Proof of residence in the consular district: Driver License or ID from Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Washington DC. 

When necessary to assess the application, the Consular Office may request additional documents or data and may also ask the applicant to come in for a personal interview. 

Only those applications meeting the requirements will be accepted. ​

Procedure​ 

This Consular Office is competent to accept visa applications from third-country nationals residing in the consular district who are travelling to Spain as their only or main destination. 

• Who can apply for a visa: Applications must be submitted in person. If the applicant is a minor, the application must be submitted by their legal representatives. 

• Place of submission: Applications must be submitted in person at the Consular Office: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington DC 20037.You need to have an appoinment from our general email: cog.washington.vis@maec.es.​ ​
   
• Visa application period: Visa applications must be submitted between 6 months and 15 days before the scheduled date of travel. Seafarers may apply for the visa up to 9 months before the date of travel. 
   
• Proof of receipt: When a visa application is submitted, the Consular Office will provide the applicant with proof of receipt of the application with a code that enables them to check the status of the dossier through the following link: https://sutramiteconsular.maec.es/Ho​me.aspx 

• Biometric data capturing: The applicant's facial image and fingerprints will be captured during the visa application procedure. Applicants under 12 and applicants whose fingerprints have been taken in the last 59 months are exempt from fingerprint taking. However, in the latter case, if the applicant's prints are of poor quality, the Consular Office will request that they come back in to have their fingerprints retaken. 

• Rectifying the application: The Consular Office may ask the applicant to submit any missing documents, or to provide additional documents or data that are necessary for a decision regarding the application. The applicant may also be called in for a personal interview. 

• Decision period: The legal period for reaching a decision is of 15 calendar days as of the day after the application submission date, but this period may be extended to 45 calendar days if an interview or additional documents are requested.
  
  Visa applications submitted by nationals of certain States require consultation with the central authorities that could affect the duration of the visa procedure. 
  

• Permission granted by the visa: A visa does not automatically entitle someone to enter the Schengen area. The traveller must meet all legal entry requirements (see section "Conditions for entry into Spain"). 

• Visa refusal: Visa refusals will always be notified in writing, setting forth the grounds on which the decision adopted was based. 

• Appeals: If a visa is refused, the applicant may submit an appeal for reconsideration to this Consular Office within 1 month of the day following the date on which notification of the refusal is received. An application for judicial review may also be filed with the High Court Justice of Madrid within the 2-month period beginning the day after the date on which the applicant receives notification of the visa refusal or of the dismissal of the reconsideration appeal. 

Complaints or suggestions about the service received or about the visa application procedure can be submitted online through this website. They may also be submitted in writing at this Consular Office.

Data protection​ 

The processing of personal data of visa applicants is done in accordance with the General Data Pr​otection Regulation. 

Persons wishing to exercise their rights of access, rectification and erasure of their personal data in the Visa Information System (VIS) may do so by addressing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation: 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation
Inspección General de Servicios
Postal address: Plaza de la Provincia, 1, Madrid, España
Email: dpd@maec.es​ 

The following forms may be used to do so: 

• Right of access (Spanish-English version)
• Right to rectification (Spanish-English version)
• Right to erasure (Spanish-English version) 

Persons whose visa application has been refused because they are banned from entering the Schengen area may exercise their rights of access, rectification and erasure of their personal data in the Schengen Information System (SIS) by addressing the Ministry of the Interior.   

To obtain more information on your rights and duties and on how to exercise your rights of access, rectification and erasure of data included in the SIS, please refer to the website of the Spanish Data Protection Agency.

Basic legislation 

 Community Code on Visas 

• Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code). 

• Regulation (EU) 2019/1155 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 amending Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 establishing a Community Code on Visas (Visa Code).

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