European consulates received close to 12 million applications for short-stay Schengen visas in 2025, marking a 1.8% increase from 2024 and a significant 15.5% jump compared to 2023. This surge, however, still falls short of the 17 million applications recorded in 2019, indicating that pre-pandemic travel levels have not yet fully recovered.
India Ranks Third in Schengen Visa Applications
Among the top global applicants for a Schengen visa, India secured the third position in 2025, with its citizens filing 1.15 million applications. China led the pack with 1.8 million applications, followed by Türkiye at 1.25 million. Russia and Morocco rounded out the top five, with 679,000 and 620,000 applications respectively.
Out of the nearly 12 million applications processed, over 10 million visas were issued, representing a 3% increase from the previous year. Despite the rise in applications and issuances, the global refusal rate remained consistent at 14.8%, mirroring the rate from 2024.
Varying Refusal Rates Across Nations
While the overall refusal rate held steady, individual countries experienced varied outcomes. Russia saw an improvement, with its rejection rate decreasing from 7.5% to 6.4%. Algeria's refusal rate dropped from 35% to 31%, and Ethiopia's from 36.1% to 34%.
Conversely, several African nations faced increased refusal rates. The Democratic Republic of the Congo's rate climbed from 29.9% to 40.1%, Senegal's rose from 46.8% to 51.9%, and Burundi's jumped significantly from 40% to 53.4%. Cape Verde also experienced a notable increase, with its refusal rate rising from 13.4% to 21.4%.
Multiple-Entry Visas See Slight Dip
Of the 10 million visas issued, 51.2% were multiple-entry visas, totaling approximately 5.1 million. These visas permit repeated travel throughout the Schengen area. This figure represents a modest decrease from the 52.2% share of multiple-entry visas recorded in 2024. Additionally, Schengen states issued 83,790 visas at external borders during the year, a slight decline from 85,118 in 2024.