Apply for a new Schengen Visa while holding a valid one
I am a Chinese student and hold a France Schengen Visa which expires on 20th September 2015. My next trip is from 10/09/2015 to 25/09/2015, and I will stay the longest time in Greece, so I need to apply for a new Greece Schengen Visa, But the Greece visa center told me I must cancel the existing visa. The France visa center (TLScontact) told me there is not a cancellation procedure. The French consulate replied me as follows:
Note that you may apply for a new visa before expiration of your current one. Should the expiry date of your current visa falls in the middle of your travel, the new visa will start over from the date your current one expires. This is a Schengen rule and therefore enforced by all Schengen partners.
So, What should I do now?
Best Answer
TLSContact is definitely wrong, it's perfectly possible to cancel (technically: “revoke”) a visa, without prejudice, if the holder asks for it (and also for a number of other reasons). Maybe they can't do it themselves but the consulate could. Once your current visa is revoked, you would be able to follow the usual procedure so that would indeed be a solution.
But the Greece visa center is also wrong and the French consulate is right: It is possible to issue a visa starting immediately after the last day of validity of your current visa and to use both visas together for a single trip (see e.g. Schengen visa "refresh" and Traveling on back-to-back Schengen visas). In your case, Greece could therefore issue a visa with validity beginning on September 21 without doing anything to your current visa and that would be another solution.
So both consulates have a solution available but they try to get rid of the problem and want you to get the other consulate to deal with it. Concretely, you need to convince one of them to budge. You could for example approach the Greek consulate/visa centre again, this time with a printed copy of the French consulate's opinion to bolster your case and show them that you can't easily have your visa cancelled. Be calm and polite but firm, in writing or in person, as applicable.
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Can I apply for another Schengen Visa before it expires?
A visa can be extended if you have stayed less than 90 days in the Schengen Area over the last 180-day period and if you have not exceeded the validity period of your visa. The conditions for granting an extension of a Schengen Visa are very strict and your reason for applying must be serious and unforeseeable.Can I have two valid Schengen visas at the same time?
In theory, it is not possible for a person to hold two valid short stay visas covering the same period. I have a valid Schengen visa but it does not cover my next intended stay, what can I do? In this case, it is possible to file a visa application for another Schengen visa to cover the next intended stay entirely.Can I apply for multiple entry Schengen Visa for the first time?
The first time you apply for a Schengen visa, you will only be granted a \u201csingle entry\u201d visa. If you are able to obey the rules of this Schengen visa, in subsequent Schengen visa applications you may be able to apply for a \u201cmultiple entry\u201d visa.Can I apply for two visas for different countries at the same time?
Yes you can. No 2 countries share data with each other. Neither are they bothered about you applying visa at the same time. You can apply visa to N number of countries at the same time.REASONS WHY SCHENGEN VISA APPLICATIONS GET REJECTED (Highly requested)
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