Do I need a Schengen visa if I am only transiting through a Schengen airport?

Most nationalities can transit airside without a visa. A small list of nationalities requires a Type A airport transit visa even without leaving the international zone. If you leave the transit area or change airports, you need a Type C visa.

Does a Schengen visa let me work in Europe?

No. A Schengen visa is for tourism, business meetings, family visits, conferences, short courses, and medical treatment. Paid employment requires a national long-stay visa or work permit from the destination country.

What is the difference between a Schengen visa and ETIAS?

A Schengen visa is a full visa for nationalities that need one. ETIAS is a €20 online pre-travel authorisation for nationalities that are already visa-exempt. You only need one or the other, never both.

Can I stay 90 days in France and then another 90 days in Germany?

No. The 90-day cap applies to the entire Schengen Area combined, not per country. The clock counts every day you are inside the area, regardless of which member state you are in.

I am a US permanent resident with an Indian passport. Do I need a Schengen visa?

Yes. Visa requirements follow passport nationality, not residence. Indian passport holders need a Schengen visa regardless of where they live, though you apply from your country of residence (the US consulate of your destination country).

Are children covered by a parent's Schengen visa?

No. Every traveller, including infants, needs an individual Schengen visa application and their own visa sticker if they require a visa by nationality.

Guides·7 min read·Jun 29, 2026

What Is a Schengen Visa and Do I Need One? (2026 Guide)

A plain-English explainer of what a Schengen visa is, who needs one, who is exempt, and how it differs from ETIAS and long-stay national visas.

A Schengen visa is a single short-stay travel permit that lets the holder enter and move freely across the 29 countries of the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period. One sticker in your passport, one application, one fee — and you can cross internal borders between member states without further checks.

This guide answers the two questions people actually search for: what a Schengen visa is, and whether you personally need one in 2026.

01Key takeaways

A Schengen visa is a short-stay (Type C) uniform visa that covers all 29 Schengen states.
The maximum stay is 90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole area — not per country.
About 60 nationalities are visa-exempt for short stays (US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, most of Latin America, and others) and do not need a Schengen visa.
Visa-exempt travellers will need ETIAS authorisation once it goes live (planned Q4 2026, with mandatory enforcement from approximately April 2027 after a six-month transitional period). The ETIAS fee is €20.
For stays longer than 90 days — work, study, retirement, digital nomad — you need a national long-stay visa (Type D), issued by the destination country, not a Schengen visa.

02What "Schengen visa" actually means

The Schengen Area is a passport-free travel zone created by the 1985 Schengen Agreement and now governed by the EU Visa Code (Regulation 810/2009). When a member-state consulate issues you a Schengen visa, you can enter through any external Schengen border and travel between member states as if it were one country.

A Schengen visa is not an EU visa. Ireland is in the EU but not in Schengen — it has its own visa. Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein are in Schengen but not in the EU. Membership in one club does not imply membership in the other.

03The four short-stay visa types

Type A — Airport transit visa. Stay in the international transit zone of a Schengen airport without entering the area. Required only for a handful of nationalities.
Type C — Short-stay visa. The standard tourist, business, family-visit, or medical visa. Up to 90 days in any 180. Single, double, or multiple entry.
Type D — National long-stay visa. Issued by one country for stays over 90 days (work, study, family reunification). Not a Schengen visa, but the holder can travel across the rest of the area for 90 days in any 180 during the residence permit's validity.
LTV — Limited Territorial Validity. Issued in exceptional cases when the Visa Code's conditions are not fully met; valid only in the issuing state.

This guide is about Type C — the one most travellers mean when they say "Schengen visa".

04Do you need one? Check your nationality first

Your passport nationality determines whether you need a visa. Your country of residence does not. An Indian citizen living in New York still needs a Schengen visa; an American living in Mumbai does not.

You do NOT need a Schengen visa if you hold a passport from one of the roughly 60 visa-exempt countries, which include:

United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile
United Kingdom, Israel, UAE (Emirati nationals only)
Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan
Most of the Western Balkans and Eastern European non-EU states

Visa-exempt travellers can enter for tourism or business for up to 90/180 days with just a valid passport. From late 2026 they will additionally need an approved ETIAS authorisation before boarding.

You DO need a Schengen visa if you hold a passport from any country not on the exempt list — including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Turkey, China (PRC), Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and most of sub-Saharan Africa and South/Southeast Asia.

05How ETIAS is different from a Schengen visa

ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) is a pre-travel screening, not a visa. It applies only to nationalities that are already visa-exempt. Once live:

Fee: €20 per application (free for under-18 and over-70 applicants).
Validity: up to three years or until the passport expires, whichever is first.
Decision: usually within minutes; the EU reserves up to 30 days for additional checks.
Launch: planned for Q4 2026, with a transitional period — mandatory enforcement from approximately April 2027.

If you need a Schengen visa, you do not need ETIAS. They are mutually exclusive.

06What a Schengen visa does not let you do

Stay longer than 90 days in a rolling 180-day period.
Work or study formally (short business meetings and conferences are fine; paid employment is not).
Live in one member state for an extended period — that requires a national long-stay (Type D) visa.
Re-enter after the 90/180 cap is exhausted, even with multiple entries remaining on the sticker.

For long stays, see our long-stay visa hub covering work, study, family, retirement, and digital nomad routes.

07Which consulate do you apply to?

You apply to the consulate of your country of main destination — the country where you will spend the most nights. If the nights are equal, apply to the country of first entry. Applying to the wrong consulate is an automatic refusal under the jurisdiction rule of the Visa Code.

Skip the paperwork. Our generator builds a consulate-aligned cover letter, day-by-day itinerary, applicant profile, and personalised checklist in under 60 seconds — pay only when you download. Build your kit free →

08How long does it take and what does it cost?

Standard processing: 15 calendar days from the appointment.
Peak season or complex files: up to 45 days.
Visa fee: €90 for adults (€45 for children 6–11, free for under-6). Service-provider fees (VFS, TLScontact, BLS) add €15–35 on top.

See our full requirements and processing-times guide for the latest checklist.

09Further reading

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a Schengen visa if I am only transiting through a Schengen airport?: Most nationalities can transit airside without a visa. A small list of nationalities requires a Type A airport transit visa even without leaving the international zone. If you leave the transit area or change airports, you need a Type C visa.
Does a Schengen visa let me work in Europe?: No. A Schengen visa is for tourism, business meetings, family visits, conferences, short courses, and medical treatment. Paid employment requires a national long-stay visa or work permit from the destination country.
What is the difference between a Schengen visa and ETIAS?: A Schengen visa is a full visa for nationalities that need one. ETIAS is a €20 online pre-travel authorisation for nationalities that are already visa-exempt. You only need one or the other, never both.
Can I stay 90 days in France and then another 90 days in Germany?: No. The 90-day cap applies to the entire Schengen Area combined, not per country. The clock counts every day you are inside the area, regardless of which member state you are in.
I am a US permanent resident with an Indian passport. Do I need a Schengen visa?: Yes. Visa requirements follow passport nationality, not residence. Indian passport holders need a Schengen visa regardless of where they live, though you apply from your country of residence (the US consulate of your destination country).
Are children covered by a parent's Schengen visa?: No. Every traveller, including infants, needs an individual Schengen visa application and their own visa sticker if they require a visa by nationality.