Do Cabo Verdean citizens need a Schengen visa?

Yes. Cabo Verde is on the EU list of countries whose nationals need a visa for short stays in the Schengen area.

Where do I apply for a Schengen visa in Cabo Verde?

At the consulate of your main destination in Praia, or the centre that consulate names on its website. Portugal receives the large majority of applications lodged in Cabo Verde.

Do I need real flight tickets to apply?

No — a paid, non-refundable ticket is not required. Consulates accept a verifiable flight reservation. Submitting an unverifiable reservation can trigger refusal under Article 32(1)(a)(i) of the Visa Code (false or unreliable documents). Best practice is a hold-the-fare reservation or a refundable booking kept live until the decision. See [why dummy tickets get rejected](/blog/dummy-tickets-schengen-visa-rejected).

Schengen Visa from Cabo Verde

An embassy-ready application file — cover letter, day-by-day itinerary, applicant profile, and personalised checklist — formatted for the standards Cabo Verdean applicants are graded on.

How Cabo Verdean applicants apply for a Schengen visa

Applications are submitted through The consulate of your main destination in Praia, or the visa centre named on that consulate's own website.

Complete visa file — $19

Prefer to do it yourself?Read our free sample letters

Check your passport instantly

Rules depend on your passport, not just where you apply from. Select your passport to see whether you need a visa at all.

Final documents are written in formal English regardless of the language you fill the form in — the register Schengen consulates expect to read.

This guide covers short-stay Schengen visas (Type C, up to 90 days). For longer stays you need a national long-stay (Type D) visa issued by your destination country.

What's inside your visa file

Formal cover letter
Structured paragraph by paragraph in the register consulates expect, naming the destination mission and trip purpose.
Day-by-day itinerary
Dated plan with hotels, intercity transit, and overnight counts that match the consulate of application.
Applicant profile
Employment, ties, and prior travel summarised in the format reviewers scan for first.
Personalised checklist
Every supporting document the file needs, including the country-specific ones flagged for your situation.

Top Schengen destinations from Cabo Verde

Portugal Spain

What Cabo Verdean applicants need to get right

Cabo Verdean passport holders need a Schengen visa for short stays. In the Commission's latest consulate statistics, almost all applications lodged in Cabo Verde were made in Praia and went to Portugal, with a smaller number to Spain. Check the current application channel on your destination consulate's own website, and apply to the consulate of your main destination by nights spent.

21.4% of Schengen short-stay applications made in Cabo Verde were refused in 2025 (5,889 of 27,533 decisions). This covers decided applications across passport nationalities, not a refusal rate for Cabo Verdean passport holders or an individual's chance of approval. Clear trip purpose, documented funding or sponsorship, and evidence of your ties to Cabo Verde are the parts of the file you control.

SchengenDoc generates the formal cover letter, day-by-day itinerary and personalised checklist for a Cabo Verdean application, names the consulate of your main destination, and frames family-visit sponsorship and accommodation evidence so it reconciles with the rest of the file.

Financial proof benchmark. Consulates assess funds against the length and cost of your trip, plus any sponsor's documented commitment; Portugal and Spain each publish reference amounts, so check the figure for your main destination.

Frequently asked questions

For a full personalised document list, use our free checklist builder.

Do Cabo Verdean citizens need a Schengen visa?: Yes. Cabo Verde is on the EU list of countries whose nationals need a visa for short stays in the Schengen area.
Where do I apply for a Schengen visa in Cabo Verde?: At the consulate of your main destination in Praia, or the centre that consulate names on its website. Portugal receives the large majority of applications lodged in Cabo Verde.
What is the refusal rate for Schengen applications made in Cabo Verde?: 21.4% of Schengen short-stay applications made in Cabo Verde were refused in 2025 (5,889 of 27,533 decisions). This covers decided applications across passport nationalities, not a refusal rate for Cabo Verdean passport holders or an individual's chance of approval.
Do I need real flight tickets to apply?: No — a paid, non-refundable ticket is not required. Consulates accept a verifiable flight reservation. Submitting an unverifiable reservation can trigger refusal under Article 32(1)(a)(i) of the Visa Code (false or unreliable documents). Best practice is a hold-the-fare reservation or a refundable booking kept live until the decision. See why dummy tickets get rejected.