How to Get France Schengen Visa from Chicago (IL)? – Guide

France Schengen Visa from Chicago (IL)

Whether you’re a fashionista or not, France should be on your travel bucket list. It’s much more than brands like Chanel and Dior. It’s a country that boasts of beautiful architecture, delicious food, and amazing artists.

If you’re planning to visit France soon, you’ll need to apply for your France Schengen visa.

Update : It is now mandatory to get COVID Insurance when you travel Abroad. Click the below link to get your COVID Insurance at cost price. 

The French consulates around the world processed close to 3 million visa requests in 2016. Thousands were made from the US and many were rejected as well.

To avoid rejection, it’s important that you apply for your France Schengen visa in the right way.

Spain Schengen Visa Statistics

If you’re planning a short trip to France, you’re at the right place. The Consulate General of France in Chicago processed close to 3500 visa applications in the year 2016. Being a busy consulate, it expects the visa applicants to apply in the right way.

France Schengen Visa Statistics, Chicago

This detailed guide is here to ensure just that. Go through this to ease the France Schengen visa application process at the Consulate General of France in Chicago.

Applying for France Schengen Visa involves five basic steps:

  • Ensure that the French consulate in Chicago is the right place where you need to apply from
  • Find out if you need a visa to enter France
  • Schedule an appointment for submission of your documents
  • Have all the relevant documents that you needhttps://travelvisabookings.com/want-schengen-visa-appointment/ for the appointment in place ( Get Schengen visa appointment  for $ 10 )
  • Submit the documents in person and get your visa request processed

Schengen Visa appointment

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Temporary Flight itinerary

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Let’s take a look at each of these steps in detail below.

I’m traveling to Italy along with France. Should I apply from France or Italy?

You need to apply at the French consulate if the theme of your travel is France. The following image explains this better.

where-to-apply-for-Schengen-visa

Click to Book France Visa Appointment

Are you sure the Consulate General of France in Chicago is the place where you to apply from?

The first thing that you need to find out is which is the right French consulate from where you to need to apply for your visa. France has 10 consulates in the USA and you need to find out which one has jurisdiction over your place of residence.

Schengen appointment

You can find that out by visiting the official website of the Consulate General of France in the US.

Click on the link to enter the website. You’ll come across the map of the USA in gray. Take the cursor to your state of residence.

Selecting Resident State from the map of USA for France Schengen Visa

Here on the map, we have selected Illinois and as it’s clear, the French consulate in Chicago is where you need to apply for.

The Consulate General of France in Chicago has its jurisdiction over the following states:

  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Michigan
  • Kentucky
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Missouri
  • Minnesota
  • Ohio
  • North and South Dakota
  • Nebraska and
  • Wisconsin

Click on the highlighted-blue portion of the map to get directed to the official French consulate website in Chicago.

French Consular Website of Chicago

Consulate General of France, Chicago

English is automatically chosen as the preferred language. This is the website from where you can book an appointment for your France Schengen visa.

Do I need a visa to enter France?

On top of the website, you will find the option ‘Visa for France’. Take your cursor there and click on ‘Applying for a French visa in the United States‘.

Visa for France

Here on this page, you’ll get all the information you need to apply for your France Schengen Visa.

Apply for French visa from the US

To know whether you’ll need a visa to enter France, click on ‘Do I need a visa’. This is the ‘visa wizard‘ that lets’ you know whether or not you need a visa to enter France.

This will take less than 3 minutes. Enter your details and wait for the wizard to answer.

Do I need visa to enter France from USA?

US Permanent Residents or former Green Card holders do need a visa to enter France.

How to book an appointment for France Schengen Visa?

To begin booking your appointment online, you’ll have to click on ‘Complete your application online‘, and you’ll get redirected to another page.

Booking appointment online/Submitting application to the visa center - France Schengen Visa from Chicago

Click on ‘Access‘ to proceed. The time required to complete the application will be approximately 20 minutes.

Online appointment for France Schengen Visa at Chicago

Now, you’ll need to create an account, if you don’t have one already. Make sure to furnish accurate information on this page.

Creating account in French consulate at Chicago

Once you do so, you’ll have to submit your application to the consulate.

Click on ‘Submit your application to the visa center‘, then you’ll get redirected to a different page.

Select ‘who to contact‘ on the sheet.

Who to contact - French consulate in Chicago

You’ll now be able to make an appointment for the submission of your France Schengen visa application. You will reach a new webpage. Choose ‘English‘ as the preferred language and scroll down to find Chicago from the list.

Click on ‘Set an Appointment‘ to proceed further.

Set an appointment at French consulate in Chicago

You will get directed to the Diplomatie website, where you can make an appointment.

Diplomatie website

Click on ‘Booking an appointment‘ followed by ‘I accept the general conditions‘.

Booking an appointment for visa application submission

Click on ‘Next‘ to get access to the appointment calendar.

Choose your preferred date and time slot.

Select time and slot - French consulate in Chicago

Click on ‘Next‘ to proceed.

Selected time and date

Finally, you’ll have to enter a few of your personal details. Ensure the details are correct. Click on ‘Confirm‘ to complete your booking.

Personal Information Document - French consulate Chicago

Take a print out of the appointment booking confirmation page. You’ll need to take this print out to the visa office on the day of your appointment.

That’s about it. Your appointment is booked. Make sure to reach the embassy on time with all the documents mentioned below.

Documents to collect for France Schengen Visa

You’ll have to submit the following documents along with your application:

  1. Original passport
  2. One passport-sized photograph
  3. Completed and signed Schengen Application Form
  4. Permanent Residency Proof
  5. Flight Itinerary
  6. Hotel Reservations
  7. Schengen Travel Insurance
  8. Cover Letter
  9. Proof of financial sustenance
  10. Letter of employment / Company Registration
  11. Letter from university/ college (if relevant)

[media-downloader media_id=”1578″ image_url=”https://travelvisabookings.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/download_ebook.jpg”]

Here’s everything that you need to know about the documents:

Passport: You’ll need to bring your original passport for verification. It should have at least two blank pages and a validity of three months from the date you plan to come back to the US. Bring a copy as well.

Photograph: You’ll need to paste one recent photograph on the Schengen Visa application form according to the given specifications.

Schengen Visa Application Form: Fill the form online and take its print out. Make sure the details you enter are correct. Take a print out of this form and paste the photograph.

Download the Schengen Visa Application Form

Permanent Residency Proof: Bring your US Permanent Residency proof or I-20/ I-94 forms along with one photocopy. These documents should have a validity of three months from the date of your return to the US.

Flight Itinerary: You need to bring your confirmed flight itinerary. This will increase the chances of your France Schengen Visa approval. Don’t buy flight tickets before your visa gets approved. Opt for temporary bookings instead to save money. If your visa gets rejected, you’ll end up losing a lot of money with real reservations.

What is the flight itinerary? Is it accepted by the Schengen consulate?

Of course, in fact, all the embassies mention the same. We have added links to the official visa pages which you can verify.

France Consulate

Your travel itinerary : you MUST BOOK your airline ticket but do not purchase until the visa has been approved.

Spain consulate

We recommend that you do not purchase travel tickets until your visa has been approved. On the other hand, you may provide us with a reservation, a planned itinerary or an online printout of a roundtrip ticket.

Netherland Consulate

Travel reservation to and from schengen area, not a ticket. Note: Make travel reservation which you can cancel

Germany consulate

Flight (roundtrip)/travel reservations and full itinerary (if several Schengen States will be visited or if the trip covers several Schengen States and non-Schengen countries) with the name of passenger and one copy

Italy consulate

Round trip ticket/reservation, originating in this jurisdiction to Europe (and ultimately to Italy) and back, including internal entry and exit points of travel i.e. EURORAIL tickets, car rental, internal flights. The names on reservations have to reflect the names on passports.

We can provide you with flight itineraries which are accepted by not only for Schengen visa but for all visas. We have customers using the same flight itinerary for Malaysia visa, Singapore visa, India visa, UK visa, etc.

In fact, the European union visa requirements for visa states the same.

As per the official document,

Round trip reservation or itinerary with dates and flight numbers specifying entry and exit from Schengen state.Schengen authorities accept the itinerary when applying for the visa but request the original air ticket when visa is collected.

That is why we have a 100% visa acceptance rate although some of our customer have been requested to provide “additional documents”, none of their visa has been rejected for providing fake documents.

With 80% of our customers being return customers or companies that process visas for their employees/clients, our approach is the best approach if you want to ensure the safety of your visa.

This is our orders screen for this month. Most of the orders have been placed by repeat customers.

travelvisabooking orders

The best part about our service is along with getting a flight reservation without payment, you can also get confirmed hotel bookings, personal cover letter, leave/no objection letter for your visa consulates.

Proof of hotel bookings: For this as well, it’s wise to opt for temporary hotel reservations. Many people make their hotel bookings before visa approval and end up losing a lot of money, as their visa gets denied.

A Personal Cover Letter: This should explain why you’re visiting France. It should mention your travel itinerary and also all the documents you’re submitting to the French consulate in Chicago.

schengen visa cover letter

Schengen Travel Insurance: No tourist is allowed to enter the Schengen area without a travel visa. It should have a minimum coverage of €43,000 and should be valid in all Schengen countries.

Proof of sustenance: Submit bank account statements or credit card statements or travel cards to prove that you can sustain financially in France.

Employment Documents: If you’re employed, submit your Employment contract. Self-employed individuals need to submit their company registration documents.

These are all you need. Ensure you submit all in person on the date of the appointment. The consulate will keep the copies. They can ask for the original passport. Bring a US Postal services envelope so that the consulate can return your passport.

What is the France Schengen visa fee?

The visa fee is EUR 80 ($ 86). Along with this, you’ll have to pay for your temporary reservations and travel insurance as well. Here’s the breakdown of the cost that you need to incur to get your France Schengen visa done.

Cost of Schengen Short Stay visa

Can I apply for France Schengen Visa from the US if I’m a B1/B2 visa holder?

No, you can’t apply from the US. You’ll have to apply from your country of nationality.

What are the rules of minors applying for France Schengen Visa from the consulate in Chicago?

Traveling with parents: A photocopy of the child’s birth certificate needs to be submitted along with all the other documents

Traveling without parents: Notarized copy of the child’s birth certification and an authorization letter from both the parents or the parent exercising full custody of the child, in case of divorced parents.

Traveling with one parent: Notarized copy of the child’s birth certification and an authorization letter from the parent who isn’t traveling.

Consulate General of France in Chicago Information

Address:

205 North Michigan Avenue

Suite 3700

Chicago, IL, 60601-5970

Tel:

+1 (312) 327 52 00

Fax:

+1 (312) 327 52 01

Email:

visas@consulfrance-chicago.org

Related France Schengen Visa articles

France visa from US article

France Schengen visa in 7 days

France visa for U.S. Permanent Residents

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