The Czech Republic might not be a big country on the map, but it has quite a rich and eventful history. As a travel enthusiast, there is no way you can miss out on the beautiful historic places in the country.
From mind-blowing historic sights to exotic Czech women, this country certainly holds a strong appeal to the average traveller. But how do you enjoy a vacation to this country without experiencing immigration hurdles? Well, for starters, you’d need to apply for a Czech Schengen Visa. Applying for the Schengen visa is quite simple and seamless, especially when you consider the fact that the Czech Consulate has a low rejection rate.
Unfortunately, when it comes to applying for this type of visa, many intending tourists end up making rookie mistakes that will land them an outright refusal.
The image above depicts the number of visas that the Czech Republic received and approved. Out of almost 490000 visa applications, the Czech consulate approved about 469500, with a rejection rate of about 4%, which is quite low compared to the other Schengen countries.
Out of the 694 visa applications received by the Consulate General of Czech Republic in New York, 691 were approved.
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.
Although it might seem easy for your visa to get approved by the Czech Republic, it doesn’t mean that you carelessly apply for your Czech Schengen visa as it might get rejected.
This article is a guide to understanding the right way to apply for your Czech Schengen visa.
Who needs a Czech Schengen visa?
If you are a US citizen, then you don’t need a visa to visit the Czech Republic or visit any other Schengen country. But in case you are a US permanent resident or hold a visa to reside in the US, you will need a Schengen visa to visit the country depending on your nationality.
List of nationalities that need a Czech Schengen Visa
If your nationality is listed in the link above, then you will need to get a Czech Schengen visa. And you have landed at the right place if you’re also looking for the right way to get one.
What if I have a B1/B2 visa?
You will need to go back to your own country to apply for a Czech Schengen visa.
What are the steps to getting a Czech Schengen visa?
There are not many steps to getting your Czech Schengen visa, but you will need to follow each of these steps carefully to avoid the rejection of your visa application.
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Find out if you can apply for it at the Czech Consulate in New York.
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Get an appointment with the consulate ( Get Schengen visa appointment for $ 10 )
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Prepare all the documents you need for your visa interview
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Attend the visa interview to get your application processed
Want temporary flight, hotel or insurance for your Czech Schengen visa appointment?
States that the Czech Consulate in New York has jurisdiction over
You can only book an appointment with the Czech Consulate in New York if you are a permanent resident of one of the following states,
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Delaware
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Connecticut
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New Hampshire
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Massachusetts
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Maine
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New York
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New Jersey
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Rhode Island
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Pennsylvania
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Vermont
Do I really need to get an appointment with the Czech Consulate?
Please note that all the Czech Consulates function only with appointments and don’t allow a walk-in. You will need to get an appointment with the consulate, get a time slot dedicated to you, and then visit the consulate.
How do I book an appointment with the Czech Consulate in New York?
You will need to send an email or give a call to the consulate. It is preferable that you send an email listing the type of visa you need and the duration of your visit and wait for the Consulate to respond to your email with the date and time slot for your appointment.
Email: visa.ny@mzv.cz
Telephone:
+1 (646) 422 3306
+1 (646) 422 3307
What documents do I need for my appointment for my Czech Schengen visa?
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The list of all the documents you need is quite long, so ensure that you arrange all of these documents before your interview.
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Filled and signed visa application form
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Passport
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US Residence permit
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Recent photographs
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Cover letter
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Proof of travel
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Proof of accommodation
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Travel health insurance
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Financial sustenance
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Proof of occupation
Each of these documents has been explained in detail below.
Visa application form: You will need to fill in your visa application form to give the consulate all the details of your travel.
Schengen visa application form
Fill in this form on your browser and print it out.
Photographs: You will need to submit recent passport-sized photographs of yourself. It should have a clear front face view and must be shot with a light background. There are some guidelines that your photograph has to follow along with this, ensure that you keep them in mind before getting your photograph clicked.
Guidelines for photographs for Schengen visa
Passport: Your passport needs to be original and should have a validity of at least 3 months from the date of your return or the date of the expiry of your visa. Ensure that it has at least 2 empty pages as well.
US Residency Permit: You will need to submit the original residency permit and it should also have a validity of at least 3 months from the date of your return to the US.
Cover Letter: This is a fairly important document for your Czech Schengen visa application after the visa application form. Your cover letter will need to mention your purpose of traveling to the Czech Republic. It should also have the details of your fight and hotel bookings along with a list of all the documents you are submitting to the Consulate.
Flight itinerary: The consulate will request for proof of your travel to the Czech Republic, for which you will need to provide proof of your flight bookings.
Hotel bookings: You will also need to provide proof of your accommodations in the country during your travel.
Financial sustenance: You can give your bank and credit card statements for this. You can also show your travel cards if you have any.
Travel medical insurance: You will need to be able to take care of yourself in case you face any medical emergency during your travel. For this, you will need a travel health insurance which has a value of at least € 30,000 and it should be valid in all the Schengen countries and not just the Czech Republic.
Proof of Occupation: There are different documents you will need to give to the consulate depending on what your occupation is.
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Student: A letter from your university.
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Employed: Employment letter, IT return forms.
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Self-employed: Company registration documents, company bank statements, IT return forms.
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Retired: Pension statements of the previous months, up to 6 months.
Where do I need to submit my visa application?
You will need to only submit your Czech visa application at the Czech Embassy in Washington or the Consulate Generals of the Czech Republic in Chicago and Los Angeles.
Should I make permanent flight and hotel bookings for my Czech Schengen visa application to be approved?
It is advisable that you don’t because in case the Consulate rejects your visa application, then you will have to face heavy cancellation charges. Instead, you can get temporary bookings for your travel and accommodation.
Travel Visa Bookings offers temporary flight and hotel bookings at affordable prices so that you can increase the chances of the approval of your Schengen visa application.
Along with this, you can also get a personalized cover letter written for you especially for your travel.
What is the cost of getting my Czech Schengen visa?
The image above gives you the price details of different types of visas. But since you are traveling to the Czech Republic for the purpose of tourism, you will need a short stay visa that is valid for up to 90 days.
In case you want to make temporary bookings and get a cover letter written as well, take a look at the image below to get all the details.
What is the validity of my Czech Schengen visa?
Your visa will only be valid for the number of days mentioned in your travel itinerary. Ensure that you have at least an additional of 5-10 days in your itinerary to ensure that you are able to cover all the places that you want to visit.
What is the processing time of my Czech Schengen visa application?
It usually takes up to 15 days to process your visa application. But keep in mind that the Czech Consulate will not give you any updates on the status of your application. You will need to go to their website to see if your application was approved.
The link will take you to a page like in the image above. Click on “Short term visa approved“. You will be taken to another page where you can see a list of applications numbers for those that have been approved. If you can’t find your application number on this list, then the application is still in process. Keep in mind the processing time of visas when checking this as well.
Where will I get my visa application number?
This will be given to you by the Czech Consulate after you have submitted your visa application form and the required documents.
Consulate General of the Czech Republic in New York
Address:
Consulate General of the Czech Republic
321 East 73rd Street
New York, NY 10021
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