Official EU data · 2018
Schengen visa statistics 2018
Sustained growth — the last full year of the pre-pandemic cycle.
Every Schengen short-stay visa application and decision for 2018, as reported by Member States to the European Commission. Browse by destination country or by applicant nationality.
Data released by the European Commission in April 2019.
See how these figures changed over time — visa trends & COVID recovery →
16,016,599
Applications received
14,265,282
Visas issued
1,539,362
Applications refused
9.6%
Overall refusal rate
By destination
Where applicants applied to go
| Schengen state | Applications | Issued | Refusal rate | Multiple-entry share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | 4,010,604 | 3,345,400 | 15.7% | 30.8% |
| Germany | 2,056,296 | 1,838,775 | 9.1% | 84.6% |
| Italy | 1,844,140 | 1,703,912 | 7.4% | 72.4% |
| Spain | 1,701,379 | 1,502,696 | 9.3% | 43.9% |
| Greece | 855,285 | 805,115 | 4.9% | 73.9% |
| Finland | 769,049 | 751,358 | 1.8% | 89.2% |
| Netherlands | 682,484 | 583,137 | 13.1% | 89.8% |
| Czech Republic | 662,902 | 630,071 | 4.7% | 27.5% |
| Switzerland | 556,520 | 487,014 | 7.4% | 60.4% |
| Poland | 526,715 | 508,386 | 3.2% | 74.8% |
| Lithuania | 353,059 | 346,476 | 1.3% | 85.1% |
| Austria | 306,133 | 280,847 | 6.2% | 55.2% |
| Portugal | 266,516 | 221,009 | 16.6% | 50.2% |
| Sweden | 253,292 | 207,643 | 11.7% | 27.8% |
| Hungary | 228,793 | 210,827 | 7.8% | 52.0% |
| Belgium | 219,827 | 173,598 | 16.8% | 49.8% |
| Norway | 164,591 | 146,526 | 9.5% | 21.9% |
| Denmark | 164,003 | 149,744 | 7.0% | 48.7% |
| Latvia | 161,709 | 157,628 | 2.1% | 78.8% |
| Estonia | 127,561 | 125,465 | 1.6% | 89.9% |
| Malta | 32,331 | 24,931 | 20.5% | 30.5% |
| Slovakia | 26,797 | 25,230 | 4.2% | 65.8% |
| Slovenia | 26,403 | 20,171 | 10.0% | 91.1% |
| Luxembourg | 10,876 | 10,467 | 3.7% | 79.0% |
| Iceland | 9,334 | 8,856 | 1.7% | 29.5% |
By nationality · top 40
Where applicants applied from
| Country of application | Applications | Issued | Refusal rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russian Federation | 3,695,671 | 3,631,320 | 1.6% |
| China | 2,823,252 | 2,707,867 | 3.7% |
| India | 1,081,359 | 974,674 | 9.3% |
| Turkey | 879,240 | 799,903 | 8.5% |
| Algeria | 713,255 | 384,420 | 45.5% |
| Belarus | 681,106 | 676,984 | 0.3% |
| Morocco | 662,585 | 528,639 | 18.1% |
| Saudi Arabia | 360,287 | 322,004 | 7.6% |
| Thailand | 332,269 | 319,729 | 3.3% |
| United Kingdom | 275,099 | 266,834 | 1.5% |
| Iran | 273,580 | 189,030 | 29.4% |
| Tunisia | 234,452 | 186,250 | 18.2% |
| South Africa | 221,790 | 214,491 | 2.4% |
| United Arab Emirates | 217,433 | 174,059 | 17.9% |
| Indonesia | 210,468 | 205,425 | 1.8% |
| Ukraine | 191,725 | 182,400 | 4.7% |
| Egypt | 190,140 | 147,340 | 19.9% |
| Philippines | 175,703 | 159,861 | 8.2% |
| Kuwait | 174,765 | 164,742 | 4.9% |
| Usa | 160,749 | 152,935 | 2.0% |
| Kazakhstan | 157,608 | 149,575 | 4.8% |
| Lebanon | 155,650 | 133,225 | 12.1% |
| Vietnam | 127,062 | 113,585 | 9.5% |
| Angola | 107,541 | 84,178 | 21.5% |
| Qatar | 90,957 | 82,319 | 7.9% |
| Kosovo | 90,840 | 7,833 | 21.6% |
| Pakistan | 89,256 | 55,239 | 34.8% |
| Nigeria | 88,587 | 42,695 | 49.8% |
| Senegal | 73,346 | 42,170 | 40.5% |
| Ecuador | 68,013 | 56,039 | 16.2% |
| Iraq | 64,726 | 32,909 | 47.8% |
| Cote D'ivoire | 61,639 | 42,114 | 30.8% |
| Azerbaijan | 59,325 | 52,484 | 10.5% |
| Armenia | 59,012 | 52,081 | 11.8% |
| Jordan | 56,976 | 44,969 | 16.5% |
| Cuba | 50,179 | 42,329 | 14.1% |
| Ghana | 43,665 | 24,990 | 41.5% |
| Dominican Republic | 42,606 | 30,601 | 27.5% |
| Oman | 38,944 | 36,460 | 4.9% |
| Kenya | 38,503 | 32,996 | 12.4% |
Source: European Commission, DG Migration and Home Affairs — Schengen visa statistics 2018. Figures cover uniform (type C) short-stay visas.