The price of visas for Schengen states has been increased for all travellers as an updated Schengen Visa Code comes came into effect on Sunday. As of 2 February 2020, Egyptian citizens will be required to pay a fee of €80 instead of the previous €60 when applying for a Schengen visa. The fee for children has also been increased from €35 to €40. The European Union argues that the fee increase is in line with the general EU-wide inflation rate, and that the visa fees had not been adjusted for inflation since 2006. The EU has also said that despite the increase, Schengen visa fees are still much lower than those for other countries. The new rules also state that Schengen visa applicants can file an application up to six months before their trip, up from a previous three months. Frequent travellers to the Schengen Area, whether for business, tourism, or other short-term purposes, will benefit most from the new rules for Schengen Visa application, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com. These travellers will be granted the benefit of getting a multiple-entry visa valid for up to five years, given that they have a positive visa history. Statistics by SchengenVisaInfo.com show that in 2018, Schengen embassies and consulates in Egypt processed 190,140 visa applications, 37,891 of which were rejected, a rejection rate of 19.9 percent. France was the top country for visa submission, as 60,165 of the applications submitted in Egypt were for Schengen visas to France, followed by Germany with 38,535 and Italy with 20,200 applications. In terms of expenditures, in 2018, Egyptian citizens spent €11.4 million in visa applications to Europe, €2.2 million of which was from applicants who had their visas rejected.
