[Eng] Schengen Visa Application from Korea - for Conference, Meeting, or Short-term Academic Purposes

Halo, Elsa here ~

Entering the second semester of my master's study in Korea, I got the opportunity to present my research at an international conference in Palma, Spain, on June 2023.

Because I am Indonesian, I need a visa to go to Spain. The type of visa I took for this conference was the Schengen Visa Single Entry (for travel less than 90 days in European countries).

Okay, let's dive into how to prepare the documents, register at the Spain Embassy in Seoul, and collect the visa that has been received!

Schengen Visa Document Preparations

Actually, the complete information for the Schengen Visa application from Korea (especially Spain as the main country) can be seen on the Spain Embassy in Seoul website <click here>.  But, I made my own checklist specifically for conference, meeting, or short-term academic purposes <click here>. Of the nine points on the list, I will discuss in more detail points 5-9, as follows:

1. Overseas insurance policy

Medical insurance for a Schengen visa must meet the following criteria:

• A minimum coverage of medical costs: at least 30,000 EUR (equivalent to 32,000 USD as of March 2023).
• It should cover all member states of the Schengen Area.
• Cover any expenses that might arise with repatriation for medical reasons, urgent health attention and/or emergency hospital treatment or death.

The insurance that I used according to those requirements was Europe Assistance, based on recommendations from schengenvisainfo.com. To subscribe for the insurance, just follow the procedure on the website, then select the travel date (remember to consider the date during the trip). The registration process is easy, you can pay using PayPal or credit card, and the certificate of insurance is sent directly to the registered email.

2. Flight reservation and proof of accommodation

They need the flight and accommodation reservation (without paying), with booking ID and detailed flight number, time, and date; as well as the address of hotel/accommodation. Remember, flight ticket date and hotel should be matched.

I booked both of them with help from my travel agent, Tyara Holiday (in Indonesia). However, if you prefer to not use a travel agent, you can book flight and hotel tickets through online websites or applications (check Skyscanner, Booking.com, or Agoda). There are pay later services (you can choose the payment date, with different prices). But they usually need your card detail for payment (without withdrawing your money).

3. Proof of financial means

First, you should request an official letter from your sponsor stating they will fully cover your travel expenses, including airfare, accommodation, transportation, and academic trip expenses (per diem). The letter should be signed and/or stamped. If possible, provide the detailed amount of those expenses. However, if the budget is too low (for example: the required daily expenses for European countries are roughly €100/day and the budget doesn't meet the requirement, better to not mention it).

In my case, I made two versions (with and without detailed amounts). For additional documents, I made a cover letter from my supervisor stating the purpose of the travel and guaranteeing that it will be fully funded by the university. The email and office address of my supervisor was also written on it. This letter will strengthen your travel purpose and security, which will convince the consular officer.

Although there are statements that your travel will be fully supported, they still need a certificate of your deposit and bank statements for the last three months. Ensure to request it at the bank station around 1-3 days before the visa application date.

Then, since I am a student in Korea with a scholarship, I submitted the student enrollment and scholarship certificates.

4. Supporting documents concerning the purpose of travel

For conference, meeting, or short-term travel for academic purposes, just print the invitation letter or letter that your paper is accepted for the conference. In my case, they sent the invitation letter and event schedule through email, so I just printed it directly from my gmail.

For your reference, you can see the example of my documents <here>

Book the Appointment to the Spain Embassy in Seoul

The appointment can be made through <this link> (the link may change and differ between each European country's embassy, check further to the embassy website).

The document preparations roughly take two weeks. So, you can estimate the date you will apply as soon as when you got the invitation letter from the conference committee. On the website, it stated that visa applications must be submitted between 6 months and 15 days before the scheduled date of travel. The decision period is of 15 working days as of the day after the application submission date, but this period may be extended if an interview or additional documents are requested.

Collecting the Visa/Refusal Certificate

The status of the visa application can be checked through <this link>. The visa/refusal certificate can be collected by appointment <this link> or without an appointment to the Spain Embassy in Seoul on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday from 12.00 p.m. to 12.50 p.m.. Bring proof of receipt of the application provided by the Consular Office.

 Hope this article helps you!

Cheers,

Elsa