Short stay visa for citizens of Afghanistan

Holders of a passport from the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (ordinary, diplomatic and service passport) have to submit their visa application at the Embassy of Belgium in Islamabad through a Visa Application Centre (VAC) from Gerry’s International - Visa Drop Box in Pakistan (Islamabad, Lahore or Karachi).

If their biometric data have not been collected in the framework of an application for a Schengen visa in the past five years, they have to come in person to get their fingerprints collected and a live photo taken. This means that they have to travel to Islamabad, Lahore or Karachi, after having submitted their application online (see “New visa online application procedure”). The biometrics for Belgium are collected in one of those three VAC's.

The biometric data are collected since the start of the Visa Information System (VIS): 2 October 2012 in Afghanistan and 2 November 2015 in Pakistan.
Frequent travelers to the Schengen area do not have to give new finger scans every time they apply for a new visa. Once finger scans are stored in VIS, they can be re-used for further visa applications over a 5-year period. If applicants have received a Schengen visa after 1 October 2012 in Afghanistan (from a Schengen Embassy in Kabul) or after 1 November 2015 in Pakistan (from a Schengen Embassy in Islamabad or a Consulate-General in Karachi), they don’t have to come in person to submit their visa application during the following 59 months. This information should be filled out on the visa application form.

The fee for a short stay visa is :

• 90 Euro for holders of an ordinary passport (from 12 years old)
• 45 Euro for children between 6 and 12 years old
• free for children below 6 years old
• free for diplomatic passport or service/official passport

The visa applicant has to submit the following documents:

1. A valid international passport (the validity of the passport has to exceed the end of the proposed trip by at least three months); + a copy of the used pages of the passport + a copy of national ID-card + a copy of the used pages of their previous passport;
2. A visa application form (see attachment) + 1 recent passport photograph;
3. An original invitation letter from the organization/institution in Belgium; 
   • For visit of family or friends:  sponsorship letter (engagement de prise en charge annexe 3 bis/verbintenis tot tenlasteneming bijlage 3 bis) issued by the Belgian commune + last three salary slips and copy of identity card of sponsor
4. Proof of employment and a covering letter from the employing company or organization explaining the aims of the applicant’s visit to Belgium;
5. Ticket reservation;
6. A valid Int. Travel Insurance Document + 1 copy. The amount insured has to be minimum 30.000 EUR (equivalent in local currency) insurance has to cover the whole Schengen territory as well as the whole duration of the sojourn in Schengen territory. Please consult the list of the accredited Travel insurance companies in “Practical information”;
7. Proof of sufficient financial means, via one of the following means:
   • Personal
     • Credit card ; + 1 copy;
     • Personal salary slips (3 months);
     • Personal bank account statements (6 months); and/or 
   • Invitation letter from the institution/organization/company based in Belgium mentioning that they will take full charge of all the expenses;
8. Hotel reservation;
9. Visa fee.

We have to wait for the authorization of the Schengen partners, which will take minimum 10 working days. In most cases, we also have to contact the Belgian Immigration Office. This takes minimum 3 weeks. For this reason, we need the visa application as soon as possible. The applicants should submit their visa application at least one month in advance.