VISA BIAS? Why Kenyans’ Visa Rejections For Europe Are High – Report
A British migration consultancy company has explained why African Schengen Visa applications are rejected at such a high rate.
In its Global Mobility July Report, Henley and Partners attributed the high rejection rate to two main factors: concerns about overstaying and the economic situation in most African countries.
According to the report, most European countries were always concerned about the applicants’ ability to return to their home country after their visas expired.
Henley and Partners also stated that most European countries frequently found it difficult to force someone to return home due to the anticipated backlash.
To avoid such scenarios, most countries in Europe would require the applicant to demonstrate that they intend to return to their host countries.
Malta, Norway, Slovenia, Estonia, Spain, Sweden, Belgium, France, Portugal, and Denmark were among the countries with the highest rate of visa denials.
“Officially, visa rejections are often attributed to doubts about applicants’ intention to leave the destination country before the visa expires.
“According to European states, most rejections are based on reasonable doubts about the visa applicants’ intention to return home,” read the report in part.
However, it was noted that a country’s economy also played a role in visa rejections.
The London-based firm added that a country’s economy is frequently linked to the ability of applicants to return after their visit.
“With an elastic concept such as this, the Schengen visa regime, and likely other visa regimes of most middle- and high-income countries, allows immigration officials in the embassies and consulates housed in the Global South to effectively filter visa applicants based on their economic conditions and country of origin.
“Due to these key factors, some European countries, such as Ireland, that had visa-free arrangements for South African and Botswana passport holders have now revoked these arrangements to curb asylum seekers from poorer countries,” read the statement in part.
Kenya is one of the African countries with the highest number of Schengen visa applicants. For example, in 2023, Kenya had 56,187 visa applications.
From 2020 to 2022, there were 68,161 visa applications. According to Schengen News, the rejection rate for Kenyan visa applications in 2022 was 24%.
VISA BIAS? Why Kenyans’ Visa Rejections For Europe Are High – Report
