Most people who hold a Schengen visa do not know that the sticker works for more than the Schengen zone alone. A number of countries keep their border open to holders of a valid Schengen visa and do not require a separate one. That is, with a Schengen visa you can extend the route and get two or three countries out of one document. Below I have written how this rule works and what you have to watch.
How additional countries open up on a Schengen visa
The logic is this: the country accepts that a European consulate has already checked your documents and does not repeat the same work. This is a one-sided decision, that is, the country can change the concession at any time. So checking again before every trip is essential.
The concession usually applies in the Balkan countries, in some Latin American countries and around the Black Sea. The conditions are not the same: some countries accept only a multiple-entry visa, while others require the visa to have been used already. The length of stay is limited too, usually from fifteen days to thirty.
Which conditions to pay attention to
| Type of visa | Some countries accept only a multiple-entry visa |
| Use condition | The visa may have to have been used in the Schengen area first |
| Validity | The visa must be in force at the moment of entry |
| Stay limit | A separate day limit applies |
The second line is the condition that causes most misunderstanding. In a number of countries the rule is this: the visa must already have been used, that is, an entry stamp for the Schengen zone must be visible in the passport. Travelling with a newly issued and as yet unused visa, you can be turned back at the border.
Read more: A Schengen countries travel guide: 29 countries on one visa, choosing a route, trains and budget
Extending the route on a Schengen visa
In practice this rule makes building a route considerably easier. After a European trip, for instance, it becomes possible to move on to the Balkans and stay a few more days without making a separate application. Routes like that come out both cheap and rich.
But do not forget one subtlety: leaving the Schengen zone and coming back counts as a new entry. If your visa is single-entry, you cannot return once you have gone outside. To build the route with this logic, getting support with route and visa planning prevents mistakes.
How to verify it
Do not trust the lists on the internet, because they go out of date quickly. The most reliable source is the official page of that country’s embassy in Azerbaijan or of its foreign ministry. The current conditions of the concession are written there in the “visa regime” section.
The second step is to check with the airline, because it is they who first decide whether to let you through at the check-in desk. If in doubt, get a written answer from the embassy and take it with you. Official information about the Schengen zone and its rules is given on the European Commission’s Schengen page.
In brief
A valid Schengen visa can open the door to several additional countries, but the conditions vary by country and can be withdrawn one-sidedly. Check the type of visa, the use condition and the day limit, do not leave the zone on a single-entry visa, and get confirmation from an official source. To build your route together, fill in the application form.
Note: these concessions change often, so be sure to get confirmation from that country’s official source before the trip.
