Published 01-03-2017 - Last updated: 23-11-2017

Changes to visa requirements and new guidelines for processing visa applications

Changes to Danish visa requirements come into effect on 1 March 2017. The changes will make it more difficult for citizens of some countries to obtain a visa and easier for others. There is also a new procedure for appealing decisions about visa applications.

The Danish Ministry of Immigration and Integration has made changes to the ‘Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015 on aliens’ access to Denmark on the basis of a visa’, which establishes the requirements for obtaining a visa (short-term stays).

The changes to the Executive Order no. 376 consist primarily of changes in the five main groups of countries whose citizens are not exempted from visa requirements. Different guidelines apply based on which of the five main groups a country is placed in. A list of countries and their groups can be found on newtodenmark.dk.

The changes take effect on 1 March 2017 and are applicable to visa applications submitted on or after that date. The current requirements apply to applications submitted prior to 1 March 2017.

New appeal procedure

A Danish embassy or consulate may, in certain situations, refuse a visa application. In the past, all such decisions have resulted in an automatic appeal to the Danish Immigration Service. Starting on 1 March 2017, some applicants will be required to initiate an appeal on their own.  Each applicant will be informed of which appeal procedure applies in his/her case.

Appeals against a decision made by the Danish Immigration Service to refuse a visa application will no longer be handled by the Ministry of Immigration and Integration. Such appeals will now be handled by the Immigration Appeals Board.

Applicants will now also be required to submit their appeal to either the Immigration Service or the Immigration Appeals Board within eight weeks of receiving notice that their application has been rejected. The rejection notice will contain information about how to appeal a decision, as well as which authority the appeal should be submitted to.

Appeal procedure for refusal of visas to the Faroe Islands and Greenland

Appeals against a refusal of an application for a visa to enter the Faroe Islands or Greenland should still be submitted to the Ministry of Immigration and Integration.

New visa-processing guidelines

In connection with changes to Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015, the Ministry of Immigration and Integration has also issued new guidelines for the processing of applications submitted by aliens seeking to enter Denmark on the basis of a visa. The guideline replaces guideline no. 9188 of 20 March 2015, on the processing of applications for visas for Denmark.

Links

Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015 on aliens’ access to Denmark on the basis of a visa

Order to amend ‘Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015 on aliens’ access to Denmark on the basis of a visa’ (In Danish only)

Order to amend ‘Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015 on aliens’ access to Denmark on the basis of a visa’ – Attachment 1: Main groups of countries whose citizens are not exempted from visa requirements (In Danish only)

Appeals

Guidelines for processing an application for a Danish visa

Executive Order no. 376 of 20 March 2015 on aliens’ access to Denmark on the basis of a visa

Executive Order no. 376 sets out the requirements for obtaining a Danish visa, as well as general visa guidelines. Among the purposes of Executive Order no. 376 are the establishment of the procedure for submitting visa applications, the requirements for obtaining a visa, as well as the basic considerations taken when processing visas. Executive Order no. 376 also contains a number of rules concerning the competence of authorities and the appeal procedure.

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