Schengen - do my non-EU citizen/UK resident parents have to provide proof of finance even if I am sponsoring the trip?

[matcha31]

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you

[Caravel88]

They should apply as unemployed / retired.
Show proof of all your finances (inc. bank statements, income statements, employment contract and employment records).

Then they won't need to show much.
If they have bank accounts with funds in it, then they should also provide that.

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you

[Choc-Ice]

Hi,

There is a provision under EU Law that allows you to apply for a schengen visa to travel with your immediate family members Free of charge (Excluding VFS / TLS service charge and passport delivery coz I live in Wales). I have had 3 different entry visa and most recently Germany last week. (I did find France not to easy to deal with but Germany and Spain were both straightforward).

You'll to provide flight ticket showing you're travelling together, your birth certificate, passports for you and them along with BRP's. No travel insurance, no bank statement, no employment letters. Trust me I did and i ended up killing trees for no reason.

Hope this helps. See you on the other side

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you

[matcha31]

Hi,

There is a provision under EU Law that allows you to apply for a schengen visa to travel with your immediate family members Free of charge (Excluding VFS / TLS service charge and passport delivery coz I live in Wales). I have had 3 different entry visa and most recently Germany last week. (I did find France not to easy to deal with but Germany and Spain were both straightforward).

You'll to provide flight ticket showing you're travelling together, your birth certificate, passports for you and them along with BRP's. No travel insurance, no bank statement, no employment letters. Trust me I did and i ended up killing trees for no reason.

Hope this helps. See you on the other side

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you

Thanks Choc-Ice! Wow, never heard of this one before. I thought only family members as defined by the EU qualify as travelling with a EU Citizen without a visa. If there is another provision which allows my family members ( who do not fall under the spouse/dependent criteria), then I would be very interested in learning how to go about applying this way. Would you please mind sharing? Thank you.

[matcha31]

They should apply as unemployed / retired.
Show proof of all your finances (inc. bank statements, income statements, employment contract and employment records).

Then they won't need to show much.
If they have bank accounts with funds in it, then they should also provide that.

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you

Thanks for the response and tip. Will definitely try this if my mother's employment letter doesn't materialise in time.

[Caravel88]

For that to happen the parents have to be dependants AND the OP needs prove that the "dependants" are actually dependant by showing long term financial support history.

Hi,

There is a provision under EU Law that allows you to apply for a schengen visa to travel with your immediate family members Free of charge (Excluding VFS / TLS service charge and passport delivery coz I live in Wales). I have had 3 different entry visa and most recently Germany last week. (I did find France not to easy to deal with but Germany and Spain were both straightforward).

You'll to provide flight ticket showing you're travelling together, your birth certificate, passports for you and them along with BRP's. No travel insurance, no bank statement, no employment letters. Trust me I did and i ended up killing trees for no reason.

Hope this helps. See you on the other side

Hello all,

I (British citizen) am planning a family trip with my parents (non-EU citizens/ UK residents with BRP and ILR) to Europe (country undecided) this summer. Both of them are in full-time employment, however, I am going to be fully financing this trip as their anniversary present. Neither of them have ever applied for a Schengen visa before.

I have researched on various forums but cannot figure out whether this removes the need for them to provide their employment documentation. My mother works in the service industry with a hopelessly non-existent HR system (for eg, she persistently requested for a proof of employment letter to sponsor my grandfather's tourist visa to the UK last summer and it never materialised leading us to change the sponsor to someone else (me) ). The entire process of having to chase a faceless HR team then was extremely frustrating. Learning from this, I would like to avoid having to chase for an employment document for my mother as much as possible as this may obstruct the application process altogether.

I have a stable job and good financial means to cover the costs of the trip. Would a cover letter / my bank statements from me suffice in supporting the application for my parents? Can I accompany them at the appointment?

As a test, I emailed these questions to the Greek consulate but received a reply which did not even address the question! I am yet to email other consulates but hoping someone with a similar experience here might be able to provide an insight?

Thank you