Airport Transit Visa (Type A):

Τhis visa entitles aliens who are required to hold such a visa, to pass through the international transit area of airports, without actually entering the national territory of the country concerned, during a stop-over or transfer between two sections of an international flight. The requirement to have this visa is an exception to the general right to transit without a visa through the abovementioned international transit area.

Transit Visa (Type B):

This visa entitles aliens who are traveling from one third state to another third state to pass through the territories of the Contracting Parties.

This visa authorizes its holder to pass through once, twice or exceptionally several times, provided that no transit shall exceed five days.

Short-term or travel visas (Type C):

This visa entitles aliens who seek to enter the territories of the Contracting Parties, for reasons other than to immigrate, to carry out a continuous visit or several visits whose duration does not exceed three months in any half-year from the date of first entry. As a general rule, this visa may be issued for one or several entries.

In the case of certain aliens who frequently need to travel to one or several Schengen States, for example on business, short-stay visas may be issued for several visits, provided that the total length of these visits does not exceed three months in any half-year. This multiple entry visa may be valid for one year, and in exceptional cases, for more than a year for certain categories of persons.

Group Visa:

This is a transit visa or a visa limited to a maximum of thirty days, which may be affixed to a group passport, save where national legislation provides otherwise . This group must be socially or institutionally formed prior to the decision to travel, provided that the members of the group enter the territory, stay there and leave the territory as a group.

Group visas may be issued to groups of between 5 and 50 people. The person in charge of the group must possess an individual passport and, where necessary, an individual visa.

Visas with limited territorial validity (LTV):

This visa is affixed in exceptional cases to a passport, travel document or other document which entitles the holder to cross the border, where the visit is authorised only in the national territory of one or more Contracting Parties, provided that both entry and exit are through the territory of this or these Contracting Parties.

Long-stay visas

Cases of entries aimed at long stay, for reasons that include the notion of immigration, shall be exclusively governed by the national law of the member states, according to article 18 of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement, as modified by Council Regulation (EC) 1091/2001 of 28 May 2001 on freedom of movement with a long-stay visa (Official Journal L150 of 06/06/2001, pg. 4). In such cases, visas granted by the member states (for stays exceeding three months) shall be national visas (valid in principle exclusively for the country that granted it), and shall be issued for the reasons explicitly set out by the member state’s national immigration policy (Greek National Law 3386/2005 and relevant interpretative provisions) under the terms and conditions and on the basis of specific supporting documents provided for in these interpretative provisions.

            In particular:

            The issue of entry and stay on Greek territory for reasons including the notion of immigration is determined by Law 3386/2005 “on Entry, Stay and Social Integration of Third Country Nationals on Greek Territory (Government Gazette 212/ issue A of 23/08/2005, p. 3329) as amended and in effect today. In particular, pursuant to Article 6 par. 4 of the abovementioned Law, national visas are issued based on the relevant legislative provisions on residence permits and their length depends on the projected stay, according to each case. Furthermore, the Decision of the Minister of Foreign Affairs no. 3497.3/550/ Draft Number 4000 of 30.12.05 (G.G. 1912/issue B of 30.12.2005, pp. 26363-70) sets out the conditions, supporting documents and the process for the issuance of national visas.

Consular authorities can grant:

A) either a National Single Entry Visa, type D, for a maximum length of ninety days and valid for three months,

B) or a National Multiple Entry Visa (Type D+C) of a maximum length of ninety days and valid for three months, also valid as a short-stay visa, provided that:

-         the conditions laid down in each case are fulfilled;

-         the applicants submit the required general and special supporting documents, which must necessarily be translated according to the requirements of each Consular Authority and authenticated with the Apostille stamp;

-         a no hit comes up against a compulsory check on the Schengen Information System (SIS), and that no objections are raised on the part of other EU member states during the consultation procedure, where it is deemed necessary;

-         no substantiated proof to the contrary come up from the interview with the applicant, and that

-         the public health, public order, international relations and security of our country are not jeopardised.

On being issued a national entry visa, third country nationals must be informed that, following their arrival to Greece and definitely before the date of expiry of their entry visa, they are under the obligation (pursuant to article 11, par. 1 of Law 3386/2005) to submit a relevant application and necessary supporting documents to the Municipality or Community of their place of residence or stay, in order to be given the corresponding residence permits [[2]] .

A residence permit is an authorisation issued by the competent Greek authority that grants its holder – a third-country national – the right to legal residence in Greece [[3]]; it also ensures the right to re-enter our country, providing the holder with a right to free movement within the Schengen area for a period of ninety days during any half-year (article 21 of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement).

The essential and necessary precondition for the issuance of a residence permit is, generally, that every applicant hold a special national visa. This precondition is valid, irrespective of whether the applicant’s country is among the countries of Annex I (List of third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders) or among those of Annex II (List of third countries whose nationals are exempt from that requirement) of Council Regulation (EC) 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 and the amendments included in Council Regulations (EC) 2424/2001, 453/2003 [[4]], and more recently, Council Regulation 1932/2006.

Long-stay visas which are concurrently valid as short-stay visas

(Visas Type D + C)

Under current community law, third-country nationals who have been issued a national long-stay visa (Type D) by a member state that fully applies the Schengen acquis, and are under an obligation to hold a short-stay visa, depending on their nationality, may be allowed to transit through the territory of another member state in order to reach the country that has granted them the long-stay visa. This (type D) visa does not authorise its holder to cross the external borders or move freely within the Schengen area until they are granted a residence permit.

However, on the basis of relevant community legislation,[5][5] and in order to help certain types of applicants who by the very nature of their capacity and employment are considered to fulfill the conditions of Article 5 (1) indents a, c, d, and e, of the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement to a great extent, and who need, following their entry to our country to move freely and without any obstacles into the single Schengen area, it is possible, as determined by the competent authorities, for the person who applies for a national visa, if they fall within certain categories, to be issued a long-stay visa that is concurrently valid as a short-stay visa (Visas type D+C).

SCHENGEN VISA DOCUMENTS

In order to be granted a short-stay visa, interested applicants must fill out a copy of the harmonised uniform-visa application form (pursuant to EC Council Decision 354/2002), accompanied by a recent photograph of the applicant.

As a general rule, the applicant shall be called on to appear in person in order to verbally justify the grounds for the application.

For more information concerning the procedure and the required supporting documentation, you are advised to refer directly to the Greek Consular Authorities in your country of residence.

Rejection of visa application

According to Law 3386/2005 Article 8 paragraph 1 on “Entry, residence and social integration of third country nationals in the Hellenic Territory” (Government Gazette Of The Hellenic Republic 212/ Vol. A /23.08.2005, p. 3331), the decision regarding rejections of visa applications by diplomatic and consulate authorities does not need to be specially justified, except in the cases mentioned in the following categories of third country nationals and subject to public order and security considerations:

1. Third country nationals, family members of a Greek citizen.

2. Third country nationals, family members of a national of another European Union member-state.

3. Third country nationals whose entry, residence, accommodation and employment in Greece is required according to community law.

4. Recognized refugees and their family members.

5. Third country nationals who are employed by companies established in another European Union member-state and come to Greece to carry out a task or project within the framework of their relevant contractual obligations.

REFUSAL of entry

According to the General Provisions of the Common Consular Instructions, “mere possession of a uniform visa does not confer automatic right of entry”.

Furthermore and according to Law 3386/2005 Article 8 paragraph 2 on “Entry, residence and social integration of third country nationals in the Hellenic Territory” (Government Gazette of the Hellenic Republic 212/ Vol. A /23.08.2005, p. 3331), the Greek border authorities can reasonably prohibit the entry of a third country national in Greece if they find out that the person belongs to at least one of the following categories:

1. He/She is registered in the record of third country nationals who are not allowed to enter the country according to article 82 of the Law 3386/2005.

2. His/Her entry may jeopardise public order and security or public health.

3. The passport or any other documents he/she possesses do not secure his/her return to his/her country of origin or nationality or to a third country.

4. He/she comes in order to reside in Greece for reasons for which the issue of a special residence permit is required and he/she does not have the special visa required.

5. He/she does not have the required documents to justify the purpose of his/her journey as well as the financial means that are necessary for his/her subsistence. However, it is possible for Greek nationals – in a statement of acceptance written on a special form for this purpose and submitted to the passport control authorities – to state the purpose of the third-country national’s trip and for surety to be deposited with the Consignments and Loans Fund in the amount covering the cost of the third-country national’s repatriation or expulsion and a sum equal to three months’ earnings of an unskilled labourer, covering part or all of the third-country national’s expenses.

If a third country national comes under any of the above categories, they are given the relevant entry refusal form provided for by international agreements and regulations.