In my German visa cover letter, I’d mentioned plans to visit France and Italy over the 2 September holiday and asked for a longer multiple-entry visa. I did get multiple entries, with exactly eight days of permitted stay 🙈
I'm wondering, I'm thinking, I've spent 20-30 million on a plane ticket, I'll be there for less than 10 days and then I'll come back, that's so scrazy! But you can try to get a visa first, then you can count on me.
Getting the paperwork together the second time took about five days. The itinerary took longest because I had to research it myself, book rooms, find train tickets and so on. That was still a lot quicker than the two weeks I’d spent the first time. I'm planning so detailed that it feels like I'm actually going, and it's not possible to be more reasonable, so I'm pretty confident about my profile.
I looked up the French visa paperwork on VFS Global. Once I worked out I’d be spending five days in Italy and three in France, I applied through Italy instead 😁 https://visa.vfsglobal.com/one-pager/italy/vietnam/english/#Tourism-hanoi. I didn’t think VFS in Hanoi would accept a French visa application with that itinerary, let alone the embassy approve it.
- Schedule: line header in chronological order, fly from HN to where, where, where to go, means,... and return to Hanoi, not necessarily need Excel, at 8:00 am what to do, at 9:00 what to do.
- Passport expires in three months and has two blank pages.
- Copy the second page and the pages with the Schengen visa, in the case of the UK visa application is a photo of the whole book, not missing a page.
- Visa application, read it and fill it out yourself.
- 2 4x6 or 4x4 photos with white background: I took old photos from the German visa application (4 months ago) is not a problem.
- Booking return tickets: I usually book Vietnamairlines and QatarAirways to take reservation, after the time of hold ticket is cancelled. In the check list there is a request for means of transportation between countries if you go to many countries, according to my conclusion, it is not necessary because the itinerary has already recorded the information of the means, the train ticket does not allow booking, the airline ticket does not find the company to hold reservation, if you say to go by car it is not true so you do not submit this request, the staff at VFS does not ask.
- Accommodation: book on Booking.com rooms with free cancellation.
- Proof of employment: submit the employment contract in English (self-translated), photocopy in Vietnamese + notarized. Paid leave letter with a red stamp. I found an English template online. I got the centre director’s stamp and didn’t need the stamp of the employer named in my contract.
- Financial proof: confirmation of savings balance, confirmation of credit card limit.
- I have a CT07 that hasn't expired, but a photo ID is easier to get.
Travel insurance. I bought it from the same person as before, though this time it felt like I was begging them to sell it to me :)))) I’d told them the first time I might need their help if the visa was refused, but it came through. This time they didn’t reply, so I had to message them several times. I could have bought another one, but I still want to support that guy, so I don't care.
When I arrived, there was only me, and six people all morning.
When I got the results, I was alone, and I don't understand why it took three weeks to get my visa 👌
