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rules of extending Schengen visa

A foreigner residing on Polish territory can extend the validity of the visa or length of stay covered by that visa, if he showed that due to force majeure or for humanitarian reasons it is not possible for him to leave the territory of Member States before the expiry of visa or the authorized period of stay.

The above visa extension is free.

A foreigner residing on Polish territory can be granted extension of the validity of the visa or length of stay covered by the visa, if he submits a proof of serious personal reasons justifying the extension or the validity period or the length of stay.

A charge of EUR 30 is collected for the above mentioned extension.

Deadline for submission of the application

A foreigner who wishes to extend his stay under the Schengen visa is required to apply for a visa extension at least 3 days before the expiry of the period of stay identified in the visa.

In cases where the foreigner has shown that due to force majeure or for humanitarian reasons it is not possible for him to leave the territory of the Member States before the expiry of a visa or before the end of the authorized period of stay, or if the foreigner stays in a hospital, the application may be submitted on the last day of the period of stay identified in the Schengen visa.

An application for renewal of the Schengen visa submitted after the deadline shall not be examined.

Foreigner who has applied for an extension of visa before the above-mentioned deadline is given a stamp in a travel document by a voivode, which confirms the submission of the application for extension of the Schengen visa.  If the deadline for submission of the application has been preserved and the application does not contain any formal defects or defects have been completed on time, the stay of a foreigner on Polish territory is considered legitimate from the date of submitting the application until a final decision on the extension of Schengen visa is given.  More

Placing a stamp in the travel document of a foreigner, under Article 61(2) of the Act of 13 June 2003 on foreigners, is not equivalent to issuing a visa or a document authorising a foreigner to stay on Polish territory and authorising to travel within the territory of other Schengen countries. 

            Placing the stamp in the travel document only confirms the submission of the application for the extension of visa.

The legality of foreigner's stay on Polish territory during the procedure of visa extension results from the law and is related to the fact of submitting the application for Schengen visa or a national visa in an effective and timely manner. 

A travel document with a stamp mentioned above will make it more likely that the stay of a foreigner on Polish territory is lawful, in accordance with Article 61(3) of the Act on foreigners.

A foreigner who has the above mentioned stamp in the travel document may leave Polish territory (going to the country where he has the right of entry), but if he is subject to a visa requirement, he should obtain a visa to enter and stay on Polish territory or a permit to stay issued by another State of the Schengen area, in order to re-enter Polish territory.  

Authority competent for visa extension

The authority competent to extend the Schengen visa is a voivode competent for the place of residence of the foreigner.

 Settlement regarding the extension of the Schengen visa is made by means of a decision.

 Documents:

A foreigner applying for extension of Schengen visa is required to:  present a valid travel document, justify the application and attach to the application:

• 1. current photograph;
• 2. documents confirming:
• § purpose of the stay and the need to extend a Schengen visa or a national visa,
• § travel medical insurance, referred to in Article 15 of the Community Code on Visas - for the extension of Schengen visa,
• § other circumstances specified in the application.

Requirements for the travel document:  

A foreigner applying for a Schengen visa extension provides for inspection a travel document which meets the following criteria:

1)  validity of the travel document expires no earlier than 3 months before the expiry of the requested visa;

2)  contains at least two blank pages;

3)  was issued in the last 10 years.

Period of stay

The period of stay on Polish territory on the basis of the extended visa shall not exceed the maximum period of stay provided for a given type of visa, i.e. 3 months for the Schengen visa.