
Getting a Schengen visa will be harder for some expats from July
This change means that applicants whose visa applications are rejected will no longer be able to submit a formal remonstration (a type of appeal or objection) directly to the German mission that processed their application. Until now, candidates had been able to apply for a new examination of the visa application, as long as it was done within a month of receiving the visa refusal letter.
Applicants will now have the option to take legal action by filing a lawsuit with the administrative court in Berlin.
The remonstration procedure was previously a mandatory step for applicants who wished to challenge a visa rejection before pursuing legal avenues. Its abolition aims to streamline the visa application process and reduce administrative burdens. This decision applies to all German diplomatic missions globally.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Times of Oman
a day ago
- Times of Oman
Zelenskyy to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, days after US-Russia talks in Alaska
Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he would be meeting with US President Donald Trump on Monday for diplomatic efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, just two days after the "historic" bilateral meeting between Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska. In a post on X on Saturday, Zelenskyy revealed that he and Trump had held a "long and substantive" call, beginning with one-on-one talks and later including European leaders in a broader discussion, where Trump briefed him on his recent meeting with Putin. Zelenskyy underscored that Washington has a vital role in efforts to end the conflict. "We had a long and substantive conversation with @POTUS. We started with one-on-one talks before inviting European leaders to join us. This call lasted for more than an hour and a half, including about an hour of our bilateral conversation with President Trump," the Ukrainian President said. "Ukraine reaffirms its readiness to work with maximum effort to achieve peace. President Trump informed about his meeting with the Russian leader and the main points of their discussion. It is important that America's strength has an impact on the development of the situation," he added. Zelenskyy also welcomed Trump's proposal for a trilateral meeting involving Ukraine, the US and Russia, underlining Kyiv's commitment to peace and close coordination with international partners. "We support President Trump's proposal for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the USA, and Russia. Ukraine emphasises that key issues can be discussed at the level of leaders, and a trilateral format is suitable for this," the post read. "On Monday, I will meet with President Trump in Washington, D.C., to discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war. I am grateful for the invitation," it added. Zelenskyy reiterated Ukraine's commitment to peace and said Kyiv remains ready to work with maximum effort to achieve a resolution, adding that European involvement would be critical in securing lasting and reliable security guarantees. "It is important that Europeans are involved at every stage to ensure reliable security guarantees together with America. We also discussed positive signals from the American side regarding participation in guaranteeing Ukraine's security. We continue to coordinate our positions with all partners. I thank everyone who is helping," the post concluded. Earlier, Trump also stated that the Ukrainian President will be coming to Washington on Monday, and if things work out then a meeting will be scheduled with Russian President Vladimir Putin. "President Zelenskyy will be coming to D.C., the Oval Office, on Monday afternoon. If all works out, we will then schedule a meeting with President Putin. Potentially, millions of people's lives will be saved. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" Trump stated in a post on Truth Social. Earlier on Friday, the US and Russia held the much-anticipated truce talks meeting in Alaska to discuss bringing an end to the conflict in Ukraine.


Times of Oman
4 days ago
- Times of Oman
'No unilateral Ukraine peace deal in Alaska': Zelenskyy, European leaders urge Trump
Berlin: European leaders, concerned about potential concessions to Russia, urged US President Donald Trump not to strike a unilateral Ukraine peace deal with President Vladimir Putin during their upcoming meeting in Alaska, CNN reported. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz convened a virtual summit with Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and several European leaders amid fears that Putin could seek to influence the US president into accepting terms favourable to Russia. After the virtual summit, Zelensky and German Chancellor address reporters in Berlin, Germany, following their meeting with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, as per CNN. Two European diplomats familiar with the virtual meeting confirmed that Trump appeared to say that he would push for an unconditional ceasefire in his meeting with Putin. According to sources, Trump said that he believed that a ceasefire would be a show of goodwill from Russia, and he also noted that the Ukrainian territory is not for him to negotiate. The leaders of Ukraine, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland, NATO, and the European Union had taken part in the virtual meeting with Trump. It was followed by another larger meeting of the "Coalition of the Willing" that US Vice President JD Vance attended, according to CNN. After the meeting, Zelensky said leaders agreed on "five common principles" to lay out the "format of negotiations" to be held in Alaska, including a focus on a ceasefire and "truly reliable" security guarantees. "Everything concerning Ukraine must be discussed exclusively with Ukraine. We must prepare a trilateral format for talks. There must be a ceasefire, that is number one," he said. He added: "There must be security guarantees, truly reliable ones. And today, President Trump spoke of his support for this and of America's readiness to participate." "Russia cannot have a veto over Ukraine's European and NATO prospects," he said. "Peace talks must be combined with appropriate pressure on Russia." Zelensky also emphasised that sanctions against Russia should be strengthened if no ceasefire agreement is reached on Friday.


Times of Oman
5 days ago
- Times of Oman
US accuses Germany of 'human rights issues' in new report
Washington: Human rights, such as freedom of expression, are under threat in Germany and other European countries, according to the 2024 Human Rights Report by the US State Department. The report, which in former years has been seen as a reliable point of reference for global human rights advocacy, has been criticized by human rights groups as containing numerous omissions and mischaracterisations to fit the current US administration's political aims. What did the report say about Germany? "The human rights situation in Germany worsened during the year," an executive summary of the report's Germany entry said. "Significant human rights issues included restrictions on freedom of expression and credible reports of crimes, violence, or threats of violence motivated by antisemitism," the report said. The report stated, however, that the German government "took some credible steps to investigate, prosecute, and punish officials who committed human rights abuses." The report follows on from comments made by US Vice President JD Vance in February, in which he accused Germany and other European allies of imposing restrictions on free speech and attempting to marginalize far-right parties, including the Alternative for Germany (AfD). His remarks have been described as "intrusive" by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Kid gloves for Israel, El Salvador The report devotes a much smaller section to Israel than it did last year and fails to mention the severe humanitarian crisis and death toll in the Gaza Strip amid Israel's ongoing offensive against the Palestininian group Hamas. El Salvador, which was described in the 2023 report under the Biden administration as having "significant human rights issues," also got off lightly in 2024. "There were no credible reports of significant human rights abuses," the 2024 report said about the Central American country, whose president, Nayib Bukele, is accused of overseeing unlawful and arbitrary killings, torture and harsh prison conditions. The Trump administration's relations with El Salvador have strengthened in recent months, with Washington using a high-security mega-prison in the country to house migrants it has deported under draconian new migration policies. Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine was referred to in the report mainly as the "Russia-Ukraine war," though it did say Russia's forces and officials were reported to have committed war crimes, crimes against humanity and abuses in Ukraine. In contrast, countries such as South Africa and Brazil, with whose governments Trump has clashed, came in for severe criticism that was not contained in the 2023 report. 'Reflective of Soviet propaganda' The report was issued with a delay as officials appointed by US President Donald Trump altered an earlier draft to bring it into line with his administration's foreign policies and ideological slant. It was prepared after the department underwent a major revamp during which hundreds of people were dismissed, many from the agency's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, which has a large role in writing the report. In April, Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in an opinion piece that the bureau had become a nest of "left-wing activists" and pledged that the Trump administration would change its focus in favor of "Western values." "The report demonstrates what happens when political agendas take priority over the facts," said Josh Paul, a former State Department official and director of nongovernmental organization A New Policy. "The outcome is a much-abbreviated product that is more reflective of a Soviet propaganda release than of a democratic system," he told Reuters news agency. Rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have also criticized the report, saying the Trump administration had mischaracterised some records of abuses and omitted others to suit its political agenda. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, however, defended the report, saying it had been restructured to improve readability and to stop it from being a list of "politically biased demands and assertions."