Latest news with #MartaForesti
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rejected visa application to Europe cost Africa $68M
Africans paid €60 million ($68 million) for European short-term visa applications that ended up being rejected in 2024. That comprised 40% of the total amount the European Union received from fees for rejected visa applications. Comoros, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, and Ghana had the highest rejection rates for EU visas in 2024, above 45% in each case. But the African countries that experienced the highest year-on-year increases in the cost of rejected visas in 2024 were Eritrea, Botswana, and DR Congo, according to LAGO Collective, a research and creative organization based in London. The agency's analysis concluded that rejected visas are disproportionately more expensive for low- and middle-income countries. 'The financial cost of rejected visas is just staggering,' said Marta Foresti, LAGO Collective's founder. 'You can think of the costs of rejected visas as 'reverse remittances' — money flowing from poor to rich countries — which we rarely hear about,' she said.
Business Insider
23-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Africans lost $67.5 million to denied Schengen visa applications in 2024
African applicants lost nearly €60 million ($67.5 million) in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024, according to data from the LAGO Collective, a London-based research group tracking global mobility. African applicants lost €60 million in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024. African countries experienced high rejection rates and rising application costs. Nigeria saw over 50,000 short-stay visa applications denied last year. African applicants lost nearly €60 million ($67.5 million) in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024, according to data from the LAGO Collective, a London-based research group tracking global mobility. The report reveals that African countries were the hardest hit globally, with high rejection rates and rising application costs. For instance, in Nigeria, over 50,000 short-stay visa applications were denied last year, CNN reported. Applicants worldwide pay a non-refundable visa fee of 90 euros (about $100), so Nigerians alone lost over 4.5 million euros (about $5 million) seeking permission to travel to the 29 European countries that make up the Schengen Area. Discrimination and systemic bias 'The poorest countries in the world pay the richest countries in the world money for not getting visas,' its founder Marta Foresti told CNN. 'As in 2023, the poorer the country of application, the higher the rejection rates. Rejection rates reached as high as 40–50% for countries such as Ghana, Senegal, and Nigeria. She argues this reflects 'systemic discrimination and bias' within the visa application process. Costs rise, but chances don't The standard Schengen visa fee rose from €80 to €90 in July 2024, increasing the burden for applicants. Unlike many other service fees, visa application charges are non-refundable, even if a visa is denied. According to Foresti, these financial losses act as "reverse remittances", with money flowing from poor countries to wealthier European nations with no benefit in return. A separate report by Henley & Partners supports these claims, showing that African applicants were twice as likely to be rejected as their Asian counterparts in 2023, despite submitting only half as many applications. Six of the ten countries with the highest rejection rates are African.
Business Insider
23-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Africans lost $67.5 million to denied Schengen Visas in 2024
African applicants lost nearly €60 million ($67.5 million) in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024, according to data from the LAGO Collective, a London-based research group tracking global mobility. Africans lost $67.5 million to denied Schengen Visas in 2024 African applicants lost €60 million in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024. African countries experienced high rejection rates and rising application costs. Nigeria saw over 50,000 short-stay visa applications denied last year. African applicants lost nearly €60 million ($67.5 million) in non-refundable Schengen visa fees in 2024, according to data from the LAGO Collective, a London-based research group tracking global mobility. The report reveals that African countries were the hardest hit globally, with high rejection rates and rising application costs. For instance, in Nigeria, over 50,000 short-stay visa applications were denied last year, CNN reported. Applicants worldwide pay a non-refundable visa fee of 90 euros (about $100), so Nigerians alone lost over 4.5 million euros (about $5 million) seeking permission to travel to the 29 European countries that make up the Schengen Area. Discrimination and systemic bias 'The poorest countries in the world pay the richest countries in the world money for not getting visas,' its founder Marta Foresti told CNN. 'As in 2023, the poorer the country of application, the higher the rejection rates. Rejection rates reached as high as 40–50% for countries such as Ghana, Senegal, and Nigeria. She argues this reflects 'systemic discrimination and bias' within the visa application process. The standard Schengen visa fee rose from €80 to €90 in July 2024, increasing the burden for applicants. Unlike many other service fees, visa application charges are non-refundable, even if a visa is denied. According to Foresti, these financial losses act as "reverse remittances", with money flowing from poor countries to wealthier European nations with no benefit in return. A separate report by Henley & Partners supports these claims, showing that African applicants were twice as likely to be rejected as their Asian counterparts in 2023, despite submitting only half as many applications. Six of the ten countries with the highest rejection rates are African.
