As per July 1, 2006 all Nepalese passport holders have the obligation of an airport visa for the BENELUX countries (Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg)

Exempted are the following categories:

Holders of Nepalese diplomatic or official passport
Holders of valid residence permit for the EEA * countries, Canada or United States of America

EEA members states are: Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Austria, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, Sweden, Poland, Hungary, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Cyprus, Malta, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein.

Nepali nationals travelling to Europe on business, as a tourist or for other purposes may apply for a visa for a short stay of 1 to 90 days valid for the following countries:

Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.

The Schengen visa issued by any Embassy or Consulate of the above mentioned countries allows the holder to travel freely in the participating Schengen countries.

However there is no legal right to a visa. A visa is not a guarantee to access to the Schengen territories, the final authorisation remains with the competent authorities at the border. Entry can be refused if not all admission requirements are fulfilled by the time of entering the Schengen country.

Once the visa has been issued, the purpose of the proposed visit may not be altered after having entered the Schengen territory.

WHERE SHOULD I APPLY

1. If you intend to visit only one particular Schengen country, you must apply at the Embassy or Consulate of that country.
2. If you intend to visit several Schengen countries, you must apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of your main destination.
3. If you intend to visit several Schengen countries, but do not have a main destination, you should apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of the country of your first point of entry.
4. All visa applicants have to apply in person.

In Nepal applicants for a Schengen visa for the Netherlands should first present their documents and application to the Netherlands Consulate. Only after approval they will be issued a letter of recommendation. With this letter and the documents the applicant has to apply at the German Embassy in Kathmandu. This Embassy issues the Schengen visa for the Netherlands.

Schengen VISA Requirements

• Guarantee letter from the Municipality in the Netherlands where inviter resides. (Garantieverklaring via gemeente)
• Confirmed flight booking two ways.
• Medical insurance for the visiting period in the Netherlands.
• Bank statement of the inviter if the inviter is bearing the costs involved.
• Bank statement of the applicant if the applicant is visiting on self-finance.
• Valid Nepalese passport with at least six months validity after the last day of stay in the Netherlands.
• Invitation letter of the inviter to explain the background of the invitation
• If visiting for a conference, workshop, exhibition, or business meeting a confirmation letter from the concerned authority or organizer.

Authorisation for Temporary Stay (MVV)

PLEASE BE AWARE THAT AS FROM 15 MARCH 2006 A CIVIC INTEGRATION EXAM IS MANDATORY PRIOR TO SUBMISSION. PLEASE CHECK THE FOLLOWING WEB SITES: WWW.NAARNEDERLAND.NL OR WWW.IND.NL IN ORDER TO VERIFY IF THE NEW REQUIREMENT APPLIES TO YOU.

The MVV entitles the applicant to enter the Netherlands for a stay longer than three months. An MVV application procedure begins when an applicant approaches the Netherlands Consulate in Kathmandu, who forwards the application to the Netherlands embassy in New Delhi to seek an authorisation for temporary stay in the Netherlands. An advisory procedure is triggered if the applicant's referee approaches the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) in the Netherlands.

For general information and latest developments in the Netherlands concerning the Authorisation for Temporary Stay it is advisable to visit the site: www.ind.nl/en where you can find examples and rules which apply to your own situation and to your own nationality.

D + C visas
The MVV is a combined MVV plus short stay visa (known for short as a D+C visa). This gives MVV holders three months after they enter the Netherlands and before they obtain a residence permit in which they are entitled to travel freely within the Schengen area and/or return to the Netherlands after making a single visit to a country outside the Schengen area.

Payment of the administration fee for MVV.

Payment of the administration fee for MVV can take place only in the Netherlands and only in Euro (€) currency.

What are the administration fees?

• MVV to join partner or spouse € 830,--
• MVV to join parent(s) € 830,--
• MVV for study € 433,-- (through application procedure) or € 250,-- (through advisory procedure)
• MVV for work € 433,--
• MVV for adoption € 331,--
• MVV family tariff: see www.ind.nl/en

I. Application procedure:

Every applicant without exception has to apply for the MVV in person at the Netherlands Embassy or consulate in the country of origin or the country of long term residence. The country of long term residence is the country where one is authorised to stay for a period of more than three months on the grounds of a residence permit.

IMPORTANT

It is very important to verify beforehand which documents are required while submitting the application for the MVV since the applicant will only have 4 weeks to put all documents in order.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MVV APPLICATIONS

• a visa application form and 2 recent passport photographs with good resemblance
• a copy of the current passport, valid for at least three months after the intended date of travel
• minors require the written, signed consent of their parents as well as their signatures on the application forms
• along with a copy of their passports to verify the signatures
• a legalised marriage certificate in case of joining the husband/wife in the Netherlands
• a legalised marriage-ability certificate in case of joining the partner in the Netherlands
• a legalised birth certificate in case children wish to join their parent(s) in the Netherlands

There are various purposes for which the applicant can apply for MVV; the most common purposes are:

• permanent stay with spouse or registered partner
• permanent stay of child with parents
• study

The applicant submits the application form at the embassy/consulate general. The applicant will get an information letter with instructions about the Euro(€) amount to be paid and where and how to pay it. The transfer and bank charges are the responsibility of the applicant. When the documents are complete, payment has been done or when the four weeks for completion have expired the application is forwarded to the Dutch authorities for the final decision.

Once the embassy/consulate general has received notification of the IND's decision, whether authorisation or refusal, the applicant will be informed about the decision in writing.

In case of a positive outcome the applicant can come to the embassy/consulate general to collect the MVV. In case of a negative outcome regarding the issuance of the MVV, the applicant has the right to file a petition for review within 28 days of the day following the date on which the negative recommendation was issued.

II. Advisory procedure:

The advisory procedure is the procedure where a referee in the Netherlands takes the initiative to seek an authorisation for temporary stay; the referee in the Netherlands pays the administration fee directly to IND. There are various purposes for which the applicant can apply for MVV; the most common purposes are:

• permanent stay with spouse or registered partner
• permanent stay of child with parents
• regular employment
• employment as a highly skilled migrant
• study
• adoption

The IND strongly advises that MVV applications for the purpose of paid employment should be launched by referees via the advisory procedure. Since 1 January 2003, the IND has a single central contact point for MVV applications for the purpose of paid employment: the IND labour migration desk. This is located at the IND's S-W regional office in Rijswijk. All MVV applications for the primary purpose of paid employment are handled by the IND labour migration desk and the procedure must normally be launched by the referee (i.e. the employer). An important condition for admission as a highly skilled migrant (introduced as from 1 October 2004) is that the employer has concluded an agreement with the IND. A highly skilled migrant is a migrant coming to the Netherlands for the purpose of employment, earning a minimum gross income as specified on the www.ind.nl/en website.

In case of a positive outcome, the embassy/consulate will inform the applicant in writing. The applicant will then have to complete an application form and assemble the necessary documents. If the documents are incomplete, the applicant is given a one-off period of four weeks in which to rectify the omissions.

NB: In the case of the advisory procedure, the applicant must lodge the application at the embassy/consulate general within six months of the date on which the IND issued a positive recommendation.

In case of a negative outcome, the applicant has to reapply, however this can only be done through the above mentioned application procedure. (see I Application Procedure).

See: http://www.netherlandsconsulate.org.np/visas.php