Schengen visas in United Kingdom: refusals consulate by consulate
10.5% of applications refused in 2025 — 53,398 of 512,426.
2024: 6.9% of 470,569 applications (+3.6 pts). 34 Schengen consulates active in 2025.
What the national rate hides
- Fewest refusals
- 1.0%
- Netherlands — Londres · 25,711 applications
- Most refusals
- 32.0%
- Iceland — Londres · 15,804 applications
- Biggest drop since 2024
- −17.5 pts
- Estonia — Londres · 1,269 applications
- Highest share of multiple-entry visas
- 97.3%
- Netherlands — Londres · 25,711 applications
Ranking based on consulates with at least 1,000 applications: below that, a handful of files moves the rate. The largest consulate by volume is France — Londres, with 129,940 applications.
Every consulate, fewest to most refusals
| Consulate | Applications 2025 | Refused 2025 | 2024 | Change | Multiple entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands — Londres | 25,711 | 1.0% | 1.5% | −0.5 pts | 97.3% |
| Germany — Edinburgh | 1,798 | 1.2% | 0.5% | +0.7 pts | 96.8% |
| Spain — Edinburgh | 17,180 | 2.2% | 4.1% | −1.9 pts | 61.9% |
| Germany — Londres | 30,927 | 3.3% | 4.8% | −1.5 pts | 75.1% |
| Czech Republic — Londres | 2,634 | 4.0% | 1.9% | +2.0 pts | 45.7% |
| Portugal — Londres | 14,317 | 5.7% | 3.0% | +2.7 pts | 81.2% |
| Spain — Londres | 82,840 | 5.9% | 3.5% | +2.4 pts | 57.0% |
| Italy — Londres | 18,956 | 6.0% | 6.0% | 0.0 pts | 90.2% |
| Luxembourg — Londres | 1,364 | 6.2% | 6.7% | −0.5 pts | 65.5% |
| Spain — Manchester | 38,175 | 8.0% | 4.9% | +3.1 pts | 1.9% |
| Austria — Londres | 3,930 | 8.1% | 12.2% | −4.1 pts | 35.5% |
| Croatia — Londres | 1,236 | 8.3% | 6.6% | +1.7 pts | 81.1% |
| France — Londres | 129,940 | 8.5% | 6.0% | +2.5 pts | 19.6% |
| Romania — Londres | 1,358 | 9.1% | 2.4% | +6.8 pts | 45.2% |
| Hungary — Londres | 3,201 | 10.0% | 13.9% | −4.0 pts | 53.4% |
| Switzerland — Londres | 16,123 | 10.6% | 12.8% | −2.2 pts | 89.6% |
| Portugal — Manchester | 6,698 | 10.6% | 4.5% | +6.2 pts | 62.7% |
| Malta — Londres | 5,216 | 11.3% | 5.2% | +6.1 pts | 76.9% |
| Poland — Londres | 3,703 | 13.5% | 3.0% | +10.5 pts | 55.6% |
| Belgium — Londres | 12,135 | 14.7% | 19.4% | −4.6 pts | 87.0% |
| Norway — Londres | 10,599 | 18.8% | 15.4% | +3.4 pts | 61.2% |
| Finland — Londres | 4,309 | 21.3% | 14.8% | +6.5 pts | 34.6% |
| Estonia — Londres | 1,269 | 23.5% | 41.0% | −17.5 pts | 64.5% |
| Greece — Londres | 36,089 | 24.5% | 10.3% | +14.2 pts | 68.1% |
| Latvia — Londres | 1,419 | 27.4% | 19.9% | +7.5 pts | 67.7% |
| Bulgaria — Londres | 1,925 | 29.0% | 8.5% | +20.6 pts | 29.1% |
| Lithuania — Londres | 3,735 | 30.2% | 22.0% | +8.1 pts | 48.4% |
| Denmark — Londres | 18,900 | 31.5% | 23.5% | +8.1 pts | 80.9% |
| Iceland — Londres | 15,804 | 32.0% | 14.5% | +17.5 pts | 79.7% |
Under 1,000 applications — rates not significant
| Consulate | Applications 2025 | Refused 2025 | 2024 | Change | Multiple entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romania — Manchester | 384 | 10.2% | 2.9% | +7.3 pts | 45.2% |
| Slovenia — Londres | 280 | 8.9% | 8.4% | +0.4 pts | 71.8% |
| Slovakia — Londres | 221 | 0.5% | 0.0% | +0.5 pts | 71.8% |
| Bulgaria — Edinburgh | 44 | 13.6% | — | — | 41.7% |
| Sweden — Londres | 6 | 0.0% | — | — | 100.0% |
Before choosing a consulate
You do not pick your consulate. The Visa Code (Article 5) designates the one of your main destination — or of the first country of entry if no destination dominates. Applying "where refusals are lower" for a trip elsewhere is itself a ground for refusal.
A low rate is not leniency: it also reflects who applies. A consulate that mostly receives seasoned business travellers refuses less than one receiving first-time applicants. The rate shows where files fail most often — a reason to prepare yours carefully, not to change address.
Where to go visa-free with a British passport
Source: Commission européenne — Visa statistics for consulates, 2025 and 2024 editions, published 2026-05-28. Uniform short-stay visas; the rate is the Commission's: refusals / (issued + limited territorial validity visas + refusals).