An Indian entrepreneur’s social media post about his nearly 400-page-long Schengen visa application has ignited a lively debate online over the strength of the Indian passport and the visa process itself.
Kapil Dhama, founder and CEO of Options 360, shared a photograph of a thick stack of documents on X (formerly Twitter), claiming they were required for his Schengen visa application. “Almost 400 page application for Schengen visa. Real power of passport,” he wrote in a post that quickly went viral, amassing over 3 lakh views.
A Schengen visa allows non-EU nationals to temporarily stay in any of the 30 countries within the Schengen zone, which includes much of Europe. Dhama clarified in the comments that he had submitted his application via VFS, a company that facilitates visa processing on behalf of embassies by collecting documents, biometrics, and conducting interviews.
However, the massive volume of paperwork drew skepticism from many users. Some suggested that the bulk of the application likely consisted of bank statements and unnecessary documents.
“Everyone who shows these bundles won’t tell you 90-95% of these are just bank statements of last 6 months (useless activity). Thanks to UPI everyone has a very large number of transactions,” wrote one user.
Another X user commented, “Applied and received multiple five-year Schengen visas — Netherlands online application and supporting documents were exactly 10 pages; Austria physical application form and supporting documents totalled 25 pages. 400 is a sham!”
Several others echoed similar experiences, stating their applications were processed with significantly fewer pages, often under 30.
Despite the debate, Dhama’s post has reignited conversations around the challenges faced by Indian passport holders in securing visas for international travel, especially to countries in the Schengen zone.