Schengen Visa: The Nightmare Continues

Schengen Visa – Spain is the second most popular destination for Algerians after France.Indeed, the Consulate General of Spain receives a large number of Schengen visa applications.

Since the reopening of borders and the resumption of air and maritime traffic, Schengen visa applicants have been rushing to secure an appointment to submit their files.

Schengen Visa: An Appointment for 5 Million Centimes

While booking appointments on the official websites of service providers is free, in reality, one often has to pay to get one.

In fact, many people wishing to apply for a Spanish visa can no longer find available appointments on the BLS International platform, as some take advantage of the situation to sell these slots.

The process of obtaining a visa in Algeria is quite complicated, especially for those who wish to travel to Spain, one of the favorite destinations for Algerians. The difficulties begin right at the first step—getting an appointment to submit the visa application at BLS International. The lack of available time slots has given rise to a profitable business.

Schengen Visa: Booking an Appointment is Nearly Impossible

The main difficulty in getting an appointment to submit a visa application is due to intermediaries. An investigation conducted by Ennahar TV revealed that some tech-savvy individuals use software to track available appointments. Once they secure them, they resell these slots at exorbitant prices, according to applicants’ testimonies.

As a result, hundreds of Algerians wishing to travel to Spain—whether for tourism, business, or other purposes—are forced to pay a high price for this service. Otherwise, they have no chance of getting an appointment. According to some citizens seeking the “golden ticket,” prices range between 300,000 and 500,000 Algerian dinars.

Moreover, this activity is carried out openly in travel agencies and sometimes even in cybercafés. The issue has sparked outrage on social media, with internet users calling on the authorities to find a solution to this problem that penalizes visa applicants in Algeria.