# Schengen expiring b4 appt



## maya222

Hi there! So here is my question.. Im a 19 year old Canadian who has been travelling the past few months throughout Europe on a 90 day Schengen visa. I have 1 week left before my visa expires and I am currently situated in Morocco at the moment so its not being used, but I want to fly to berlin to live and work there by the first few days in October. I looked into my options for visas and the 2 that would probably suit me best are the Youth mobility visa or the freelancer one. I've read that the youth mobility one has to be issued in Canada but you can mail it to them, so I was wondering if anyone knows any more on that? I read the visa has to be signed by an honorary consul or something? My other option I waslooking at was artist freelance visa, I'm an aspiring journalist and have a clothing line but would also need to make money on the side ie: a cafe. 

The thing is I booked appointments for these visas but the next available one isn't until November 11.. My Schengen visa expires 1 week after being in Germany! Does this automatically get extended until my appointment? What should I do??


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## Bevdeforges

Actually, no, your Schengen visa went invalid when you left the Schengen area - and should have been stamped (or at least recorded somehow) with your departure date. If you return to Germany, you get a new stamp in your passport and the period begins again - however, remember that the deal with a Schengen visa is that it's valid for 90 days out of any 180 day period. So if you went right up to the end of the visa, you may not be granted another one for a while.

I'm not terribly familiar with the German visa requirements, but generally to apply for a visa from outside the country, you need to apply from the consulate in the country where you are legally resident. However, I believe that for Germany, you may be able to return to Germany (on a Schengen visa) and then present yourself to the proper office in the town in which you are establishing yourself to apply for a visa. (Note this doesn't apply to the Youth mobility visa.)

Someone should be along shortly with more information for you on that.
Cheers,
Bev


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## ALKB

maya222 said:


> Hi there! So here is my question.. Im a 19 year old Canadian who has been travelling the past few months throughout Europe on a 90 day Schengen visa. I have 1 week left before my visa expires and I am currently situated in Morocco at the moment so its not being used, but I want to fly to berlin to live and work there by the first few days in October. I looked into my options for visas and the 2 that would probably suit me best are the Youth mobility visa or the freelancer one. I've read that the youth mobility one has to be issued in Canada but you can mail it to them, so I was wondering if anyone knows any more on that? I read the visa has to be signed by an honorary consul or something? My other option I waslooking at was artist freelance visa, I'm an aspiring journalist and have a clothing line but would also need to make money on the side ie: a cafe.
> 
> The thing is I booked appointments for these visas but the next available one isn't until November 11.. My Schengen visa expires 1 week after being in Germany! Does this automatically get extended until my appointment? What should I do??


As a Canadian you can apply for a freelance/artist permit when on a visit visa/visa waiver but you will be limited to the freelance profession as specified on the permit and taking on regular employed work would be subject to permission = you'd need to apply for a different work permit (getting that for a job at a café is unlikely at best). 

The youth mobility visa has to be applied for at your country of permanent residence = Canada or a country for which you hold a valid long term residence permit. It does not restrict the jobs you can do but is only valid for 12 months.

How long have you been in the Schengen area?


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## maya222

Thank you so much for the swift response! Yes, I'm aware of the 180 day thing, I have exactly 1 week left before my visa expires.. What should I do about my appointment not being until November?? As long as I booked it am I good? There's no faster way to get an appointment is there? 

I have looked into it and apparently you can mail your youth mobility application, so I'm looking in to that... Sounds like that one is more useful to get if you can't really work somewhere on the freelancer visa.


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## ALKB

maya222 said:


> Thank you so much for the swift response! Yes, I'm aware of the 180 day thing, I have exactly 1 week left before my visa expires.. What should I do about my appointment not being until November?? As long as I booked it am I good? There's no faster way to get an appointment is there?
> 
> I have looked into it and apparently you can mail your youth mobility application, so I'm looking in to that... Sounds like that one is more useful to get if you can't really work somewhere on the freelancer visa.


It is up to the immigration officer whether to admit you again at all, give you another 90 days, or restrict your stay to a specific number of days. Nobody can tell you for sure until you arrive at the border. 

You could arrive in the early hours of the morning at the Ausländerbehörde and hope to get one of the limited waiting numbers for an unscheduled appointment.

Applying by mail usually refers to applying from within Canada so you don't have to travel from remote locations and I assume you'd need to give them a Canadian return address for your documents. You'd have to send in your passport - is that a good idea while in Morocco as a tourist?

I've just found this on the UK government website under travel advice:

"It’s illegal in Morocco to send passports through the post. British passports sent to or through Morocco by post or courier companies will be confiscated by the Moroccan authorities."

Source:

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/morocco/local-laws-and-customs

I don't think this will be any different for Canadian passports.


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## maya222

Thats good to know.. thanks, I hadn't even realised that. 
So what should I do? Like I said, I have 1 week left of my visa so should I just aim to get an earlier appointment somehow? If I come in early morning without an appointment you're saying they'll let me in? Because online the next available one is on the 2nd of November but my flight to Germany is for the beginning of October. So after one week of being there my stay will have been expired.
Is freelance visa the best option in my situation or is there anything else I should look into that may be an easier way of staying in the country longer? I could always do under-the-table jobs..
Thanks!


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## maya222

Bevdeforges said:


> Actually, no, your Schengen visa went invalid when you left the Schengen area - and should have been stamped (or at least recorded somehow) with your departure date. If you return to Germany, you get a new stamp in your passport and the period begins again - however, remember that the deal with a Schengen visa is that it's valid for 90 days out of any 180 day period. So if you went right up to the end of the visa, you may not be granted another one for a while.
> 
> I'm not terribly familiar with the German visa requirements, but generally to apply for a visa from outside the country, you need to apply from the consulate in the country where you are legally resident. However, I believe that for Germany, you may be able to return to Germany (on a Schengen visa) and then present yourself to the proper office in the town in which you are establishing yourself to apply for a visa. (Note this doesn't apply to the Youth mobility visa.)
> 
> Someone should be along shortly with more information for you on that.
> Cheers,
> Bev


Thats good to know.. thanks, I hadn't even realised that. 
So what should I do? Like I said, I have 1 week left of my visa so should I just aim to get an earlier appointment somehow? If I come in early morning without an appointment will they let me in? Because online the next available one is on the 2nd of November but my flight to Germany is for the beginning of October. So after one week of being there my stay will have been expired.
Is freelance visa the best option in my situation or is there anything else I should look into that may be an easier way of staying in the country longer? I could always do under-the-table jobs..
Thanks!


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## Nononymous

The most flexible option is the Youth Mobility Visa, since it would allow you to take any job you could find, which at your age might be bar and cafe work. For that you almost certainly need to apply from within Canada, and there would be processing time, so I'd plan on a trip home - arranging that from abroad is likely impossible. 

As for the freelancer/artist visa, that's probably going to be difficult in your circumstances. I believe you can get an extension to your 90-day Schengen visit if you make an appointment with the Ausländerbehörde after arriving in Germany, but in this case you've only got a week left of your 90-in-180 and you made the appointment while in another country. So I don't think that would fly. Technically I suppose you could arrive in Germany and within a week make the application by going to the Ausländerbehörde at 6 AM and taking a number. However, that's only one week to find an address and do your Anmeldung, and otherwise prepare all your documentation.

Are you fully aware of the requirements for the freelancer visa? You would need to provide proof of adequate health insurance, proof of means of support in the short term, and a business plan with letters of interest from potential clients, ideally more than one. It's not simply a case of showing up with a Canadian passport and asking nicely.

In your shoes I would not attempt a direct move to Germany. Head home, apply for the YMV, get your ducks in a row and come over with the right pieces of paper. Return airfare is a bargain compared to the costs of this not working out.


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## maya222

I can't go home! Too expensive to go back and forth.. Do you know of other countries that it will be easier for me to obtain a visa, like a working holiday visa or the youth mobility one, but I can get it in the country rather than back home? I was looking at Amsterdam or somewhere in France.. Do you know much about that?
Thanks


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## Bevdeforges

Just one thing to add to what Nononymous has already said - there may well be some need to show some sort of qualification for that freelance visa. When I lived in Germany, they always said (partly in jest) that qualifying for any line of work required a certificate of some sort, which inevitably involved a 3-year program of study and/or apprenticeship. 

I strongly suspect that, for a freelance visa, you may need to show some sort of "certificate" indicating that you're qualified in whatever line of work you are intending to freelance in.

In the long run, I suspect that making a run back to Canada and applying for the YMV could be the most efficient way for you to get to Germany.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Bevdeforges

maya222 said:


> I can't go home! Too expensive to go back and forth.. Do you know of other countries that it will be easier for me to obtain a visa, like a working holiday visa or the youth mobility one, but I can get it in the country rather than back home? I was looking at Amsterdam or somewhere in France.. Do you know much about that?
> Thanks


Speaking for France, I can assure you that you must apply for the Working Holiday visa (or any other sort of visa, for that matter) in the country in which you have legal residence. You cannot apply for any sort of visa for France from within France, and part of the visa application process is to demonstrate your legal residence.
Cheers,
Bev


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## maya222

Well I do have all necessary proof I think. Like many press releases of my business, a past startup government grant, business registration and copyright, cash flow charts, stores I currently receive money from and collaborations I'm planning on doing in Berlin. I could have that all ready for then if that is my only option for a visa. I guess it's a risk but I'm looking for other options of what to do so I don't have to go back home.


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## Nononymous

maya222 said:


> Well I do have all necessary proof I think. Like many press releases of my business, a past startup government grant, business registration and copyright, cash flow charts, stores I currently receive money from and collaborations I'm planning on doing in Berlin. I could have that all ready for then if that is my only option for a visa. I guess it's a risk but I'm looking for other options of what to do so I don't have to go back home.


I did forget about the qualification angle - you may have a difficult time obtaining the freelance visa without a degree. Honestly, I don't think it will work, you haven't given yourself enough time. Another thing to consider, if you've been following the news, right now might not be the ideal moment to try anything outside the box with EU immigration authorities. 

All that being said, there's no harm in trying as long as you're prepared for a quick flight home if the answer is no.


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## miaux

And how are you going to prove the Health Insurance (German btw and the contributions you make to it, ca. 140 euros per month for a salaried, not sure for a freelancer) and the Anmeldung? Guaranteed funds ( 8, 000 eur in a bank account I believe) ? 

And remember, in Berlin everyone claims to be an "artist" (or dj or graphic designer or just to cool to handle) so I would suggest changing your approach... easiest way, get an English certification, google freelance visa and youll see the struggles of lots of people... 

I dont know for Canadians, but Americans can apply for a visa to study German for up to 1 year ( Or so an American guy explained to me while waiting in February not at 6 am, but at 4 am and barely got a number). 

And if you have lived in Germany, you should know that it is all about German qualifications and degrees, and if you dont have this... honestly I think it will be very difficult. 

As someone else said, best advice is to go back to Canada and apply for the youth mobility visa and do the things right.


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## Nononymous

As I said, the cost of returning home to apply for the YMV - which is a wonderful opportunity, available to Canadians but not Americans - is going to be a hell of a lot less than showing up in Berlin and failing to get the freelancer/artist visa that won't allow you to work in a bar anyway.


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## Nononymous

miaux said:


> And remember, in Berlin everyone claims to be an "artist" (or dj or graphic designer or just to cool to handle) so I would suggest changing your approach...


I've found that most Berliners are actually trained architects working as documentary filmmakers...


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## maya222

yeah decided to work and live in Amsterdam instead.. With the work holiday visa you just apply for it once youre there and you get a temp. work visa while you wait 
Thank you all for your advice!


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## Nononymous

maya222 said:


> yeah decided to work and live in Amsterdam instead.. With the work holiday visa you just apply for it once youre there and you get a temp. work visa while you wait
> Thank you all for your advice!


That is brilliant. The Dutch are so liberal.


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## maya222

Nononymous said:


> That is brilliant. The Dutch are so liberal.


hehe yeah and Berlin is only a $20 bus ride a way  Win/win.


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