Schengen Visa Rejections Cost Africans Millions—And Raise Questions About Fairness

 

When Nigerian gaming consultant Joel Anyaegbu was denied a Schengen visa to attend a conference in Barcelona, he was shocked—but not discouraged. He reapplied immediately, submitting more documentation than required, including proof of property ownership and detailed bank statements.

Yet, he was rejected again.

“The information submitted regarding the justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay were not reliable,” read the checklist he received from the Spanish consulate in Lagos. The 32-year-old described the experience as humiliating. “I had to cancel meetings with partners at the conference I was attending,” he said. His follow-up email to the embassy has gone unanswered.

Anyaegbu’s experience is far from unique. In 2024, nearly 50,400 short-stay Schengen visa applications from Nigeria were rejected—almost half of all submitted. The visa fee, now 90 euros (around $100), is non-refundable, meaning Nigerians alone lost over 4.5 million euros trying to enter Europe.

Across the continent, the financial loss is staggering. According to analysis by the London-based LAGO Collective, African countries collectively spent 60 million euros ($67.5 million) on unsuccessful Schengen visa applications in 2024. LAGO, which tracks visa-related data, found that the world’s poorest countries face the highest rejection rates.

“The poorest countries in the world pay the richest countries money for not getting visas,” said Marta Foresti, LAGO’s founder. “African countries are disproportionately affected with rejection rates as high as 40-50% for countries like Ghana, Senegal, and Nigeria.” She argues that this pattern reflects “inbuilt discrimination and bias.”

While European officials say each application is judged individually, critics argue that the system is opaque and inconsistently applied. Cameroonian-born Jean Mboulé, who holds permanent residency in South Africa, learned this the hard way. In 2022, he and his wife applied for visas to travel to France. She was approved despite being unemployed, while his application was rejected on the grounds that his documents were "fake" and that he might not return.

“I provided financial proof, property ownership, and I have a family in South Africa,” Mboulé said. He sued the French embassy—and won. The court forced the consulate to issue his visa and fined them 1,200 euros. Ironically, he chose to travel to Mauritius instead, unwilling to spend his money in a country that had rejected him.

But most Africans denied visas don’t contest the decisions. They either reapply, losing more money, or give up altogether. This has led some observers to describe the process as a form of "reverse remittances"—a transfer of funds from poorer nations to wealthier ones.

Schengen visa fees increased in July 2024, deepening the financial strain on applicants from low-income countries. And the problem isn’t limited to the Schengen Zone. The UK also raised visa fees in 2024—from £100 to £115 in July, and again to £127 in April 2025. The total estimated cost of rejected UK visa applications hit £50.7 million ($68.8 million), with Nigerians again among the hardest hit.

Some observers see the issue less as discrimination and more as a response to historical trends. South African academic Sikhumbuzo Maisela argued that while visa systems are strict, they reflect concerns about past violations. “Western countries have had instances where visa holders overstayed or violated terms, and this has influenced how future applications are scrutinized,” he said.

Still, he emphasized the responsibility of travelers to uphold the rules. “When one person violates these principles, it impacts all of us,” he said. “Those who break the rules contribute to the very discrimination others face.”

Older applicants are not exempt from harsh treatment. Julius Musimeenta, a 57-year-old Ugandan engineer, applied for visas with his wife and adult children to attend an engineering fair in Munich. All six applications were denied—despite their extensive travel history and engineering credentials.

“They always think negatively about us travelling to their countries,” Musimeenta said. “Africans contribute a lot to funding these embassies through these rejections.”

The European Commission has said applicants can appeal unjustified denials, but few do. According to officials, rejections may result from fake or incomplete documents or weak evidence of intent to return home. But many Africans feel the reasons are too often vague and the decisions arbitrary.

As rejections mount and fees increase, the economic and emotional toll on African applicants grows. The disparity raises uncomfortable questions about global mobility, fairness, and who truly gets to access the world.