In 2025, Schengen consulates in the UAE received 298,064 short-stay visa applications and did not issue 71,261 of them — a rate of 23.9%. The worldwide figure that year was 14.6%. Applying from the UAE is meaningfully harder than the global average suggests, and how much harder depends on which consulate your trip sends you to. This page sets out every UAE consulate’s numbers, taken from the European Commission’s own dataset.
Source: European Commission, “Visa statistics for consulates, 2025”, published 28 May 2026. Figures below are calculated from that file by Sifqa. Our method is at the bottom of the page, and the original spreadsheet is linked so you can check anything here yourself.
On this page
- The headline numbers
- Every UAE consulate, 2025
- Where applications fail most often
- Multiple-entry rates: the column nobody publishes
- The same country, two different consulates
- How to read these numbers honestly
- Method and sources
The headline numbers
| Applications filed in the UAE, 2025 | 298,064 |
| Visas issued | 221,370 |
| Not issued | 71,261 |
| UAE not-issued rate | 23.9% |
| Global not-issued rate, 2025 | 14.6% |
| Share of issued visas that were multiple-entry | 55.5% |
Roughly one application in four filed in the UAE did not result in a visa. That is not because UAE consulates are unusually strict. It reflects who applies here: a resident population drawn largely from countries whose nationals face higher refusal rates everywhere in the world. Your passport travels with you to the counter.
The more useful figure is the second one. More than half of all visas issued in the UAE were multiple-entry, and that share varies enormously between consulates.
Every UAE consulate, 2025
All 29 Schengen consulates in the UAE that received more than one application, ordered by volume.
| Country | Consulate | Applied | Issued | Not issued | Multiple-entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Dubai | 40,555 | 31,124 | 22% | 85% |
| Netherlands | Dubai | 31,633 | 21,358 | 30% | 50% |
| Spain | Abu Dhabi | 30,265 | 24,814 | 14% | 37% |
| France | Abu Dhabi | 28,160 | 23,364 | 17% | 53% |
| Switzerland | Abu Dhabi | 25,603 | 19,881 | 21% | 69% |
| Italy | Dubai | 19,422 | 15,215 | 22% | 44% |
| Denmark | Dubai | 17,288 | 11,374 | 32% | 59% |
| Norway | Abu Dhabi | 16,232 | 11,274 | 31% | 59% |
| Greece | Abu Dhabi | 13,587 | 11,285 | 16% | 59% |
| Hungary | Abu Dhabi | 10,424 | 6,691 | 35% | 33% |
| Czech Republic | Abu Dhabi | 8,961 | 6,713 | 24% | 27% |
| Italy | Abu Dhabi | 7,976 | 6,947 | 13% | 44% |
| Belgium | Abu Dhabi | 7,460 | 5,917 | 20% | 60% |
| Austria | Abu Dhabi | 7,406 | 5,568 | 16% | 79% |
| Malta | Dubai | 6,915 | 3,654 | 47% | 50% |
| Sweden | Abu Dhabi | 6,312 | 3,654 | 41% | 14% |
| Bulgaria | Dubai | 4,494 | 1,778 | 58% | 34% |
| Poland | Abu Dhabi | 3,123 | 2,094 | 32% | 30% |
| Portugal | Abu Dhabi | 2,582 | 2,055 | 20% | 58% |
| Croatia | Dubai | 2,092 | 1,129 | 43% | 80% |
| Finland | Abu Dhabi | 1,603 | 1,304 | 18% | 42% |
| Slovakia | Abu Dhabi | 1,110 | 737 | 32% | 52% |
| Romania | Dubai | 1,095 | 935 | 14% | 59% |
| Slovenia | Abu Dhabi | 1,049 | 690 | 27% | 85% |
| Luxembourg | Abu Dhabi | 1,037 | 518 | 49% | 54% |
| Latvia | Abu Dhabi | 762 | 671 | 11% | 27% |
| Estonia | Abu Dhabi | 468 | 251 | 46% | 57% |
| Lithuania | Abu Dhabi | 285 | 220 | 22% | 45% |
| Malta | Abu Dhabi | 164 | 155 | 4% | 95% |
“Multiple-entry” is the share of issued visas that allowed more than one entry. Germany’s Dubai consulate issued the most applications of any mission in the country and granted multiple entry on 85% of them. Sweden’s Abu Dhabi consulate granted it on 14%.
Where applications fail most often
Among consulates handling at least 5,000 applications, the spread runs from 13% to 47%.
| Consulate | Applications | Not issued |
|---|---|---|
| Italy, Abu Dhabi | 7,976 | 13% |
| Spain, Abu Dhabi | 30,265 | 14% |
| Greece, Abu Dhabi | 13,587 | 16% |
| Austria, Abu Dhabi | 7,406 | 16% |
| France, Abu Dhabi | 28,160 | 17% |
| Belgium, Abu Dhabi | 7,460 | 20% |
| Switzerland, Abu Dhabi | 25,603 | 21% |
| Italy, Dubai | 19,422 | 22% |
| Germany, Dubai | 40,555 | 22% |
| Czech Republic, Abu Dhabi | 8,961 | 24% |
| Netherlands, Dubai | 31,633 | 30% |
| Norway, Abu Dhabi | 16,232 | 31% |
| Denmark, Dubai | 17,288 | 32% |
| Hungary, Abu Dhabi | 10,424 | 35% |
| Sweden, Abu Dhabi | 6,312 | 41% |
| Malta, Dubai | 6,915 | 47% |
Smaller consulates show wider swings because a handful of cases moves the percentage a long way. Bulgaria’s Dubai consulate did not issue 58% of 4,494 applications; Luxembourg in Abu Dhabi did not issue 49% of 1,037; Latvia in Abu Dhabi did not issue 11% of 762. Read low-volume rows with caution.
This is not a menu. You cannot choose a consulate because its numbers look better. EU law assigns your application to your main destination, and consulates check your bookings against the country you applied to. Our guide to which Schengen country to apply to explains the rule and what you can legitimately do instead.
Multiple-entry rates: the column nobody publishes
Most coverage of these statistics stops at refusals. For someone who travels more than once a year, the multiple-entry share matters just as much, because it is the difference between one trip and several years of them on a single €90 fee.
| Consulate | Applications | Multiple-entry share |
|---|---|---|
| Germany, Dubai | 40,555 | 85% |
| Austria, Abu Dhabi | 7,406 | 79% |
| Switzerland, Abu Dhabi | 25,603 | 69% |
| Belgium, Abu Dhabi | 7,460 | 60% |
| Greece, Abu Dhabi | 13,587 | 59% |
| Denmark, Dubai | 17,288 | 59% |
| Norway, Abu Dhabi | 16,232 | 59% |
| France, Abu Dhabi | 28,160 | 53% |
| Netherlands, Dubai | 31,633 | 50% |
| Italy, Dubai | 19,422 | 44% |
| Spain, Abu Dhabi | 30,265 | 37% |
| Czech Republic, Abu Dhabi | 8,961 | 27% |
| Sweden, Abu Dhabi | 6,312 | 14% |
Germany is the striking case. Its Dubai consulate is the busiest in the country and does not issue 22% of applications, a little above the UAE’s better performers. But of the visas it did issue, 85% allowed multiple entries — the highest of any high-volume consulate here.
Spain is the mirror image: a low not-issued rate of 14%, but multiple entry on only 37% of what it granted. You are more likely to be approved and less likely to get a long visa.
Again, this is not a selection tool. It is useful for knowing what to expect, and for deciding whether to ask for a multiple-entry visa and evidence your travel history properly when your destination is one of the more generous consulates.
The same country, two different consulates
Italy runs consulates in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai, applying identical law under the same Visa Code. Their numbers are not the same.
| Italy, Abu Dhabi | Italy, Dubai | |
|---|---|---|
| Applications | 7,976 | 19,422 |
| Issued | 6,947 | 15,215 |
| Not issued | 13% | 22% |
| Multiple-entry share | 44% | 44% |
The multiple-entry share is nearly identical, which suggests a consistent policy on visa length. The not-issued rate differs by nine percentage points.
The likely explanation is who applies where. Consulates divide the UAE by the emirate that issued your residence visa, so the two offices serve different populations with different nationality mixes, employment profiles and travel histories. The consulate is not choosing to be stricter; it is seeing a different set of files.
You cannot use this anyway — your emirate decides which centre you attend. It is included because it shows plainly why refusal rates say more about applicants than about consulates.
How to read these numbers honestly
“Not issued” is not the same as “refused you”
The Commission’s column counts applications that did not result in a visa. That includes refusals, and it can include applications withdrawn or discontinued. Treat it as an outcome rate, not a judgement on any individual file.
The mix of applicants drives most of the variation
Refusal rates track nationality, income, employment stability and travel history far more than they track consulate temperament. The UAE’s rate sits above the global average because of who lives here, not because European missions in the Gulf are harsher.
Low-volume consulates are noisy
Malta’s Abu Dhabi office received 164 applications and did not issue 4%. Seven cases. That is not a meaningful signal about your chances.
One year is not a trend
These are 2025 figures. Consulates change staffing, policy and workload. We will add year-on-year comparison when we have processed the earlier files.
None of it changes where you apply
Your main destination decides your consulate. The value of this data is knowing what to expect and preparing accordingly, not shopping for a counter.
Method and sources
We downloaded the European Commission’s “Visa statistics for consulates, 2025” spreadsheet, filtered the sheet “Data for consulates” to rows where the consulate is located in the United Arab Emirates, and used the columns for uniform visas applied for, total uniform visas issued, multiple-entry uniform visas issued, and uniform visas not issued.
UAE totals are the sum of those columns across all 30 UAE rows. The not-issued rate is total not issued divided by total applied. The multiple-entry share is multiple-entry visas divided by total visas issued. Percentages are rounded for display; totals are calculated from unrounded figures.
One row, the Netherlands in Abu Dhabi, recorded a single application and is excluded from the main table as an artefact. Airport transit visas and limited territorial validity visas are excluded. The global comparison figure comes from the Commission’s own announcement of the 2025 data.
If you find an error in our calculations, tell us and we will correct it publicly. The source file is linked below so you can check.
- European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs — short-stay visas issued by Schengen countries, with the consulate spreadsheets for every year since 2009: home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
- European Commission — Schengen short-stay visa applications rise in 2025 but remain below pre-pandemic levels, 28 May 2026: home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
Related guides
- Which Schengen country should a UAE resident apply to?
- Schengen visa from Dubai and the UAE
- Schengen requirements checklist by applicant type
- How much bank balance you need
Written by Asad Waleed M, Dubai. Figures on this page are calculated by Sifqa from the European Commission’s published dataset. If you use them, please link to this page so readers can check the method.
Last checked 13 September 2026, using the 2025 dataset published on 28 May 2026. Updated annually when the Commission publishes new figures. Found an error in our arithmetic? Email asadwaleed2020@gmail.com — it gets fixed and logged.
