Denmark Business Visitors: Schengen Visa Rules Under EU Review, No Changes Yet

The European Commission is reviewing the EU Visa Code, and one set of recommendations submitted to its call for evidence — which closed on 6 October 2026 — focuses on the practical problems business travellers face with short-stay Schengen C visas. The proposals cover appointment access, inconsistent rules on what counts as business activity, and unclear visa refusals.

Key facts

• The European Commission's call for evidence on the EU Visa Code closed on 6 October 2026.
• The proposals target the short-stay Schengen C visa used for business travel.
• They cite the Netherlands' Orange Carpet and Denmark's Red Carpet schemes as existing national models.
• No start date, fee or adopted rule change is announced — these are recommendations only.

What is being proposed?

A position paper sent to the Commission by a business-mobility consultancy recommends a Schengen-wide "trusted employer" framework for verified companies and reliable travellers. Under the ideas set out, corporate and sponsorship information would be verified once and reused, instead of being resubmitted for every trip, and employees could get priority appointments, faster processing and longer-validity multiple-entry visas.

Two models are described: a verified-information model, where previously verified details are reused while each trip is still assessed, and a pooled-resource model, which would let eligible business travellers apply at any Schengen consular post.

Why does business travel break down today?

The submission points to three recurring problems. First, Member States interpret permissible short-term business activity differently: training, technical support and repairs may be treated as business visitor activity in one country and as work requiring authorisation in another, with the duration of the activity also changing the outcome. Differences can appear even between consulates of the same country.

Second, visa appointments are scarce, with automated tools capturing slots for resale, while countermeasures can block legitimate employers using corporate networks. Third, refusals usually arrive as a standard form with a box ticked and little explanation, leaving no practical way to correct a factual error before travel.

What changes are recommended?

• A common minimum definition of permissible business activity, drawing on the EU Blue Card Directive.
• Enforceable timeframes for appointment access and processing, plus an alternative submission route if a consulate cannot offer an appointment in a reasonable period.
• Clear standards, transparent online application tracking, escalation channels, and a distinction between mandatory and optional services from external providers, with Member States remaining accountable.
• Mandatory meaningful reasons for refusal, a rapid route to fix factual mistakes, and appeals decided while travel is still possible.
• Travel history, including records in the Entry/Exit System (EES), assessed in context rather than treated as conclusive.
• Where one Member State's consulate handles an application for another, the destination State's rules should govern.

What this means for travellers

Nothing changes yet. The proposals are input to a Commission review, and the position paper also calls for flexibility for frequent business travellers nearing the 90/180-day limit and consistent application of existing travel facilitations. Visa-exempt nationals, it argues, should be able to carry out activities exempt from work authorisation without needing a short-stay visa merely because they are paid.

No timeline for the Commission's next step on the EU Visa Code review is given. Travellers planning Schengen business trips should keep checking the rules that apply at the time of travel.