Germany · Visa guide
Germany · Visa guideGermany Family & Friends Visit Visa
A short-stay Schengen visa to visit family or friends living in Germany — up to 90 days.
- ProcessingSchengen short-stay visas are processed within about 15 calendar days of submission at VFS
- Visa categoryFamily & Friends Visit Visa
- Your guideOne consultant
Reading is not the hard part. Knowing if YOUR bank statements and ties will pass is. Call us and tell us your travel month. We tell you honestly if your Germany file is ready.
Monday–Saturday, 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM IST
Start here
Germany Family & Friends Visit Visa — overview
A German family-and-friends visit visa is a short-stay Schengen visa (Type C): up to 90 days in any 180-day period. The form is completed online on VIDEX and the file goes in through VFS.
Germany asks for an original, signed invitation that does a great deal of work — the host's address and status, your name and passport number, the dates, and a brief itinerary. It then adds two lines you will not find on other checklists: extra proof if you are visiting your child and someone else is inviting you, and the Mutterpass if you are visiting a relative who is pregnant.
Earliest slot we saw
Checked by hand · 26 September
- Chandigarh
- 28 Sept
- New Delhi
- 28 Sept
- Mumbai
- 12 Oct
Tourist / short-stay appointments only. A snapshot from the portal on the date above, not a live feed. Slots move hour to hour and we never hold or sell them. All centres & jurisdictions
Visiting for a birth? Germany asks for the Mutterpass
Parents travelling to be with a daughter or daughter-in-law for a delivery are a common reason for a family visit to Germany — and the German checklist has a line written for exactly that: "If you visit a pregnant person: Mutterpass."
The Mutterpass is the maternity record every expectant mother in Germany is given. A copy of the pages showing her details and the expected date does two things at once: it proves the purpose of the visit, and it explains the dates you have chosen. Ask her for it early; it is a document she already has, and it says more than a sentence in a letter.
An invitation with seven jobs
Germany wants the original, signed invitation — not a scan — and specifies what it must contain:
- the host's address and contact details;
- the intended period and duration of your stay;
- your name and your passport number;
- the purpose of the trip and a brief itinerary of the visit;
- with it, a copy of the host's passport or ID (first and last pages if it is an Indian passport) and their residence permit, if applicable.
The passport number and the brief itinerary are the two items easiest to leave out. We send a short template so the letter is right before it is posted from Germany.
When the inviter is not your child
A quiet but important line: if you are visiting your child and the child is not the person inviting you, Germany wants evidence of your child's legal residence too. This arises when a son-in-law, an employer or a family friend signs the invitation. Add the child's passport or ID copy and residence permit so the officer can see who you are really going to see.
Staying with family
No hotel booking is needed if you stay with your host. Their signed confirmation, proof of address and passport or German ID copy cover accommodation — and if they are also paying, the proof of sponsorship goes with it.
Source: German Missions in India — Checklist for a Schengen visa to visit family and friends (edition dated February 2023), as held in our knowledge base. Check the current edition on the mission's website before you submit.
9 items
Documents you need
VIDEX application form and declarations
Completed online on VIDEX, printed in full including barcode pages, and signed, with the signed declarations the German mission requires.
Passport and copies
Issued in the last 10 years, valid 3 months after return, two empty pages; passports with observations on the front data page are not accepted. Copies of the biometric and address pages, and the last page for an Indian passport.
Biometric photograph
At least one, 35 × 45 mm, white background, face covering 70–80% of the frame, not older than six months.
Personal covering letter and itinerary
Your own letter, with proof of intended transport and the itinerary.
Original signed invitation from your host
With their address and contact details, the intended period and duration of stay, your name and passport number, and the purpose of the trip with a brief itinerary of the visit.
Your host's legal residence
A copy of their passport or national ID card (first and last pages for an Indian passport), plus their German residence permit if applicable.
If you are visiting your child and they are not the inviter
Evidence of the child's legal residence as well: passport or ID copy and their residence permit.
If you are visiting a pregnant relative
Her Mutterpass — the German maternity record.
Proof of accommodation
Hotel or rental reservation; or, if staying with your host, proof of sponsorship and/or private accommodation, their signed confirmation, proof of address and a copy of their passport or German ID card.
5 steps
How the process works
Typical processing: Schengen short-stay visas are processed within about 15 calendar days of submission at VFS.
Step 1
Free eligibility review
We confirm the visit-visa route and build a checklist for you and your host in Germany.
Step 2
Coordinate the host documents
We guide your host through the invitation and, where needed, the formal obligation letter.
Step 3
Complete VIDEX & build the file
Relationship proofs and financial documents are prepared and cross-checked.
Step 4
Submit at VFS & give biometrics
You attend the VFS centre to submit the file and provide biometrics.
Step 5
Decision & passport return
The German mission decides the application and your passport is returned through VFS.
Transparent
Costs & fees
Item
Amount
Schengen visa fee (adult)
EUR 45 for children aged 6 to 11; under 6 exempt. Payable in INR.
EUR 90
VFS Global service fee
Plus optional add-ons.
INR 2,022
Government and third-party fees change often — we confirm the exact current amounts for your case before you pay anything.
5 answers
Frequently asked questions
It must be an original, signed letter giving their address and contact details, the intended period and duration of your stay, your name and passport number, and the purpose of the trip with a brief itinerary. They attach a copy of their passport or ID and, if applicable, their German residence permit.
Yes. Where you are visiting a pregnant person, the German checklist asks for her Mutterpass — the maternity record issued to every expectant mother in Germany. A copy of the relevant pages supports both the purpose and the timing of your visit.
If you are visiting your child and the child is not the inviting person, Germany asks for evidence of the child's legal residence as well — their passport or ID copy and residence permit — in addition to the inviter's.
The checklist asks for the original signed invitation letter. Have your host post the signed original; keep a scan as your working copy.
No — your host provides proof of private accommodation instead: their signed confirmation, proof of their address and a copy of their passport or German ID card.
Why it matters
Going it alone vs filing with us
On your own
- Guessing the document list — one missing or wrongly formatted paper triggers a refusal.
- Generic cover letters copied from the internet that officers recognise and flag.
- No read on peak rejection windows or what this visa post is strict about.
- Government and VFS fees are non-refundable — money lost if you are refused.
- A refusal stamp follows you and weakens every future visa application.
With Lifeset Overseas
- An honest case assessment before you spend a rupee on government fees.
- A file built to the embassy's exact checklist and in the exact order.
- Weak finances, ties or purpose identified and fixed before submission.
- Previously refused? We can rescue and rebuild the file.
- Every case handled by one consultant, end to end.
Refused before?
A refusal isn't the end
A refusal is not a permanent bar — but it only improves if the actual reason is found and answered, and nobody can tell you a second application will succeed. If a Germany visa has been refused, we:
- Read the actual refusal letter and pinpoint the real gaps.
- Advise whether to pull the officer's notes (CAIPS / GCMS) for the true reason.
- Identify which part was weak — funds, employment, purpose or ties.
- Tell you honestly whether to reapply now or strengthen the file first.
- Refused? Your fee back, or a rebuilt application free — your choice.
Guides
Germany guides worth reading first
- The German Blocked Account (Sperrkonto), Explained
- The "Schengen Study Visa" Doesn't Exist — Here's What You Actually Apply For
- Study in Europe vs Canada: What a First Year Really Costs
- France Visa After a Germany (or Any Schengen) Refusal: Can You Switch Countries?
- How Much Bank Balance Do You Need for a Schengen Visa from India? (2026)
- Study Abroad From Zero: The Full Student Journey — and the DIY Mistakes That End It
Other Germany visas
Germany Tourist Visa
A short-stay Schengen visa for tourism and holidays in Germany — up to 90 days in any 180-day period.
Germany Business Visa
A short-stay Schengen visa for business meetings, negotiations and trade fairs in Germany.
Germany Guest Scientist & Research Visa
A short-stay Schengen visa for guest scientists and researchers invited by a German research institution.
Dependent & Family Visa
German family reunion runs on three pillars — a qualifying main resident, adequate accommodation and income, and (for most spouses) basic German at A1 level before arrival.
Start here · One message away
Germany visitor visa: get a straight answer before you pay the fee.
- Honest assessment
- Fixed all-in fees
- No handovers between staff
- Licensed in Patiala
Let’s discuss your case
Message us your travel month and who is paying. A consultant from our Punjab-licensed consultancy checks your ties and funds and tells you what to fix.