The Hungary tourist visa is a Schengen short-stay visa (type C) for tourism and holidays. It allows up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area. Applicants from Punjab lodge the file at VFS Global, which has centres in Chandigarh and Jalandhar, and the Embassy of Hungary in New Delhi decides, normally within 15 calendar days.
Hungary's checklist has its own rules. A hotel booking counts only if you paid a deposit or would owe a cancellation fee, key papers must be signed and stamped originals, and travel medical insurance of at least €30,000, valid across Schengen, is compulsory for every traveller. Original documents are shown at a personal interview if the officer asks for one.
Do Indians need a visa for Hungary, and which one?
Yes. For a holiday in Budapest, at Lake Balaton or in the Eger wine country, an Indian passport holder needs a Schengen short-stay visa, type C. It allows up to 90 days in any 180-day period, and that allowance is shared across all 29 Schengen countries, so days in Hungary and in neighbouring Austria are added together.
There is no e-visa. VFS asks you to fill in the application form online, then download and print it and bring it to the visa centre with your documents. Applicants from Punjab come under the Embassy of Hungary in New Delhi, which decides their files. Regular travellers can aim higher than a single-trip visa: under the EU's April 2024 cascade rules for Indians, two Schengen visas obtained and lawfully used within the previous three years can lead to a two-year multiple-entry visa, normally followed by a five-year one.
Hungary tourist visa at a glance
- VisaForm filled in online, printed, lodged at VFS
- Schengen short-stay visa, type C
- Longest stay
- 90 days in any 180-day period
- Decided byFor Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi
- Embassy of Hungary, New Delhi
- Nearest centresAlso New Delhi and Gurugram
- VFS Chandigarh and Jalandhar
- Visa fee€90 and €45; free under 6
- ₹9,600 adult, ₹4,800 child aged 6 to 11
- DecisionCan be extended to 45 calendar days
- 15 calendar days
Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs consular information, Embassy of Hungary in New Delhi and VFS Global Hungary India, checked 14 Oct 2026
Hungary's foreign ministry is blunt that a visa is only a preliminary permission for entry, not an automatic entry authorisation. At the border you may be asked to prove the conditions of your stay, and entry can be refused if you cannot. Carry copies of your bookings, insurance and money proof on the trip.
Check the passport too. Hungary's visa information for India says handwritten passports issued after 1 April 2010 that are not machine readable are not accepted, nor are passports issued after that date with manual corrections on the biographical data page.
Where do applicants from Punjab apply?
At VFS Global, which runs 16 Hungary centres in India. For Punjab the nearest are Chandigarh and Jalandhar, both open Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 16:00; New Delhi and Gurugram keep the same hours.
The embassy's consular district settles who decides. The Embassy of Hungary in New Delhi covers Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and the rest of the north and east. The Consulate General in Mumbai covers the south and west, and has its own longer checklist. Make sure you use the New Delhi forms and checklist.
What VFS asks for on the day:
- Paperwork to carry: a printed copy of the application, the 2D barcoded sheets (2 copies), two copies of the passport bio page, and a passport with at least 2 pages blank on both sides, plus originals and copies of every document.
- Your e-mail in column 17. VFS says to write your e-mail ID in column 17 of the form, and that applicants without one should give a travel agent's or close relative's ID; failing to do so will result in refusal.
- Your last fingerprints in field 28. The foreign ministry says people fingerprinted within the previous 59 months are not fingerprinted again, and asks you to note on the form when it last happened.
- Children. VFS says a child under 12 need not attend, as no fingerprints are taken. Between 12 and 17, a parent or guardian consents and is present.
- Missed appointment? A new one is possible only after 24 hours.
Can someone else lodge your file? VFS's document list says applications can be submitted by third persons with an authorisation signed by the applicant and certified by a notary, yet its centre page says you cannot send someone in your place. The safe reading: attend yourself, unless your fingerprints are on file and VFS confirms the notarised authorisation in advance.
Dates move fast, so check our Hungary appointment page before you fix flights.
Which documents depend on your situation?
The common checklist appears further down this page. VFS marks several Hungarian items as originals that must be signed and stamped by an authorised person, and those are the ones that change with your work:
Salaried
- What Hungary asks you to add
- An original employment certificate referring to the leave granted, signed and stamped by your employer, and salary slips for the last 3 months, signed and stamped
Self-employed
- What Hungary asks you to add
- An original certificate of registration of the business, signed and stamped; the foreign ministry also mentions a certificate from your accountant
Retired
- What Hungary asks you to add
- Pension slips for the last 3 months, signed and stamped
Student
- What Hungary asks you to add
- An enrolment certificate granting leave if you travel during the academic year, plus your sponsor's salary slips, ITRs and bank statement
Minor with one parent
- What Hungary asks you to add
- Notarised consent of the other parent, or a court order or other proof of sole custody, with copies of the parents' signed photo ID
For everyone, VFS asks for the bank account statement for the last three months, signed and stamped by the bank, and the income tax return acknowledgement for the last two assessment years. A detailed statement means the full list of transactions, not a balance certificate.
Hungary's accommodation rule is unusual. For a holiday, the checklist accepts a travel agency's certificate of a prepaid programme or, for an individual visit, a hotel reservation provided that you paid a deposit or have to pay a cancellation fee. A free-cancellation booking does not meet that wording. The foreign ministry's page speaks of a prepaid reservation of accommodation.
Two more details: VFS asks for a photocopy of both the front and back of the passport, and its tourist list asks for two photographs, 3.5 cm × 4.5 cm, on a white background. The New Delhi checklist and the foreign ministry mention one. Carry two.
Visiting a son or daughter studying in Hungary rather than touring? The invitation rules differ; see the Hungary family visit visa guide.
How much is the Hungary visa fee for Indians?
VFS charges the €90 adult visa fee as ₹9,600 and the €45 fee for children aged 6 to 11 as ₹4,800; children under 6 pay nothing. On top, VFS's service fee is ₹2,560 per applicant if biometrics are taken, or ₹2,027 if your biometrics are already on file, GST included, revised from 1 October 2026 (all checked 14 Oct 2026). The foreign ministry states that the fee will not be reimbursed if the visa is refused. Our visa fee calculator adds up the total for a family, and our filing fee is shown at the top of this page.
How long does it take, and when should you apply?
Hungary's foreign ministry says decisions on admissible applications are made within 15 calendar days from submission, and that the period might be extended up to 45 calendar days. Applications can be lodged from six months to 15 days before the trip. The ministry itself advises applying earlier than 15 days ahead, and says the consulates take no responsibility for late submissions or for trips that fail as a result.
In practice: from Chandigarh or Jalandhar, apply four to six weeks before travel, earlier if the embassy may want to see you. Hungary's checklists say original documents must be presented during a personal interview with the visa officer, and the consulate may ask for more documents, which adds days.
Why do Hungary visas get refused for Indian applicants?
Hungary uses the EU's standard refusal form. The foreign ministry lists the grounds, and these are the ones that sink holiday files.
A free-cancellation hotel booking (reason 2)
Hungary accepts a reservation only if you paid a deposit or would owe a cancellation fee. A zero-commitment booking leaves the purpose and conditions of the stay unproven. Book a rate with a deposit and keep the receipt.
A Hungary visa for a trip centred elsewhere (reason 10)
Budapest sits close to Vienna and Prague. If most nights are in Austria or Czechia, Hungary is the wrong country, and an itinerary that hides it is unreliable information. Apply where you spend the most days.
Statements that are not originals (reason 3)
VFS wants the bank statement signed and stamped by the bank, in original. A printout from net banking does not show sufficient means in the form Hungary asks for.
No proof you will return (reason 13)
The employment certificate granting leave, the pension slips or the business registration answer this. Without them the officer cannot ascertain that you will leave before the visa ends.
Insurance that covers Hungary only (reason 16)
The policy must be valid in all Schengen countries for at least €30,000, and VFS says each applicant, children included, needs one from the list of approved insurers.
Every refusal ground, in plain words, is on our Schengen refusal reasons page.
Tips for a stronger file
- Deposit-backed hotels. Choose a rate that charges a deposit or a cancellation fee, and attach the payment proof.
- Originals for starred items. Employment certificate, salary slips, pension slips, bank statement and business registration: VFS says those marked with an asterisk must be enclosed in original.
- A dated itinerary. The checklist asks for a travel itinerary with travel dates, including a return flight reservation or ticket.
- Insurance for every traveller. All Schengen countries, at least €30,000, from the approved list, covering arrival and departure days. Our Schengen travel insurance explainer has the details.
- Column 17 and field 28. An e-mail ID, and the date of your last Schengen fingerprints.
- Be ready to talk. Original documents are presented at a personal interview with the visa officer, so know your itinerary by heart.
Can I combine Hungary with Vienna and Prague?
Yes, on one visa, but the application belongs to your main destination. The foreign ministry says it is the country that is the main or sole destination, defined by the purpose of the trip or, for a multi-country holiday, by the length of stay; with equal stays, it is the country whose external border you cross first. Five nights in Budapest and two in Vienna belongs with Hungary. Three in Budapest and four in Prague belongs with the Czech Republic.
Do not bend this to suit an appointment. Hungary's Mumbai checklist warns that, on the instruction of the airport Schengen liaison officer, airlines may offload passengers who gave misleading information and do not use the visa to travel to the issuing state, and that an offload leads to the visa being revoked. Hungary, Austria and the Czech Republic also record non-EU travellers in the EU's Entry/Exit System, which registers entries and exits with fingerprint and face data.
Can you appeal a Hungary visa refusal?
Yes, quickly. The foreign ministry says an appeal can be submitted by the applicant, or by a person the applicant authorises, at the Hungarian consulate within 8 days of receiving the refusal. The fee is €160 and is not reimbursed even if the appeal succeeds. The Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs decides within 15 days, and its decision can be reviewed by an administrative court.
You can also apply again at any time, paying the visa fee again. If the refusal was about a document you can now produce, such as a deposit-backed booking or a stamped statement, a fresh application is often the better use of the money. Track the 8 days with our refusal deadline tool, and see the Hungary country page for the other visa types.
Official sources
- Short Term Stay, Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs consular information
- Consular representations, Embassy of Hungary in New Delhi
- VFS Global Hungary India: home and news
- VFS Global Hungary India: VFS logistics fee notice
- VFS Global Hungary India: visa types, fees and documents
- VFS Global Hungary India: visa application centres
- VFS Global Hungary India: what happens at the centre
- European Union adopts more favourable Schengen visa rules for Indians, EU Delegation to India
- Visa Code, consolidated text (EUR-Lex)
- What is the EES?, Travel to Europe