In November of last year, a total of five new visa application centres were opened by VFS Global in Astana, Almaty, Atyrau, Shymkent, and Ust-Kamenogorsk, as part of Italy’s efforts to promote tourism to the country.
Even though the authorities have not shared information about the waiting time for an appointment as well as the processing time, it is believed that Kazakh travellers can secure appointments more easily since they have more centres to their availability.
Italy remains one of the most popular destinations in the Schengen Area among tourists from Kazakhstan. Known for its cultural heritage, historical monuments, cuisine, and beaches, among others, major Italian cities like Rome, Milan, and Venice are particularly more sought after by the national of Kazakhstan.
To meet the demand, Italy and Kazakhstan have already strengthened air connectivity, with a partnership agreement reached by the Italian airline Neos Air and the national airline of Kazakhstan Air Astana. This agreement has improved direct air connections between Italy and Kazakhstan.
Nationals of Kazakhstan Filed Over 159,000 Schengen Visa Applications in 2023
Statistics published by EU Helpers show that Kazakhstan nationals filed a large number of Schengen visa applications in 2023.
During the above-mentioned year, Kazakhstan passport holders applied for 159,072 Schengen visas, with 143,970 of them receiving a positive decision on their application.
Among all Schengen Are member states, Italy received the most applications from Kazakhstanis. In 2023, Italy recorded 19,756 applications from this nationality. Of the total number of applications it received, Italy granted 18,622 visas and denied 1,130 visa applications for nationals of Kazakhstan.
Spain (19,674) and France (12,096) also received a large number of applications from Kazakhstanis in 2023, together with Italy making the top three list.
To make travel to the Schengen Area even more hassle-free, the EU and Kazakhstan are working to reach a visa liberalisation agreement.
Earlier in January, the EU Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Aleška Simkić, said that the country is high on the EU Commission’s agenda. The same stressed that she is advocating for the visa-free agreement to happen quickly.
