Pakistan tops the list of nationalities with the highest Schengen visa rejections in Spain, based on recent data from SchengenVisaInfo.
Pakistanis had the highest rejection rate among all nationalities, with 52.84% of applications declined in 2023. Nigerians followed at 49.85%, while Gabonese, Bissau-Guineans, and Ghanaians also faced rejection rates ranging from 48.21% to 43.4%.
Pakistan’s rejection figures were especially stark, with 9,766 applications denied. The data underscores significant disparities in approval rates, revealing that Pakistanis and other applicants from similar regions are disproportionately affected by high visa rejections in Spain.
Spain remains a popular choice within the Schengen zone, ranking as the third most requested destination in 2023, with 1.4 million visa applications—accounting for 13.6% of all applications to Schengen countries for the year.
In 2023, Spain issued over one million visas, resulting in an approval rate of 77.4%, which falls below the Schengen-wide average of 82.2%.
Despite this moderate approval rate, certain nationalities enjoyed significantly higher chances of securing a Spanish visa.
Jamaicans, for instance, had a 98.4% approval rate, followed by Indonesians with 96.1% and Thais with over 95%. Saudi and Filipino applicants also experienced high approval rates at 94.32% and 93.91%, respectively.
Conversely, applicants from specific nations faced considerable difficulties obtaining Spanish visas, particularly those from African and South Asian countries.