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The Portuguese Embassy in Sao Tome has issued fewer national visas, while the number of Schengen visas during this period was on the rise.
According to data published by Lusa, the number of national visas granted to this nationality fell from 9,000 to 7,500, which is down by 16.6 per cent, Schengen.News reports.
On the other hand, short-term visa issuance, especially for transit visas and tourist visas, increased from 9,000 to 9,531, showing a hike of 5.89 per cent.
In total, the number of Schengen visas increased from 17,031 to 18,000 – about a 5.6 per cent increase in year-on-year difference.
Young People of Working Age Among Most Departures From Sao Tome in 2024
Regardless of these changes, the Portuguese Embassy has pointed out that in 2024, the second-highest number of visas issued was recorded, with the highest number being in 2023. This indicates that the number of visa issuance is headed towards an upward trend.
As the Embassy pointed out, the majority of departures are young people of working age, with 55 per cent being men compared to 45 per cent of women.
Sao Tome and Principe is a Central African country, also part of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) and has a population of 231,856.
Portugal Was the Only Country That Received Schengen Visa Applications by Nationals of Sao Tome in 2023
According to statistics published by SchengenVisaInfo, Sao Tome filed 9,582 visa applications in 2024, and all of these applications were filed for Portugal’s Schengen visa.
The approval rates of visa applications filed to this Embassy were quite high – about 96.5 per cent or 9,242 out of 9,582 visas were approved, compared to 340 that were rejected. However, very few multiple-entry visas were granted to candidates from Sao Tome and Principe.
The share of multiple entry visas was seven per cent, showing that 653 were multiple entry visas out of 9,242 visas that were issued in 2023.
Source: https://schengen.news/portugal-issued-fewer-visas-to-applicants-from-sao-tome-in-2024/
