🇻🇳 Vietnamese citizens · 🇪🇺 Schengen · Student
Schengen student visa for Vietnamese citizens: requirements, cost and odds
We do not publish a Vietnamese-specific approval rate for a student visa to the Schengen, because we do not yet hold a figure from the Schengen for this category broken down by nationality. Rather than estimate one and format it like a statistic, we leave it out. For background, the published figures that do exist for Vietnam are a 22.1% US visitor-visa refusal rate in FY2025 and a 9.4% Schengen short-stay refusal rate in 2025 — different countries and a different visa class, so treat them as context rather than as your odds. What is documented is the decision itself — officers assess whether you are a genuine student who can fund and complete the course, and the single biggest lever is admission and funding. On the money side: Country-specific: e.g. Germany requires a blocked account of about €11,904/year (2025); others accept a scholarship award or bank evidence of living costs. The estimator below weighs your own finances, ties, travel history and refusal record against that.
Last reviewed July 2026 per our editorial standards. Source: European Commission — Migration and Home Affairs .
How likely is a student visa to the Schengen Area for Vietnamese citizens? Officers focus on whether you are a genuine student who can fund and complete the course. A typical applicant sees roughly 90%, and the biggest single lever is admission and funding. Vietnamese applicants often face elevated scrutiny for visitor and student visas; strong ties to home and clear finances are decisive.
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Your trip
The essentials. Pre-filled if you came from a specific page.
Key requirements
- University admission / enrolment letter
- Proof of funds or a scholarship (e.g. a German blocked account, ~€11,904/year in 2025)
- Health insurance valid in the destination country
- Proof of accommodation
- National long-stay (Type D) application at the country's consulate
Visa fee (cost)
Set nationally for long-stay (D) visas — commonly €75–€120 depending on the country; check your consulate’s fee page.
Money & funds
Country-specific: e.g. Germany requires a blocked account of about €11,904/year (2025); others accept a scholarship award or bank evidence of living costs.
Typical timeline
National (Type D) processing varies by country from a few weeks to a couple of months — apply as early as your admission allows.
Common refusal reasons
- Funds or scholarship not adequately proven
- Admission not genuine or incomplete
- Missing or insufficient health insurance
- Doubts about genuine study intent
- Incomplete national-visa documentation
Where Vietnam sits in the official data
Two governments publish visa outcomes broken down by country. Neither predicts an individual decision, but together they show how Vietnamese applicants fare relative to everyone else, and which of the destinations we cover currently refuses the fewest applications from Vietnam.
US visitor visas — FY2025
A 22.1% adjusted refusal rate places Vietnam 79th of 199 nationalities the State Department publishes — a lower refusal rate than 60% of them. The median nationality sits at 31.8%, so Vietnam is 9.7 points below it.
Schengen short-stay visas — 2025
Across all Schengen consulates in Vietnam, 9.4% of short-stay applications were not issued — 42nd of 127 countries with a meaningful application volume, and 6.2 points below the 15.6% median.
| Destination | Refused | Issued | Decided |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 4% | 96% | 9,744 |
| Greece | 4.7% | 95.3% | 1,570 |
| Spain | 7.4% | 92.6% | 4,160 |
| France | 8.3% | 91.7% | 50,750 |
| the Netherlands | 8.3% | 91.7% | 4,915 |
| Germany | 12.5% | 87.5% | 24,554 |
Among Schengen states, applications lodged in Vietnam were refused least often by Italy at 4% and most often by Germany at 12.5% — a gap of 8.5 points on a like-for-like basis. That gap reflects who applies where as much as how strictly each state decides, so it is a starting point for choosing a main destination, not a ranking of leniency. You must still apply to the state where you will spend the most nights.
Demand and outcome moved together for Vietnam between 2024 and 2025. Schengen consulates there decided 115,632 short-stay applications, against 109,702 the year before — up 5.4% — while the refusal rate went from 10.8% to 9.4%. That easing meant roughly 1,572 more applicants were issued a visa than 2024's rate would have produced.
Sources: U.S. Department of State — Adjusted Refusal Rate, B-Visas Only, by Nationality and European Commission — Schengen short-stay visa statistics for consulates . Schengen figures are grouped by the country an application was lodged in, not by passport.
What actually moves the needle
Admission to an accredited institution
This is the heart of student decisions for Schengen. Make it concrete and documented rather than assumed.
Clearly documented funding for tuition and living costs
Officers weigh this alongside everything else — gather clear evidence before you apply.
A credible study plan that fits your background
Officers weigh this alongside everything else — gather clear evidence before you apply.
Context for Vietnam applicants
Vietnamese applicants often face elevated scrutiny for visitor and student visas; strong ties to home and clear finances are decisive. Your personal profile matters far more than any nationality-level pattern, so focus on the levers above.
Avoid the common pitfall
The most frequent reason this route fails is unclear funding or a course that does not fit your profile. Address it directly and you remove the biggest doubt.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an official Schengen student visa success rate for Vietnamese citizens?
Not one we currently carry. We only print a rate when we hold the publisher's own figure for this nationality and this visa category, and we do not hold one for the Schengen student visas. The figure shown on this page is a modelled estimate built from published route-level data and your answers — we label it as such rather than presenting it as a government statistic. What you can act on is the documented requirement set below, which is what the decision actually turns on.
What matters most for a Schengen student visa?
Officers focus on whether you are a genuine student who can fund and complete the course. In practice the single biggest lever is admission and funding, so make that part of your application as strong and well-documented as possible.
Does a previous visa refusal affect my chances?
Yes. A prior refusal weighs on new applications until its underlying reason is addressed. Find out exactly why you were refused, fix what caused it, and clearly show what is different this time.
Is this a guarantee of approval?
No. GetVisaOdds is an educational planning tool, not legal advice and not a guarantee. Only a consular or immigration officer can decide your application. We show approximate odds and the reasons behind them so you can prepare better.
Is my information private?
Completely. The estimate runs entirely in your browser. Your answers are never sent to a server or stored — there is no sign-up and nothing to leak.
Do I need a Schengen visa or a national visa to study in Europe?
For courses over 90 days you need the destination country's national long-stay (Type D) visa, not the short-stay Schengen visa.
How much money do I need to study in Germany?
Germany typically requires a blocked account of about €11,904 per year (2025) to prove living costs, unless you have an equivalent scholarship.
Is health insurance required for a student visa in Europe?
Yes. You must show valid health insurance in the destination country, often statutory or an approved private policy.
Are European student visas hard to get?
With a genuine admission, clear funding, insurance and accommodation, approval is generally strong. Weak funding or an unconvincing study plan are the main risks.
Can I work while studying in the EU?
Many EU countries allow limited part-time work for students (rules and hour caps vary by country) — check the specific country's regulations.
