I'm applying for a year-long student visa for Spain (Madrid), all my records and documents are fine. I have no problem with any sort of requirement for the visa (passport, background check, etc); however, I've been to Spain this year already and I overstayed the 90-day limit by about 2 weeks. I never stayed there for more than 90 days consecutively if that helps, I did leave the Schengen zone in the middle of my stay and had no problems when I went through the airport to go back to the US. I'm interested to know how much I should be worried about my visa application, I know Spain is very relaxed but I'm still nervous. Somebody mentioned I could get a new passport so that the stamps wouldn't be visible but that just seems sketchy as they could look up my past travels and then wonder why I have a new passport all of a sudden. I know my decision to overstay was absolutely idiotic but any advice would be incredible.
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3It will be considered. 2 weeks is not a massive overstay. One reason why Americans are so often allowed to remain visa-free nationals for most countries is because even in the infrequent cases of overstays, those overstays are for usually just a few days. I think your best bet will be to just go for it. You are wise not to waste your time trying anything dodgy like getting a new passport. Not only is it an unnecessary waste of time and money, it would be of no use anyway for the reasons you state.– ouflak ♦May 10, 2016 at 14:49
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Right, that's what I was hoping for. I guess there's only way to figure out, thanks for the insight!!– OscarMay 10, 2016 at 14:55
1 Answer
Overstay is not an issue as long as you can provide a valid reason for the same, What I would suggest is to explain the reason for overstay in your letter of intent/ statement of purpose when submitting the visa application to explain your situation to the visa officer.