The visa sticker in your passport is a short legal document with about a dozen fields, and two of them (the validity window and the duration of stay) are confused so often that they cause a meaningful share of Indian overstays. The sticker also contains errors more often than people expect: a misspelt name, a wrong passport number, dates that do not cover your flights. Any of these can stop you at check-in. This guide explains every field and gives you a checklist to run the day the passport comes back.
From 2028 the sticker begins to be replaced by a digital visa, but for every visa issued until then, and for the years of transition after, this is the document.
Check these eight things the day you collect the passport
- Your surname and given names match the passport exactly.
- The passport number is correct.
- FROM is on or before your outbound arrival date in Schengen.
- UNTIL is on or after your departure date from Schengen.
- DURATION OF STAY is at least the number of days you will spend inside.
- NUMBER OF ENTRIES covers your route: 1 is enough only if you never leave and re-enter.
- VALID FOR says Schengen States (unless you applied for a single country).
- The REMARKS line does not restrict you in a way you did not expect.
Field by field
VALID FOR
Normally “Schengen States” (sometimes printed in French or German). This is a uniform visa valid in all 29 Schengen countries, whichever one issued it. If a single country’s name appears instead, you hold a visa with limited territorial validity (LTV) and may not travel to the others; this happens when a consulate has concerns or when your passport is not recognised by every state. Our guide to visa types covers LTV.
FROM and UNTIL
The validity window: the first day you may enter and the last day you may be inside. Consulates usually add a margin of a few days to two weeks on either side of your requested dates, sometimes more. This window is not the number of days you may stay; that is the next field.
TYPE OF VISA
C is the short-stay visa for tourism, business, family visits and short courses. A is airport transit only; you cannot leave the international zone. D is a national long-stay visa issued for work, study or residence. Everything on this site concerns Type C.
NUMBER OF ENTRIES
1, 2 or MULT. This is the field that catches day-trippers: a single-entry visa is consumed the moment you exit the Schengen area, even to a non-Schengen neighbour such as the UK, Ireland, Serbia, or (for a cruise) international waters. Leave Schengen on a single-entry visa and you cannot come back on it. Two entries allow one exit and return; MULT allows unlimited entries within the window. See single vs multiple entry.
DURATION OF STAY
The maximum number of days you may spend inside Schengen during the validity window, up to 90. A visa valid FROM 1 October UNTIL 15 November with DURATION OF STAY 20 lets you spend any 20 days inside that window, not 45. On a multiple-entry visa with long validity (one to five years), the duration is 90, and the 90/180-day rule applies across all your trips. The Entry/Exit System now counts these days automatically.
ISSUED IN / ON
The consulate city and the date of issue. Useful when you need to contact the issuing authority about an error.
NUMBER OF PASSPORT
Must match the passport the sticker is in. A visa in an old passport remains valid if you carry both passports, provided the old one is not cancelled by the issuing state in a way that invalidates the visa; most consulates advise carrying both, and some require a transfer. If you renew your passport after the visa is issued, ask the consulate before travelling.
SURNAME, NAME
Printed as in the passport’s machine-readable zone. Single-name passports show the name in one field; see our single-name guide for how that is handled.
REMARKS
A purpose code and free text. Common entries: “TOURISM”, “VISITING FAMILY”, “BUSINESS”, the host’s name for a family visit, and sometimes “NO WORK” or a note that the visa was issued for a specific event. A remark that conflicts with your plan (business visa, but you intend only to sightsee) is not a problem; a remark that restricts you (a named event, a single country) is. Read it.
Where is the Schengen visa number?
The visa number (also called the visa sticker number) is printed in red at the top right of the sticker. It is usually a three-letter code for the issuing country followed by nine digits. The same nine digits also appear at the start of the second line of the machine-readable zone (the two lines of characters at the bottom of the sticker).
You will be asked for it when you apply for your next Schengen visa (“previous visas”), on some airline and hotel forms, and if you contact the consulate about your visa. It is not your VFS reference number or your passport number. Keep a photo of the sticker, separate from your passport, in case you lose it while travelling.
Common sticker errors and what to do
| Error | Risk | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Name misspelt or fields swapped | Airline may deny boarding; border may query | Contact the consulate immediately; reissue is usually free and takes days |
| Wrong passport number | Visa may be treated as invalid | Reissue before travel; do not fly |
| UNTIL date before your return flight | Overstay from day one | Change the flight, or ask the consulate to correct if it was an issuing error |
| Duration shorter than the trip | Overstay | Shorten the trip; consulates rarely extend |
| Single entry but you planned a UK or Serbia side trip | Cannot re-enter | Drop the side trip, or reapply for two entries before travel |
Validity window vs stay: three examples
→ Enter once between 5 and 30 October, stay up to 12 days, leave by 30 October.
Visa B: FROM 01-09-2026 UNTIL 31-08-2027, ENTRIES MULT, STAY 90
→ Any number of trips in the year; never more than 90 days in any rolling 180.
Visa C: FROM 10-12-2026 UNTIL 10-01-2027, ENTRIES 2, STAY 20
→ Two entries; total days inside across both may not exceed 20.
What to do before you fly, beyond the sticker, is in visa approved: what to check before you fly.
Visa in hand and something looks wrong?
Send us a photo of the sticker on WhatsApp. We check the fields against your flights and tell you whether it needs correcting before you travel. Free.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the visa number on a Schengen visa?
It is printed in red at the top right of the visa sticker, usually a three-letter country code followed by nine digits. The same digits appear at the start of the second line of the machine-readable zone. It is different from your passport number and your VFS reference number.
What is the difference between validity and duration of stay on a Schengen visa?
Validity (FROM and UNTIL) is the window in which you may enter and must leave. Duration of stay is the maximum number of days you may spend inside that window. A 45-day window with a 20-day stay allows 20 days, not 45.
What does ETATS SCHENGEN or Schengen States mean on the sticker?
That the visa is valid in all 29 Schengen countries. A single country name instead means a limited territorial visa for that country only.
Can I leave the Schengen area and come back on a single-entry visa?
No. A single-entry visa is used up when you exit, even for a day trip to the UK, Serbia or a cruise. You need two entries or MULT.
My name is misspelt on the visa. Can I still travel?
Do not risk it. Contact the issuing consulate for a corrected sticker; reissue for a consulate error is normally free and quick.
My passport was renewed after the visa was issued. Is the visa still valid?
Usually yes if you carry both passports, but practice varies. Ask the issuing consulate before travelling; some require the visa to be transferred.
What does the REMARKS field contain?
The purpose code (tourism, business, family visit), sometimes the host’s name, and any conditions such as a specific event. Read it for restrictions.