There's a real, current development worth knowing about if you're planning to apply for a Schengen visa in the coming months. A Council of the European Union working group on visas has been discussing a possible increase to the standard visa fee, and this isn't speculation: it's based on an actual discussion paper published on 4 September 2026, prepared for a Visa Working Party meeting on 14 September 2026.

What's Actually Being Proposed

The paper explores a "harmonised European surcharge" added on top of the current €90 fee. One scenario discussed is a 20% surcharge, around €18 per application, which would push the total to roughly €108 and generate an estimated €187 million a year in additional EU revenue, based on the 12.2 million applications recorded in 2025. Member states were invited to give their views on the size of the surcharge, whether it should be a fixed amount or a percentage, and how it would actually be collected, including in the context of the ongoing move to a fully digital application process.

Context: This Wouldn't Be the First Increase

The current €90 fee itself was already an increase — applicants paid €80 before June 2024, when the Schengen Visa Code's built-in review mechanism last triggered a rise. That mechanism exists specifically so fees can be periodically reassessed against the actual cost of processing applications, which is part of why another review surfacing in 2026 isn't unusual in principle, even if the specific surcharge being discussed this time would represent a bigger jump than the last one.

Why Nothing Has Actually Changed Yet

No decision has been made. This is a proposal under discussion, not a confirmed change, and a legislative proposal covering any final figure isn't expected until the first quarter of 2027.

Why It's Still Worth Knowing About

Even immigration professionals working in this space directly note that the visa fee itself is rarely the deciding cost in a complicated application: the cost of a refusal, or of getting professional support to avoid one, usually matters more. That said, for applicants from countries with lower average incomes, even a modest increase is a real, practical burden, not a minor inconvenience, which is exactly why it's worth tracking properly rather than reacting to whichever headline reaches you first.

What To Actually Do With This Information

  • If your application timeline gives you flexibility, there's no reason to change anything: nothing has actually changed yet.
  • Don't rush a weak application to beat an increase that may not even happen, or may not happen until 2027. A rushed, poorly documented file is a worse trade than waiting a few more weeks to apply properly.
  • Follow official EU and national government channels directly for the final outcome, rather than relying on secondhand reporting that can exaggerate or misreport a proposal that's still just a proposal.

This applies regardless of your nationality or destination within the Schengen area. Patience here costs nothing; acting on an unconfirmed number could cost you an application built in a hurry.