Check to see whether your country is on the list of countries required by Schengen countries to obtain a visa to enter the country. Apply for a visa to Sweden if you are also a non-U.S. citizen with a resident alien registration card. Apply no earlier than 3 months before your intended trip and no later than 15 days prior to the trip.
Determine the type of visa you need. Find out which of the visas the Swedish Embassy offers are most suitable for you by asking yourself what your primary objective is in going to Sweden. Visas are available for tourists, visitors of friends, people doing business in Sweden, airport transit and students. Follow the specific instructions for that type of visa.
Fill out the appropriate forms. For a tourist visa, complete, sign and date Form #119031, application for Schengen visa, as well as Form #239011, or appendix D, Family Appendix for Applicants.
Submit other supporting material. Furnish a passport that has been issued within the last 10 years that will be good for up to three months past the date you will be in the area, and which has two pages blank. This must include a color photo; no copies will be accepted. Include if applicable a US Alien Registration Card that has been notarized. Provide a current bank statement, as well as a confirmation letter from an insurance company that shows you have sufficient coverage of at least 30,000 Euros of international insurance. Procure a letter of employment, tax forms from self-employment or a letter from the school in which you will be enrolled. Include a copy of your travel itinerary, and hotel reservations.
Pay the application fee and submit return postage either directly to the Swedish Embassy in Washington D.C.; the Consulate General of Sweden in New York for residents of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut; or for certain Western states, the Consulate General of Norway in San Francisco.
Await your visa. Allow 15 days up to three weeks for the processing of your visa.
