The passport that will be used for travelling must always be submitted to VFS together with the application.
Applications will not be processed without a passport.
In the USA and Canada, VFS will send the passport to the Consulate General in New York together with the application.
Applicants with passports that do not require a visa to travel to Schengen, will get their passport returned immediately after the Consulate has registered the application.
If you cannot wait for your passport to be checked by the Consulate, you should make a new appointment with VFS after you have used your passport and can submit it with the application.
If a visa is required, the Consulate will keep the passport until the application has been processed.
Applicants may request that the passport be returned during the processing, but in such cases, the applicant must pay a second courier fee to return the passport to the Consulate General in New York when a visa is to be issued.
Applicants in need of a visa who know at the time of submission that they need the passport back sooner than the visa or residence permit processing time, should notify VFS staff about the date they need their passport back.
Applicants who did not inform VFS about the early return of their passport, should send an e-mail to the visa section to get the passport returned before the processing is finalized.
Applicants living in Bermuda are recommended to use the VFS application center in New York and contact the visa section of the Consulate General in New York before making their appointment with VFS.
In South America, VFS will send the passport together with application to the Consulate General in New York when a visa is required.
If no visa is required, VFS will give the passport to the local Norwegian foreign service mission and return it to the applicant after the passport has been checked.
Applicants in South America who require a visa to travel to Schengen, but need their passport to return to their country of residence, if different from the country where the VFS application center, should inform VFS about this when handing over their passport together with the application. The passport will then be returned after checking by the local Norwegian foreign service mission and not sent to the Consulate General in New York. The applicant must in such cases pay for a return courier to the Consulate General in New York after returning to their country of residence for the visa to be issued.
Previously a stamp was placed in passports at the time of accepting the application as admissible. This stamp is no longer in use and does not have any legal implications.
