Misuse of a visa

If you remain in Denmark after your visa expires or if you try to use your visa stay to obtain a long-term or permanent residence permit, or if you have given birth in Denmark during a previous visa stay without having made an agreement with a private hospital regarding the birth including payment, you can be given a penalty period for a period of three to five years. During this period you will be unable to obtain a visa to enter Denmark.

Exceeding a visa validity period

A visa gives the holder the right to reside in the Schengen region for a predetermined number of days (maximum 90) within a further defined period of validity. The visa's validity period is stated on the visa sticker in your passport.

As a visa holder, you may neither reside in Schengen region for more than the permitted number of days, nor arrive or depart outside of the validity period.

It is important that you know the validity period of your visa, as there can be serious consequences for leaving too late.

• If you exceed your visa's validity period you can be given a penalty period. During this period you will normally be unable to obtain a Schengen visa to enter Denmark.
• You can be banned for three years if you exceed the visa period by up to 30 days. A five-year ban is imposed if you exceed the visa period by more than 30 days.

However, you will not be given a penalty period if you can document that you exceeded the visa's validity period due to unforeseen circumstances beyond your control, such as traffic delays, airline strikes or serious illness. You will not be banned if it is assessed that a rejection of your visa will be a disproportionate reaction in relation to the behavior you have demonstrated during your previous stays on a visa/short stay visa.

Application for a residence permit

A visa is only intended for short-term stays in the Schengen region and not for permanent or long-term residency.

If you attempt to use a visa stay in Denmark or another Schengen country to obtain permanent or long-term residency you can be given a penalty period. This means that you would not normally be able to obtain a visa to enter Denmark during that period.

Submitting an application for a residence permit while in Denmark on a visa will normally result in a five-year penalty period. However, you are allowed to apply for certain types of residence permits while visiting Denmark on a visa.

Applications without a penalty period

The visa holder will not be prevented from obtaining a new visa (subject to a penalty period) if the application concerns the following types of residence permits, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 4c (4) (penalty period):

• An application for a residence permit on the grounds of family reunification, if the visa holder is either the spouse/partner or child under 15 of the person residing in Denmark, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9 (1)(i or ii).
• An application for a residence permit submitted with reference to special circumstances, if the visa holder is either the spouse/partner or child under 15 of the person residing in Denmark, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9c (1).
• An application for a residence permit as a student, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9i (1) or as a PhD, cf. Section 9i (2).
• An application for a residence permit under the 'cities of refuge' programme (i.e. if the visa holder is engaged in literary activities and has been offered residence by a local council as part of its membership of an international organisation), cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9c (4).
• An application for a residence and work permit on the grounds of work, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9a (2) (i-xi) or Section 9a (3).
• An application for a residence permit according to Denmarks international obligations, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9p (1), first sentence.
• An application for a residence permit as a retires employee of an international organisation or accompanying family member, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 9q (1), (2) or (3).
• If the visa holder, after the application for a residence permit is submitted, leaves the Schengen countries in accordance with the validity of the visa issued.
• If humanitarian considerations make it conclusively inappropriate.

However, even if the application for a residence permit is covered by the exceptions above, a penalty period will still be imposed, if the reason for the application is to extend the visa holder's stay in Denmark, even though it is obvious that the applicant does not qualify for a residence permit, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, Section 4c (5) (penalty period).

Expulsion

Visa holders will be given a five-year penalty period if they are judicially or administratively expelled from Denmark.

Asylum

Visa holders will be given a five-year penalty period if they apply for asylum in Denmark or another Schengen country. However, a penalty period will not be given if the applicant has contributed to the processing of their case and has left voluntarily after final refusal of asylum.

Birth in Denmark during a visa stay

If you have given birth in Denmark during a previous visa stay without having previously made an agreement with a private hospital regarding the birth including payment, you may be given a three-year penalty period. This means that you would not normally be able to obtain a visa to enter Denmark for three years from the time of the departure after the birth. 

You will not be given a penalty period if you can prove that the birth in this country is due to unforeseen circumstances that are out of your control or if there are particular grounds including grounds preventing you from obtaining a visa which constitute an evident disproportionate reaction.