Who needs a sponsorship letter
Providing a letter is not a requirement, but some citizens may need it to increase their chances of obtaining a visa. Such persons include:
- Women supported by their husbands and not working anywhere.
- Citizens who have lost their jobs for some time and are unable to provide an account statement, as well as those who have lost their ability to work, for example, with a disability.
- Students who do not have documented income.
- Pensioners who do not work anywhere, and the size of their pension does not allow them to travel.
In most cases, representatives of the listed categories of persons cannot confirm their employment.
What documents need to be attached to the letter?
As such, a letter from a sponsor does not constitute grounds for issuing a visa. The letter must be accompanied by documents that confirm the accuracy of the information specified in the letter. In addition to the letter from the sponsor itself, you will need:
Certificate from the sponsor's place of work (if applicable). In the case where the sponsor is the owner of his own business, you can provide a bank account statement to the Polish embassy.
A copy of the sponsor's passport. You do not need to copy the entire passport, only the pages with personal information (pages 32-33).
These documents will be enough to confirm the presence of a sponsor and his financial security.
Who can become a sponsor
It is advisable that the letter be written on behalf of a relative. In most cases, this document is drawn up by parents for their children and husbands for their wives. Some embassies accept letters from strangers. Sometimes any Russian citizen who has a sufficient amount of documented funds can become a guarantor.
Sponsor is a person who provides financing without the purpose of obtaining direct material benefit.
The main thing is that there are enough funds in the account to cover various expenses, including hotel rent, food, excursion fees, and transportation costs. For example, such a letter is often written by spouses in a civil marriage.
The guarantor can be the employee's organization or the receiving party, for example, when a visa is needed for work. In some cases, a visa is denied if the guarantor is a person who is not a relative.
Sponsorship letter for Schengen visa for children
Sponsorship letter for Schengen visa sample 2021 - Greece
The current provisions of the Schengen agreement provide that there is no need to fill out a sponsorship letter for a child under 14 years of age. If a child goes on a trip with his parents, all expenses are borne by the father and mother.
In the event that a child travels with third parties or one of the parents, a guarantee of sufficient financial support for the duration of their stay in the Schengen zone is an exit permit, provided that it is drawn up correctly and has a notary visa.
Teenagers over 14 years of age are required to obtain their own passport to travel abroad. First-degree relatives (parents, grandparents), as well as adult brothers and sisters who have sufficient funds in their accounts can act as a guarantor.
A sample sponsorship letter for a child for a Schengen visa can be studied at the consulate, visa center or on the Internet.
Important! When traveling for a child over 14 years of age, in addition to a letter of sponsorship, a notarized exit permit will be required.
Requirements for a sponsorship letter
There is no standard that is mandatory when composing a letter. It can be completed in any form; no form is used. Indicate facts proving the relationship of the guarantor and the person submitting the application, if possible.
The paper must contain the dates of departure and arrival in the home country, a list of places that the applicant plans to visit, and the passport details of the guarantor. In most cases, it is enough to draw up a paper in Russian; sometimes the requirements for filling out the document indicate English.
Sample sponsorship letter.
There is no need for certification by a notary, especially in cases where the guarantor is a person who has family ties with the applicant. If the paper is filled out by another person, it is advisable to get it certified by a notary. Even when obtaining short-term visas, it is better to prepare a notarized document. According to the experience of many tourists, this increases the chances of success.
A paper can be written for several people. There is no rule that a guarantor can only pay for one person's travel.
Despite the fact that there is no form for this letter, there are some rules that it is advisable to adhere to.
An example might look like this: “I, A. M. Pastukhova, (**.**.**** birth date, passport details, registration), am the sponsor of G. M. Pastukhova (**.**. **** date of birth, passport details, registration) in Greece and the Schengen countries in the period from 05/13/2019 to 05/22/2019. Date of writing the application, signature of the guarantor.”
Who is covered by the sponsorship letter?
Not all categories of citizens are provided with this kind of document, which means they are worth mentioning.
These categories include:
- students;
- disabled people;
- pensioners;
- unemployed;
- children.
Sponsorship of the above categories of people can be carried out by parents or close relatives such as grandparents. For older people and pensioners, their children who have reached the age of majority can act as guarantors. In some cases, adult brothers or sisters may act as travel guarantors.
fill out the sponsorship letter here. Its translation into English is here.
A letter of sponsorship is not required for a child flying with one of the parents. All that is required is permission, certified by a notary, from the other parent for the possibility of making such a trip. The details of the child or children must be entered in the parent’s foreign passport.
This is what the consent of one of the parents for the child to travel abroad looks like
But citizens whose source of income is unofficial or small should take care of receiving such a letter. If the trip is of a business nature or is a work trip, expenses in this case are reimbursed by the host party in the Czech Republic or the direct employer.
In a situation where you do not work for some reason, but plan to visit the country, then in this case you must present an extract from a financial institution (bank) indicating that there is a sufficient amount of money in the account and the movement of these funds over the last three months. The provided document-extract must be certified by the seal of the financial institution. There will be no need for a sponsorship letter if you are wealthy.
Important! People who are not blood relatives, but simply friends, acquaintances and even spouses who are in a civil marriage, can sponsor the trip. But in most such cases the letter is not accepted by the consulate. It is better to get a bank account in advance for a visa, and the required amount on it.
List of documents for the sponsorship letter
List of additional papers:
- Sponsor's passport. Often it is enough to include a copy of the first page. You must also make a copy of your passport (if available).
- Certificate of employment on the organization's letterhead. It must indicate the position and telephone number of the employer. It is important to ensure that the form bears the signature of the chief accountant or general director and the company seal.
Documents for the sponsorship letter.
In addition to the listed documents, you must present to the visa center one of the documents proving a stable financial situation:
- Certificate of salary. Each embassy sets minimum salaries for guarantors (from 500 US dollars). In addition to basic expenses, a minimum of 40 euros per day must be left for each traveler. The certificate will be considered invalid if it is issued more than a month before submission to the consulate.
- Statement from the guarantor's bank account. If possible, you must provide a detailed statement for the last 3 months.
Sample sponsorship letter
To the consular section of the embassy [specify country]
Sponsorship letter
I, full name (01.01.1970 year of birth, passport 0000 000000, residing at the address: Moscow, st. ********, house **, apt. **), hereby confirm that the expenses of the full name (01/01/1970 year of birth, passport 0000 000000, living at the address: Moscow, st. ********, no. **, apt. **) during a trip to [specify country] during from __.__.2021 to __.__.2021 I take over.
I am attaching a bank account statement.
"__" _________ 2021 _______________ / Last name I.O. /
Contact phone: 8-___-__________
Address: Moscow, st. ********, house **, apt. **
E-mail address
You can submit a sponsorship letter in doc format.
Sponsorship letter for a child
If a bank account with a sufficient amount has been opened for the child, a letter will not be required. It is not necessary to issue a sponsorship letter if the child is under 14 years of age and is traveling with both parents. Instead, you can attach a statement confirming the reservation of tickets and accommodation.
Sponsorship letter for a child under 14 years old.
In some countries, such as Norway, the requirement to provide a sponsorship letter is mandatory even for a minor child.
Sample sponsorship letter for a child
A document for a child is drawn up in a similar way to a document for an adult. Do not forget to indicate your relationship with a minor citizen. If a family has one guarantor, then he can issue one letter for all travelers, including a child.
When is a sponsorship letter required?
A sponsor letter is a statement. The author of the paper confirms that he is ready to bear the traveler’s expenses.
A document is required if you are planning a trip, but you do not have a job or the required amount of money in your bank account to confirm your financial well-being. In this case, a sponsor comes to the rescue. He assumes the costs of the upcoming journey, confirming this with his letter.
Sponsorship letter is provided by:
- temporarily unemployed and people without official employment;
- dependents;
- minor children;
- disabled people;
- pensioners.
If you do not have a job, but have the required amount of money in your account, then a sponsorship letter is not required. You can provide a bank statement instead.
A sponsorship letter replaces proof of solvency
Features of writing in different Schengen countries
Some countries have special requirements:
- The Italian consulate requires that the guarantor travel to the country with the person who needs the visa. Standard confirmation: booking accommodation and tickets. Relationship is also one of the mandatory criteria. The document will be approved if the person is the parent or spouse of the person who submitted the visa request.
- When traveling to France, it is not necessary to be accompanied by a guarantor, however, the rules for obtaining a visa to this country indicate that only close relatives can act as guarantors.
- The requirements for traveling to Greece or the Czech Republic are more flexible: absence of kinship is allowed, accompanied by a guarantor is not required. Russian language is allowed.
For a sponsorship letter to have weight, it must be drawn up according to the rules of the country to which the trip is planned, and supplemented with guarantee documents confirming the solvency of the guarantor.
What should be in a sponsorship letter
A sponsorship letter is a free-form application that can be written either by hand or electronically. In the letter, the sponsor guarantees its financial responsibility for the applicant's expenses. For the Polish Embassy, you can provide a letter written in Russian.
But, despite the arbitrary form of preparation, the letter must include the following information:
Personal data of the sponsor (full name and passport number); Personal data of the sponsored person - the one whose travel expenses are paid by the sponsor (full name and passport number); Destination country - Poland; Travel dates.
At the end of the document you need to indicate the date the letter was written and, of course, the personal signature of the sponsor.
Concept of sponsorship letter
Considering that most citizens have a rather vague idea of what a sponsorship letter for a Schengen visa looks like, many experience serious difficulties when it comes to drawing up this document for the embassy. But are these fears seriously founded?
The text of the sponsorship letter for a Schengen visa can hardly be considered a problem. Since diplomatic missions of EU countries fully allow a free form of sponsorship letter for a visa, you only need to spend a few minutes to draw up this document. The main condition here is that your sponsor himself has a financial position that would not raise any doubts among the embassy staff.
When signing a sponsorship letter for a visa for a child or adult, the sponsor must provide documentary evidence of sufficient funds to allow him to sponsor the foreign trip of his relative or other person to whom he provides or guarantees financial assistance. Typically this document is a certificate from work.
