I have plans to go to Sierra Leone from India and I am an Indian citizen.
I have got Schengen Visa Type A with Multiple Entry. On Google it says that I cannot leave international transit area. Will I encounter a problem of not having full Schengen visa while switching flights from Munich Airport to Brussels ?
The flights are at same terminal and same airline. I guess it boils down to if I have to leave international transit area at Munich to catch a flight to Brussels.
@blackbird57's answer is correct but refers to a 3rd party site instead of relevant FAQ on the website of the European Commission:
An airport transit visa (ATV) authorises you to pass through the international transit zone at an airport located on the territory of the Schengen State and to await a connecting flight to a non-Schengen country. The ATV does not allow you to enter the Schengen territory (to stay at a hotel or to take an onwards flight to another Schengen State, for example).
that's crystal clear.
I was struggling with finding a good document to show that Type A means Airport Transit Visa but I found it in the Regulation itself:
‘TYPE OF VISA’ heading:
In order to facilitate matters for the control authorities, this heading specifies the type of visa using the letters A, C and D as follows:
A: airport transit visa (as defined in Article 2(5) of this Regulation)
Schengen visa types states:
An airport transit visa (ATV) authorises you to pass through the international transit zone at an airport located on the territory of the Schengen State and to await a connecting flight to a non-Schengen country. The ATV does not allow you to enter the Schengen territory
You're only entering the Schengen country area if you pass immigration, and it seems that to transit to another Schengen airport you will need to leave the international area, so your Type A visa is not enough in this case.
The website for the German mission in the US has a note about this:
Airport transit privilege does not apply and you will need a visitor visa
[...]
2. if you are transiting through two or more airports in the Schengen Countries (for example: Miami-Frankfurt-Paris-India or New York-Frankfurt-Munich-India).
