Image of Paris International Charles de Gaulle Airport. Screenshot from the Paris International Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport Walking Tour video on the This Gemini YouTube Channel

Every year, thousands of African citizens try their luck on the legal immigration pathways to Europe. However, most are unsuccessful. Their difficulties with European embassies have created a black market where intermediaries sell visa interview appointments at inflated prices.

In 2022, a BBC investigation revealed that a large percentage of young people in Africa intend to leave the continent to pursue a better life in the West. Although many initiatives, such as media campaigns, awareness-raising, and educational activities, discourage illegal immigration practices, most citizens are denied their visas upon paying eye-watering application fees. For example, Senegal’s average monthly income is USD 140, but a European visa alone can cost more than EUR 90 (USD 100).

In 2023, Africans spent an estimated EUR 54 million  (USD 60 million) on unsuccessful visa applications for the Schengen Zone. This mini-documentary by the social media publisher AJ+ of the Al Jazeera Media Network sheds some light on the situation:

In this mini-documentary, the AJ+ journalist Rémy Nsabimana states that European Union countries have orchestrated strategies to make life difficult for many visa applicants, especially those from Africa. He wonders whether now is the time for African countries to enforce visa reciprocity since European citizens don’t currently require visas to enter countries on this continent. According to a BBC article, this is a lucrative business that European nations have established:

Schengen News indique dans ses statistiques qu’en 2023, les ressortissants africains ont reçu 704 000 réponses négatives à leurs demandes de visa. Ce nombre de visas refusés représente 41,3 % de tout le montant généré par les demandes rejetées cette année.

Schengen News area statistics report that 704,000 African citizens had their visa applications turned down in 2023. This figure accounted for 41.3 percent of the total unsuccessful visa applications that year.

Bidding war for visa interview appointments

In Senegal, another phenomenon has compounded the already challenging situation that most Africans face. According to the official embassy websites, no visa interview appointments will be available for several months. However, intermediaries who book all available appointments well in advance offer chargeable services to secure these appointments at an inflated price.

Under such circumstances, the Senegalese media outlet La Maison des Reporters (Reporters House) investigated an appointment bidding system and the sale of interview appointments to the highest bidder. In a podcast episode titled “I need a visa, but don’t have an appointment”: An investigation into organized trafficking, La Maison des Reporters discusses the factors underpinning such practices: citizen concerns about interview appointments, the applicants’ need to meet several requirements to obtain an appointment, and the role that diplomatic missions play in facilitating the development of this black market, even if they deny any responsibility. You can listen to this podcast here:

Given the number of visa applications and the economic pressures nurturing the applicants’ dream of a better life elsewhere, intermediaries selling interview appointments needn’t worry about their current line of business.