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The Schengen Visa is a European short stay visa that allows its holder to travel throughout the Schengen Area. This type of visa is issued by one of the Schengen States and allows you to visit any of the Schengen countries for a duration of up to 90 days in total within 180 days.
There are 29 countries in the Schengen Area. These countries have agreed to abolish all internal borders and have a common visa policy, although there may be slight differences with respect to procedures and required documentation.
Every citizen of each country that is not part of the Schengen Area and whose country doesn’t have a Visa Facilitation Agreement with the EU needs a Schengen visa in order to enter any of the member countries. Those who are under the visa-free regime will be required to apply for ETIAS starting from May 2025.

With a Schengen visa you can visit all Schengen member countries:

Austria

Belgium

Bulgaria

Czechia

Croatia

Denmark

Estonia

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Hungary

Iceland

Italy

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malta

Netherlands

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

However, there is also a list of non-Schengen countries that allow you to enter with a valid Schengen visa, such as:

Albania

Antigua and Barbuda

Belarus

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Colombia

Cyprus

Georgia

Gibraltar

Kosovo

North Macedonia

Montenegro

Sao Tome and Principe

Serbia

Turkey

You can get a Schengen Visa if you are travelling to Europe for the following purposes:

To transit through the airport of a country in the Schengen zone in order to take the plane to your Schengen destination country.

Tourism visits and sightseeing.

Business visits

Visiting family members and friends

Travel as part of cultural exchange program, sports or research

Medical visits

Short term study courses.

Official visits

Depending on the number of entries and the number of countries you can visit, you could be issued a Uniform Schengen visa or a Limited Territorial Validity visa.

Uniform Schengen Visas (USV)

The Uniform Schengen Visa (USV) allows its holder to travel and stay in the Schengen Area for up to 90 days every six-month period. There are three types of Uniform Schengen visas:

Single-entry visa. With a single entry visa, you can enter a Schengen country only once and stay until the expiration of visa validity. If you leave before the expiration date, you are not allowed to enter the country again since the visa is considered to have expired once you leave the country.

Double-entry visa. With a double entry visa, you can enter a Schengen country twice within the time of visa validity. If you enter the country twice, and the second time you leave before the expiration, you are not allowed to enter the country again since the visa is considered to have expired once you leave the country for the second time.

Multiple-entry visa. The Multiple entry visa allows you to enter and leave the Schengen Zone as many times as you please as long as your visa is valid.

Limited territorial validity visas (LTV)

The Limited Territorial Validity (LTV) visa allows its holder to travel only in the Schengen member country that has issued the visa. If, i.e., France has issued you the visa, then you are permitted to stay only in France. You are not even allowed to transit from one country to another with the LTV visa. This visa is considered an exception to a Uniform Visa and is only issued for international obligations or humanitarian reasons in general.

You should apply for a Schengen Visa at the embassy or consulate of the Schengen country you are planning to visit.
If you are planning to visit more than one country during the same trip and spend an equal amount of time at all of them, then you have to apply at the embassy of the country where you plan to spend more time. But, if you are planning to spend equal time in two or more countries, i.e., five days in France and five days in Germany, then you have to apply at the embassy of the country where you are planning to land first.

A Schengen visa allows you to stay within the whole Schengen territory for 90 days within 6 months. This means that the total duration of stay is a maximum of 90 days in any period of 180 days. The specific duration of your visa’s validity is stated on the visa sticker itself under the section titled “Duration of visit.”
Sometimes, authorities issue you a visa for the amount of time you have sought, and sometimes for a longer or shorter period, depending on how they see it as reasonable. The embassy not only appoints the number of days you can stay in Schengen but also the earliest date you can enter and the last date when you can leave, which sometimes is confusing for many people.

If you wish to stay longer than 90 days in the Schengen Area, you will generally need to apply for a long-stay visa or a residence permit from the specific Schengen country where you intend to stay. The European National Visas are granted to individuals coming to one of the Schengen member countries for stays longer than 90 days, like working or studying.
In order to be eligible to apply for the D visas for Europe, you should be in one of the following categories:

An international student in a program that grants Schengen visas.

International student about to start full-time studies in Europe.

Teacher at a higher education institution or research center in Europe.

Professional travel to Europe with the purpose of sharing expertise.

Traveler in the Schengen Area who is experiencing an emergency, as a medical condition that prevents departure at the end of your National Visa.

No, you cannot convert a C multiple entry visa into a type D national visa. Schengen visas are specifically intended for short-term stays and travel within the Schengen Area. They do not grant the right to live or work in a specific country; long-stay (type D) visas do.
You can’t either apply for a residence permit in a Schengen country that you entered with a Schengen visa.
If you want to get a D visa, you will need to apply from the country of your residence.

A Schengen visa can be extended only under exceptional circumstances. Therefore, in order to get your visa extended, you must have a very strong reason behind it, such as:

Force majeure.

Humanitarian reasons.

Serious personal reasons.

You must show strong proof that you cannot leave the country before the expiration of your visa. As a rule, you can only get a visa extension if you have stayed for less than 90 days in the Schengen Area within a 180-day period. If you have stayed in the Schengen area for more than 90 days within six months, then your chances of getting your visa extended are almost zero. Keep in mind that you have to apply for a visa extension before the expiration of your visa.