Visa outsourcing giant VFS Global has come under scrutiny after more than 150 inspection reports by European authorities flagged operational concerns at its centres across 20 EU member states between 2020 and 2025, Newswire reported, citing a Lighthouse Reports investigation conducted with The Indian Express.
The Netherlands-based investigative newsroom obtained the reports through more than 40 Freedom of Information requests filed with the European Commission, the UK and several EU governments. The cross-border probe also drew on interviews with around 150 applicants at VFS centres in Delhi and Mumbai. More than a million Indians apply for Schengen visas every year, and Zurich- and Dubai-based VFS Global handles those applications for multiple European missions.
The reports describe systemic weaknesses in handling personal and biometric data. Luxembourg’s embassy noted in a 2023 implementation review that biometric information was being transmitted via open email when collection or transmission errors occurred. Auditors also found old CDs containing sensitive applicant data had not been destroyed despite shredders being available on-site. In Switzerland’s case, inspectors found passports sent back as far back as 2020 still lying at a VFS facility in New Delhi, and criticised the company’s refund process as one that “does not work at all.”
A separate 2024 Schengen evaluation involving Germany and Poland reportedly concluded that aspects of VFS Global’s India operations were not fully GDPR-compliant. Swedish inspectors flagged privacy concerns at the Mumbai office, where conversations between applicants and staff could be overheard across low counter dividers, alongside inadequate disclosure that premium services such as lounge access and SMS alerts were optional and unrelated to visa approval.
The reports also point to “visa shopping” — applicants directed by agents to countries with faster approval rates — alongside fake appointment slots sold by intermediaries and forged employment contracts submitted with work-visa applications, with VFS centres in Ahmedabad, Chandigarh and Jalandhar repeatedly named.
VFS Global said in a statement that it does “not tolerate fraud, data misuse, or any conduct that falls below the high standards our clients and their applicants expect of us,” and called itself “a trusted partner to governments worldwide” subject to regular tender and oversight. The company added that optional value-added services are approved and monitored by client governments and “have no bearing on visa application decisions, which are solely a matter for governments.” The European Commission acknowledged growing dependence on external service providers and said its newly adopted EU Visa Policy Strategy aims to tighten monitoring of such agencies.
VFS Global also operates visa centres in Colombo for several European, North American and Asian governments, processing Schengen and other applications for Sri Lankan travellers.
