Visa Warning Database

The Visa Warning Database (VWD) serves to prevent misuse of visas for entering the Federal Republic of Germany. It is made available to authorized agencies via the register portal of the Federal Office of Administration. After the VWD is consulted, the results are transmitted in automated visa procedures in particular to German missions abroad.

The VWD has been kept by the Federal Office of Administration since 1 June 2013. It was set up to combine data from various agencies, which may be relevant for later decisions in visa procedures, and to make them transparent to other authorities.

The database helps

German missions abroad primarily responsible for issuing visas to avoid wrong decisions,
foreigners authorities to check declarations of commitment or to extend visas, and
authorities responsible for inspecting cross-border traffic to decide upon refusals of entry or removals of visa holders.

For this purpose, the database contains alerts concerning persons and organisations that, among other things,

have been convicted by a final judgment of a criminal offence,
have provided false information in the visa procedure in their capacity as applicants, inviting parties, sponsors or reference persons or have not met their obligations, or
have voluntarily consented to such an alert because of a suspicion that unauthorized declarations have been made in their name in the visa procedure.