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I'm planning to visit my family in Sweden with a Schengen Visa. I'm from Indonesia in the city of Medan. There is no Swedish embassy or consulate nearby. The nearest is in Bali or Jakarta. There is a German consulate in my city that issues a Schengen visa. Since the Schengen visa allows me to travel to all the Schengen countries. Does it matter at which embassy/consulate I apply at?

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Yes, it matters which embassy/consulate you apply to. The main rule to be aware of in cases like this, is that you must apply to the country that is the main destination of your trip.

If that country doesn't have a representation in a certain part of the world, they might have chosen to be nice to the people living in that part of the world, and made an agreement with another country that their representation can handle certain cases (an visa applications are often included in that) for them. But it's not your decision, but that of the country you want to visit.

In your case I would contact one of the Swedish embassies and ask if they have an agreement with Germany or any other Schengen country that has a representation closer to you, but don't go applying to the German consulate just because you feel like it, they should just reject your application for having been sent to the wrong place, but you're wasting your own (and their) time.

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If the (normally) responsible consulate is not available, another Schengen consulate can be used in visa matters.

Honorary Consul Medan - Federal Foreign Office

Since you must call to make an appointment anyway, mention the fact that your plan is primarily to visit Sweden.

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    'Not available' and 'far away' are not synonymous. I would not assume that the German consulate in Medan handles visa applications for Sweden just because the nearest Swedish consulate is far away.
    – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo
    Commented Sep 26, 2019 at 16:30
  • @Tor-EinarJarnbo that is a matter that the effected consulates deside umong themselves. The way to find out in this case is to call and ask. See Visa Codex Annex Part II 1.7
    – Mark Johnson
    Commented Sep 26, 2019 at 16:45
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    There is no 'Annex part II 1.7' in the Schengen Visa Code. Nevertheless, if Sweden had an agreement with the German consulate in Medan to issue Swedish visas to residents of that part of Indonesia, why would they not inform about that on their web page instead of stating that applications must be made to the offices in Jakarta or Bali?
    – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo
    Commented Sep 26, 2019 at 17:08
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    @MarkJohnson but Germany may not normally issue Schengen visas for a trip to Sweden.
    – phoog
    Commented Sep 26, 2019 at 17:39
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    @MarkJohnson And this agreement is obviously not in place, otherwise the Swedish embassy in Indonesia would have informed applicants from these parts of Indonesia on their web pages which other consulates they can turn to. Instead they document that visas for Sweden must be applied for in Jakarta or Bali.
    – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo
    Commented Sep 26, 2019 at 21:00

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