Kempt
The short answer
A Schengen visa usually needs your passport, travel insurance, a flight booking, recent bank statements, payslips and an employment letter; a residence permit renewal adds a recent proof of address and photos. Kempt has starter dossiers for both, matches every line to the newest paper on your Mac and warns before a document becomes too old.
What consulates and prefectures usually ask for
- 01
Passport
Valid well beyond your trip or stay.
- 02
Proof of address
Often under 3 or 6 months old.
- 03
Bank statements and payslips
Usually the last three months.
- 04
Travel insurance
For a Schengen visa, at least €30,000 of medical cover.
- 05
Flight booking and accommodation
For visit visas.
- 06
Recent ID photos
Often under 6 months.
Requirements depend on the country, the consulate and your situation. Always check their own list.
How Kempt prepares each appointment
Start from a dossier
Visa, residence permit renewal, passport renewal at a consulate, new job: starter checklists, or paste the consulate’s list (French or English).
Every paper, dated
Each line takes the newest matching paper. A proof of address older than six months is flagged before you go.
Kept ready
Kempt watches your dossiers and tells you when a paper arrives or ages out, so the next appointment is already prepared.
$39 once, 14 days freeRuns on every Apple silicon MacA question? Ask a person
Proof, not promises
Measured on a real Mac (macOS 26) with about 1,600 real documents. Each test is re-run whenever the app changes.
- AccuracyItems read from real published lists
- 25 / 25Rental, mortgage and visa lists published by a rental site, a bank and an insurer.
- AccuracyRight file first
- 12 / 13Scored search suite run on every change; answers cited from the right document in 0.9–2.2 s.
- SafetyFiles held for review
- 6.7 %Of 540 real downloads, the doubtful ones wait for you instead of being moved.
- PrivacyDocument uploads
- 0Reading, naming, search, answers and voice all run on your Mac with Apple’s on-device model. No analytics, no account.
How we compare: Kempt’s rows come from its own measured tests. Every other app’s row comes from that maker’s public pages on the date shown. When a page is silent or unclear, we say so instead of guessing.
Questions people ask
What documents do I need for a Schengen visa?
Typically the application form, passport, photos, travel insurance with at least €30,000 of cover, flight and accommodation bookings, bank statements and proof of employment. Check the consulate’s own checklist.
Do you need proof of address for a Schengen visa?
Often yes: consulates usually ask you to prove you live in their area. A recent utility bill or lease is the usual proof.
How do I get proof of address?
A recent utility, phone or internet bill, a bank statement or a lease in your name. Kempt finds the most recent one on your Mac.
What documents should I bring to a consular appointment?
Exactly what their list asks for, originals and copies. Paste the list into Kempt to get a checklist with each paper found.
How do I combine scanned documents into one PDF on a Mac?
In Preview, open the first PDF, show thumbnails and drag the others in. Kempt exports a dossier as one merged PDF in the order requested.
Guides
- How to find a document on a Mac by what’s inside itSearch inside PDFs, scans and photos of paper on macOS: Spotlight tips, and how Kempt answers questions like “what’s my IBAN?” with the page cited.
- How to scan documents on a Mac (MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac)Three free ways to scan paper on a Mac (iPhone Continuity Camera, Preview, Image Capture) and how Kempt names, files and searches every scan.
- Rental application documents: the checklist, and how to send it fastWhat landlords usually ask for in a US rental application, how to gather it on a Mac, and how Kempt turns the landlord’s email into a ready checklist.
Other comparisons
- Kempt vs DEVONthinkDEVONthink is a powerful research database; Kempt keeps your files in ordinary Finder folders and does the filing for you. Choose Kempt for everyday documents and paperwork with zero setup; choose DEVONthink for large research archives.
- Kempt vs SpotlightSpotlight finds files; Kempt names them, files them, and answers questions from inside them with the page cited. They work together: Kempt’s clear names make Spotlight better too.
For everyone else
- Your rental application, ready before anyone else’s.Paste the landlord’s email and Kempt lists every document, finds each one on your Mac, flags what’s missing or too old, and exports one clean PDF.
- Your month of receipts, sent to your accountant in one click.Kempt gathers your month of receipts and invoices, reads the amounts, matches them to your bank statement and builds the pack your accountant wants: PDF + CSV.
- Your first Mac, organized from the very first download.New MacBook Air, Pro or MacBook Neo? The setup steps that matter, tips for Windows switchers, and the app that names and files every document from day one.