@Manfred *********
incorrect, you absolutely have to be in the country you apply from when you apply. You declare/sign that you are during the application process AND they ask for your visa pages in the passport. Any open stamp they will see.
Some get away with it when embassy doesn’t check well, but it’s basically fraud.
The big issue is if immigration notice when you arrive that you had an open stamp for example in Thailand at the time of getting the Visa. That can get nasty