Category Archives: Visa

VFS opens Germany VAC in Bengaluru

The new Germany Visa Application Centre was formally inaugurated in Langford Town by representatives from the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bengaluru. Margit Hellwig-Bötte, Consul General of the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bengaluru, and Jürgen Pengel, Consul and Head of the Consular Department of the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bengaluru, inaugurated the centre on June 23. Services at the spacious new facility, which moved from its earlier location in Shivaji Nagar, commenced in March this year. The centre is located at No. 11, First Floor, Global Tech Park, O’ Shaughnessy Road, Langford Town and houses visa operations of 31 diplomatic missions (including Germany) under one roof. With more counters for applicants and expansive waiting and registration areas, the new centre has a larger Premium Lounge for applicants looking for more personalised assistance. An ATM has also been installed within the premises for the convenience of all applicants. Germany visa applicants can avail of separate submission counters, biometric booths, and dedicated services in the Premium Lounge. They can make payments by credit and debit card (in addition to cash payments) at this centre.

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Peru exempts visa for short-stay visitors from India

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Peru, has decided to exempt the requirement of business and tourist visas to certain Indian citizens whose duration of stay is up to 180 days as maximum, whether continuous stay or various visits during the period of one year. The stay will be determined in the port of entry by the Immigration Officers. These rules have been effective since March 27, 2017. Others who are also exempted from visa include holders of valid visa of USA, UK, Canada, Australia or Schengen countries, with a validity of at least six months (excluding transit visas), and those who are permanent residents, accredited with the document of permit (Green Card) in the USA, UK, Canada, Australia or Schengen space countries.

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Australia announces online visa application for Indians from July 1, 2017

The Australian High Commission and Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection have announced that all Indian nationals will be able to lodge visitor visa applications for Australia online from July 1, 2017. The Acting Australian High Commissioner to India, Chris Elstoft, said eligible Indian nationals can now apply online for a visitor visa through the Department’s ImmiAccount portal. Online application offers benefits such as 24/7 accessibility, electronic payment of the visa application charge and the ability to check the status of applications lodged online. With the applicant’s permission, the online form can be completed by a third party such as a family member here or in Australia, a travel agent, or its contracted visa application centre, VFS. “Processing times for these visas will now be faster, as both applications and supporting documentation are immediately available to the processing office. This is good news for every Indian visitor to Australia, whether they are travelling for business or pleasure,” Elstoft said. Being able to check the status of an application online, as soon as it is finalised, will allow Indian applicants to finalise their travel arrangements as soon as possible. “With the rising popularity of Australia as a holiday destination, there has been a significant rise in demand for Australian visas in India. There were more than 265,000 Indian visitor arrivals from July-Mar 2017, an increase of 15.4 per cent compared to the same period last year,” he adds.

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VFS alerts agents of visa, immigration fraud

VFS Global has urged travel agents to be aware of fake visa and immigration scam by fraudsters posing as VFS employees. In recent months, VFS Global that partners with 52 client governments worldwide to provide visa services has been faced with a vexing problem. A small but significant number of people who have applied for visas to various countries have been getting calls from fraudsters posing as company employees, giving them false promises of job or immigration prospects abroad. Vinay Malhotra, COO – Middle East and South Asia, VFS Global, reveals, “There have been instances when the initial phone call supposedly from VFS Global would be followed up by official-looking employment offer letters and other documents, sent by email. In acceptance of the job or immigration offer, the visa applicants would be asked to deposit huge sums of money to a bank account, details of which could be found in the letter.” Investigations into the matter have pointed to misuse of technology, where fraudsters zero in on easy victims. Unfortunately, some unsuspecting visa applicants, raring to start life anew in a foreign locale, have readily parted with the amount. With an increase in the number of instances of such fraudulent operations taking place, misusing the name of VFS Global, the company has begun to take proactive measures to warn applicants of this menace. Malhotra says, “Through our call centres, SMS alerts, website updates, emails etc, we are sending out messages that no personnel or representative from VFS Global is authorised to guarantee a job or immigration to applicants in any of the client countries. Also, VFS Global has categorically stated that applicants should not make upfront payments and refrain from …

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VFS Global launches Georgia Visa Application Centres in 5 cities in India

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, represented by Embassy of Georgia in New Delhi launched its visa facilitation centre in the capital city in collaboration with VFS Global, which will be operational from June 23. Four other centres in Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai will begin operations by the end of this month. The key features of the centre include extended operating hours to enable visitors to submit applications at their time of convenience, dedicated website for easy access to information including visa categories, requirements, checklist, application fees and visa status update; premium lounges for personalised service, etc. The new centre in New Delhi was inaugurated by Giorgi Tabatadze, Director of Consular Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and His Excellency Archil Dzuliashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to India. Dzuliashvili informed that in 2016 Georgia recorded 350,000 Indian visitors but is now looking at ways to increase the two-way traffic given the long standing history that the countries have shared. “I am happy to note that after several months of intensive consultations, we have successfully accomplished negotiation process with VFS Global and finally signed the contract which allows us to facilitate and offer more accessible services to the Indian travellers through the several VFS Visa Application Centres in India,” said Dzuliashvili. He further added that Georgia is emerging as a very popular destination amongst Indians and the country will try to reduce the turn over time for granting visas to Indian nationals for tourism, business and education. The destination is promoting tourism from Georgia to India as well. Vinay Malhotra, Chief Operation Officer-Middle East and South Asia, VFS Global commented, “We are honoured to enter into this partnership with …

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Britain imposes email charge on visas

Visa applicants wishing to contact UK Visas and Immigration by email will be charged £5.48 (Rs. 455.31), as customer enquiries are shifted to a new commercial partner, Sitel UK. This change and others, which include the reduction of languages in which services are offered, and changes to opening hours were needed to “help the government reduce costs and ensure those who benefit directly from the UK immigration system make an appropriate contribution,” UK Visa and Immigration reportedly said in a statement earlier this week. Britain’s share of India’s outbound tourist market has halved in the past decade. “We welcome our many visitors from India to the UK but we cannot take their interest in coming here for granted,” Ufi Ibrahim, Chief Executive, British Hospitality Association, was quoted as saying. “Tourism is a highly price and time sensitive activity. If the visa application process is too cumbersome, demands too much time and the cost of the visa is perceived to be too high, potential visitors are put off and quickly turn to the completion.” Ibrahim contrasted Britain’s falling share of India’s tourism market (which has been growing at an annual rate of 10 per cent) with that of German and France. (Source-PTI)

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US Visa vetting becomes tougher; includes social media info

The Trump administration has reportedly enforced a new extreme visa screening process for foreign nationals–—including those from India–—under which applicants might be asked to share information regarding their social media accounts, emails and telephone numbers. The State Department, which issues visas to foreign nationals through its diplomatic missions across the world, said that it started implementing this new change from May 25. But these additional questions would be asked only in extreme circumstances, the State Department said. “The additional questions apply to nationals of every country worldwide, including Indian nationals, but only when a consular officer determines that such information is required to confirm identity or conduct more rigorous national security vetting,” Will Cocks, a State Department spokesman, told PTI. Asserting that national security is a top administration priority when adjudicating visa applications, Cocks said every prospective traveller to the US undergoes extensive security screening. “We are constantly working to find mechanisms to improve our screening processes and to support legitimate travel and immigration to the United States while protecting US citizens,” he said. The State Department took these measures after President Donald Trump signed an executive order in this regard. “In accordance with the presidents March 6, 2017 memorandum on enhancing the screening and vetting of applications for visas, the Department of State has begun collecting additional information from visa applicants worldwide when a consular officer determines that such information is required to confirm identity or conduct more rigorous national security vetting,” he said. Such visa applicants will be asked to provide additional information, including their social media handles, prior passport numbers, additional information about family members, and a longer history of past travel, employment and contact information, Cocks …

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VFS launches Czech Republic VAC in Puducherry

The Embassy of the Czech Republic and VFS Global have launched the 13th Czech Republic Visa Application Centre in Puducherry, India, bringing access to visa application facilities for residents of Puducherry. The centre was inaugurated by Milan Hovorka, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in India, on May 08, 2017. The inauguration was also attended by other key members from the Embassy and VFS Global. This new centre in Puducherry is centrally located at Eswaran Kovil Street. At the launch, Hovorka said, “The launch of the Czech Republic Visa Application Centre in Puducherry reflects the country’s genuine commitment to bolster people-to-people contacts between the two friendly nations by tourism, business and culture. As a result of this policy, the Czech Republic has emerged as one of the most preferred European destination for Indian tourists.” Commenting on the launch, Vinay Malhotra, Chief Operating Officer – Middle East and South Asia, VFS Global, said, “We are pleased to further enhance the visa services network for the Czech Republic in India, through the visa application facility in Puducherry. The new centre will serve the ever-increasing volumes of visa applications for the Schengen country, and illustrates the emerging popularity of the Czech Republic as a tourist destination. We are confident that the introduction of professional and hassle-free Czech Republic visa services in Puducherry will be well-received by aspiring travellers from this city.”

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Gulf Air appoints VFS Global to provide visa for Bahrain

Gulf Air has partnered with VFS Global to facilitate visa issuance for passengers flying to the Kingdom of Bahrain. The online visa facility will launch this summer on gulfair.com. Signing the agreement with VFS Global, Gulf Air Chief Commercial Officer, Ahmed Janahi, said, “We are partnering with VFS Global to provide a much needed service to Gulf Air passengers that will support our national carrier’s longstanding efforts to promote the Kingdom as a destination to a broad spectrum of travellers while making the process of obtaining a visa to Bahrain easier and more convenient. Soon, Gulf Air passengers will be able to easily obtain short term visit visas to Bahrain via our website gulfair.com – allowing them to come to Bahrain and experience all that our Kingdom has to offer in terms of tourism, business opportunities and more.” Zubin Karkaria, Chief Executive Officer, VFS Global Group, says, “Integrating next-generation convenience into the traditional visa process lies at the heart of our services. We are pleased to synergise our efforts with Gulf Air and the Government of Bahrain to ensure greater flexibility and digital-friendly services for visitors to Bahrain, while maintaining the security requirements of the visa process. We believe the online e-visa platform will make visa application much more convenient for Gulf Air customers, providing them with greater speed and transparency in the process, thereby enhancing their overall experience.” Vinay Malhotra, Chief Operating Officer, Middle East & South Asia, VFS Global, added, “Applying for an eVisa through our dedicated online platform, designed exclusively for Gulf Air passengers, will transform the visa application experience for passengers, offering more customer-centric services. Quicker turnaround times, 24X7 accessibility, and online tracking, amongst other advantages, …

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Now visa free travel for Indian tourists to Far East Russia

Tourists and businessmen from India and 17 other countries can now travel to Russia’s Far East without a visa, informed Dmitry Medvedev, the Prime Minister of Russia. In order to boost tourism and investment in the region, the nationals of these 18 countries will have simplified entry procedures into Russia through the free port of Vladivostok. According to Pavel Volkov, Deputy Minister, Development of the Far East, tourists and entrepreneurs will only be required to fill a form on the website of Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Applications will be approved within four days. Electronic single entry visas will be issued directly at the Russian border and will be valid for 30 days. The 17 countries apart from India include Algeria, Bahrain, Brunei, Iran, Qatar, China, North Korea, Kuwait, Morocco, Mexico, UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Tunisia, Turkey, and Japan. “I have recently approved the list of countries, whose nationals can take advantage of the preferential regime. We are proactively forming the modern infrastructure and creating special regimes in the far East; the law on visits to the Vladivostok free port was approved in March. This is not because these states are situated at a closer or longer distance – we are appropriately introducing bilateral agreements on visa-free travel for those ready to use such an approach for us,” said Medvedev. Volkov further said, “We’d like to see an increase in tourism to the region by at least 30 percent. Given the fact that every wealthy tourist spends at least $1,000 in the territory, we assume this will significantly increase the opportunities for the development of the region, trade turnover, and currency flows.” Source: Live Mint  

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