11 August 2010

Ramadam and slower service

We extend greatings to our Muslim customers on the occassion of Ramadan year 1431.

Please note that due to the fasting and other religeous requirements of the faith, many embassies will have shorter working hours. This means visas will be delayed during Ramadan which ends on about 16 September 2010.

Please budget extra processing time when applying for a visa at any Muslim or Arab country during the Ramadan period.

10 August 2010

Libya's fast service

The Libyan embassy has a new consular officer in charge of visas, and the fast service option is gone. All visas are now processed in regular time.

The good news is that regular processing has dropped from 11 working days down to a week or less.

Click here for the Libya visa application.

BLACKLISTING

Yes, you can be blacklisted.

Consular offices can and do blacklist applicants, especially those who have been caught using the wrong type of visa for their actual purpose of travel. They also blacklist people who are rude. This means you cannot get a visa from that country anywhere int he world, sometimes for years to come.

We recently saw this at an unnamed African country which said it was blacklisting a returning worker for being exceptionally rude on the telephone and in writing.

So be nice, and you will probably get a visa.

Egypt and the Two Photographs

Egyptian visas are in high demand, and there are new requirements.

The Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa has recently acquired a visa printing machine to replace thier old rubber stamp. This has increaed processing time from same-day to five working days! Yes, computerization has increased the time required by 400%.

Egypt also requires TWO (2) colour passport photographs with each application.

Click here for the Egyptian visa application form.

Russian AIDS/HIV tests required

The new consular officials at the Russian Embassy in Ottawa are now firmly and strictly following the rules on AIDS/HIV tests.

All applicants staying for more than 90 days, and all applicants seeking a one year visa, are REQUIRED to provide their current AIDS/HIV test in order to secure a visa.

This does NOT apply to regular tourists and others on short-stay single entry visas.

Click here for the Russian visa application form.

Pakistan Visa Delays due to Flooding

The Pakistan High Commission in Ottawa advises that there is a singificant delay in issuing visas right now due to the national emergency (flooding) which is dislocating millions of people.

Please expect a four-to-six WEEK delay in issuing work visas. Regular visas are also experiencing delayed processing.

Click here for Pakistan visa application forms.