1. REMEMBER TO TELEPHONE THE EMBASSY AND ASK THEM EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED TO TAKE WITH YOU. TYPICALLY WHEN APPLYING FOR A TOURIST VISA YOU MIGHT BE ASKED FOR - 1. A letter from your employer stating when you started work, your income, the type of work you do and the dates for which you have been given holiday leave. 2. Your bank account records. 3. A fee/payment for your visa application processing. 4. A letter from your sponsor. This may need to be authenticated by a solicitor or government office in the host country. It will probably need to state whether he is providing you with free accomodation and possibly whether he is providing you with transport, food and perhaps even if he is prepared to meet costs in the event of any medical emergency. 5. Your sponsor may have to provide his own bank records. 6. The applicant's passport and possibly your sponsor's passport or copy of it. 7. Passport type portrait photographs of yourself. 8. You may also be required to submit other evidence. Please check well in advance. 2. IT IS ADVISABLE TO GET ONE OR PREFERABLY TWO COPIES OF THE APPLICATION FORM BEFORE YOU APPLY. I. Go through it carefully and be careful you understand clearly all the questions. 2. If you don't understand any questions you may be able to find a translation in arabic posted inside the Embassy. 3. Put down your answers on a separate sheet of paper if you only have one copy of the form. 4. If you have already had a visa refused before you may have to fill out an additional form. If you don't declare your previous refusal it is likely the Embassy will still have the records on file and if they notice which is quite likely your chances of getting the visa will be almost zero. 3. MAKE SURE YOU ARE PREPARED FOR THE INTERVIEW. 1. It's difficult to fool entrance clearance officers. They have often had years of experience. Don't make up stories. If you do they will quickly be suspicious. 2. If asked try to state succinctly and convincingly why you want to visit the country to which you wish to travel without implying that you wish to get married or stay there. You must have a reasonable idea of what you intend to do while you are there. 3. If your sponsor is just a friend and you are asked about him try to explain your relationship with your sponsor in terms of an ordinary friendship so that it is clear it is not a sexual relationship. 4. If you claim your sponsor is your friend - can you show if asked that you know him/her well - do you remember his/her birthday - how many brothers and sisters he/she has - where you have been together - what is his/her job - otherwise they may think you are simply using him as a free ticket for a visa. 5. Be prepared for the most surprising questions - you cannot spend too much time in preparation. 6. If possible take a mobile phone just in case you are caught in traffic and are likely to be 5 minutes late for your appointment - but this will not make a good impression ! 4. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE TIME TO WAIT IN CAIRO A FEW DAYS ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE YOUNG. This is because they usually ask young applicants and often older applicants for a second interview which may be days or even over a week later. 5. CHECK TO MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHICH DAYS THE VISA SECTION OF THE EMBASSY IS OPEN. 6. IF NECESSARY JOIN THE QUEUE OUTSIDE THE EMBASSY IN THE EARLY HOURS OF THE MORNING. Unfortunately certain embassies are so popular with visa applicants that queues start outside the embassy soon after midnight and some embassies have introduced restrictions on the number of visa applications they will process in a single day. The British and American Embassies in Garden City tend to be particularly busy. 7. EXTRAS TO TAKE WITH YOU. Don't forget to take along a pen, some food and drink, something to read, warm clothing (it could be a long cold night), toilet paper (the toilets in some embassies are disgusting) and a mobile phone which can come in handy if you want to contact a friend or employer about information, advice or help. |