What is a travel visa?
A travel visa is a document issued by a foreign country that provides permission for you to gain entry into that country. It is your responsibility to determine whether or not a travel visa is required for your upcoming trip.

What is required to apply for a travel visa?
While the specific requirements vary, most countries require that you submit recent photographs, complete an application form, and submit your actual passport. Your passport is required as the visa, if issued, is affixed to a blank visa page in your passport. Other documents can also be required such as a detailed travel itinerary, health information, and invitation letters. Frequent changes to visa requirements and regulations cause research for international travel itineraries to be a confusing and time-consuming process.

How does Visa Connect obtain a travel visa for me?
Visa Connect obtains travel visas by submitting a completed travel visa application, and other required documents, to embassies or consulates on your behalf. This eliminates the need for you to visit, communicate, and correspond directly with the embassy or consulate of your destination country. Kindly note that it is not all visa applications that Visa Connect can submit on client’s behalf. Those that require bio-metrics, the applicant must be there physically.

Is my passport required to obtain a travel visa?
For the majority of countries, a travel visa is stamped on, or affixed to, a travel visa page inside a passport. However, there are a few exceptions.

Can I fax passport copies and completed applications to Visa Connect for issuance of a travel visa?
For the majority of countries, an original passport and application with your signature must be submitted in order to apply for a travel visa. However, there are a few exceptions.

Does the photo in my passport count as one passport photo? Can I submit digitally produced passport photographs?
The photographs submitted with a travel visa application must adhere to specific requirements regarding the size, 
background color, and type of paper on which the photo is printed. The standard size is a 2” high x 2” wide photo taken of yourself within the last month. Please be aware that any attempts to use digital photos must adhere to standard passport photo requirements (color, plain background) and be printed on correct photo quality paper.

Do I need a visa to transit through a country?
Many countries do not require a visa if you are in-transit to another destination and are staying for a very short period of time however, specific transit requirements vary widely from country to country.

What is an On Arrival Visa?
Some countries only issue visas once you arrive in the country.

What does Personal Appearance mean?
Some consulates require you to appear in person at the consulate to apply for your visa. This may be done just to verify your identity or conduct a formal interview. In these cases, you must submit your visa application directly to the consulate. Visa Connect can collect your completed visa from the consulate however, we cannot submit your order on your behalf.

What is a Schengen visa?
The Schengen visa gets its name from a small town in Luxembourg where a treaty was signed in 1995 to end internal border checkpoints and controls. The following European countries currently honor this visa:

Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
The Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland

With a Schengen visa, you may enter one country and travel freely throughout the Schengen zone. This type of visa only applies to nationalities that would normally be required to obtain a visa prior to entering the countries above. If you would like to apply for a Schengen visa, you should apply for a visa for the country in which you will stay the longest. If you do not have a main destination, you should apply for a visa for the country that will be your first point of entry.

What is consular jurisdiction and how does it affect my visa processing?
Consular jurisdiction is the geographic area for which a consulate has responsibility for issuing visas. Jurisdictional 
requirements are determined by each country and frequently vary. Some consulates have strict enforcement of jurisdiction while other consulates are flexible with their jurisdictional requirements. Your visa processing options are determined by the jurisdictional requirements in place for the consulate that will issue your visa.

Can Visa Connect guarantee that the embassy or consulate will issue my visa?
Visa Connect cannot guarantee that a visa will be issued by the embassy or consulate you have submitted your documents to. While it does not happen frequently, any embassy or consulate can decide not to issue a visa at any time. In the event that you are not issued a visa, Visa Connect will contact you to discuss next steps for your application process.