Visa Updates, Embassy and Consulate Closures for January, 2012

2011 in Review, and Looking Forward to 2012

By Summer Jenkins, Communications Director, G3 Visas & Passports

The world of visa processing is a world of constant change.  Embassies change their visa applications, their processing times, requirements and fees; not a week goes by without updates to our website and PDF visa instructions.  However, 2011 brought major changes to our top two countries, China and Russia, and even saw the creation of a brand-new diplomatic mission in Washington, Southern Sudan.

In February, China’s embassy in Washington released a new visa application, replacing the two-page application they’d used for years with a far more detailed application consisting of four pages with a two page supplement for select applicants.  Over the next few months, the other Chinese consulates in the US phased in the new application, and the New York consulate released its own version of the application.  Further requirement changes followed: first the consulates insisted that the application must be completed typed with no handwritten answers (G3 provides fillable PDF applications for the convenience of our clients), and then they instituted a rule that all questions must be answered, even if the answer is “n/a” or “none.”

Russia’s changes were even more extreme.  On July 1, the Russian government abruptly instituted a new online application, which must be completed on a Russian government website before being printed and signed for submission to the consulate.  The online application is extremely complex, stretching over more than twenty web pages, and is prone to bugs and glitches.  G3 responded with a specialized Concierge Level Service offering.  For the ease of our travelers, we provide a simplified questionnaire that can be emailed to G3.  A CLS associate then completes the online application, which is double-checked by another member of the team before it is emailed back to be printed and signed.  We even provide a pre-paid FedEx airbill to send in all the documents!

Looking forward to 2012, we expect to see many more changes.  We are still waiting for the changes to the India online application that were announced this fall, but a firm date for the revised application has not yet been revealed.  We also expect to see further changes to Russia’s visa regime, which may include changes to the consulate structure and to the procedure of acquiring official invitations.  Whatever changes and surprises may lie ahead, rest assured that G3 is committed to providing the most up-to-date, accurate instructions and innovative solutions for our travelers.

U.S. Passport Application Update
The U.S. State Department has changed the link for the online passport application to http://pptform2.state.gov.  The applications themselves remain unchanged.  For assistance with the passport application or with any other passport questions, email our passport team atDCPassportAssociates@g3visas.com.

New ETA Procedure for Sri Lanka
As of January 1, Sri Lanka has instituted a new Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) visa system that will imact US citizens.  Previously, US citizens visiting Sri Lanka for tourism did not need to acquire visas, but visas were required for business trips.  With the new ETA system, US citizens and the citizens of many other developed nations (including Canada, Australia, all European nations, China, India and Russia) will need to apply for an ETA regardless of the nature of their trip.  G3 can aquire Sri Lanka ETAs; for instructions or any other questions, please email our ETA team at ETA@g3visas.com.

Embassy and Consulate Closures for January
January 2: New Year’s Holiday - G3 Closed.  All US Passport offices and almost all consulates closed.
January 2-9: Russia Closed.
January 4:  Angola and Myanmar Closed.
January 6: Orthodox Christmas - many embassies closed, including Armenia, Belarus, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan, Lebanon and Sudan.
January 12: Tanzania Closed.
January 13:  Cape Verde and Togo Closed
January 16: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - All US Passport Offices and most embassies closed. All G3 Offices Open.
January 19: Algeria and Ethiopia Closed.
January 20: Cape Verde and Mali Closed.
January 23-24: China Closed.
January 25: China Closed (NYC Consulate Only).
January 26: India and Uganda Closed.
January 30: Nepal Closed.

Further embassy closures are possible; not all embassies announce their closure schedules in advance. For updated embassy closures calendars, please see www.g3visas.com or our Facebook page.

Questions?  Ask Us!
Do you have any questions about visas or passports that you’d like us to answer?  Email them to newsletter@g3visas.com, and we’ll make sure your question is answered, and you may see your question featured in a future edition of G3 Global Insight!