BARELY 24 hours after the British High Commission reeled out new visa rules, the United States (US) embassy yesterday gave clarifications on changes it has made with respect to acquiring an American visa.
The changes border on national security and more proper identification.
At a special briefing on the issue in Abuja yesterday the US consular chief for Nigeria, Victoria Coffineau, also refuted reports that visa requests by Nigerians are being turned down massively due to the changes.
According to Coffineau, since September last year, the embassy has granted 65 per cent of all visa applications received and turned down 37 per cent. ”
“Accusations that we are now turning down visa requests from Nigerians are false” She said.
Going by the explanation of the consular chief, changes in the visa procedure, which tend to make online bookings for visa appointments difficult for Nigerians, have to do with the fact that “Spaces are released incrementally to avoid a situation where people with less than genuine reasons to travel will go and block those spaces that would have otherwise be taken up by serious applicants”
It was disclosed that five factors are mainly responsible for the turning down of visa requests.
These include age , ties (economic, financial and family) to Nigeria, marital status, occupation, and travel history.
It was further said ” changes introduced shortly after September 11, 2001 involve extensive and ongoing review of visa issuing practices as they relate to our national security. Visa applications are now subject to a greater degree of scrutiny than in the past. So it is important to apply for your visa well
in advance of your travel departure date.”
However US officials have urged the public to avoid the services of middlemen and touts in getting visas.
Instead, they canvassed a visit to the Embassy’s website http://abuja.embassy.gov.welcome.html and early filling and booking of appointments electronically.
Speaking at the Public Affairs Section(PAS) of the U.S. Consulate-General in Lagos yesterday, both Allan Latimer, Head of Consular Section and Mrs. Mary Lou Johnson-Pizzaro, the Public Diplomacy Officer, underscored the need for applicants to be wary of touts and their deceit and avoid being victims.
Latimer lamented that the development has led to a sharp rise of about 1,500 visa cases being treated in a week but denied that many visa applications were being rejected or denied either by first timers or due to age.
The Consular chief then urged applicants to always fill the forms themselves electronically early and stressed that currently the visa fee of $100 or N14,000 has not been reviewed.
On her part, Mrs. Johnson-Pizzaro urged the press to educate the pubic better to avoid being duped by middlemen. She said this was essential to clear every doubt on how U.S. visa is procured.
“The U.S. visa policy is the same all over the world. It is better for the public to be aware of what it entails and make better use of it to avoid misunderstanding and misconception,” she said.
To stop the activities of middlemen and touts, Johnson-Pizzaro urged the public to visit the embassy’s web site, for detailed information on how to process their visa applications
She said this was necessary to avoid misunderstanding and misconception of issues or information.
On how to combat the menace of the middle men and touts, Latimer stressed:” It is not in the public interest to approach middlemen or touts for visas. Their involvement is creating serious problem for people that are involved. The public should avoid being deceived and duped.”
Urging the public not to be carried away by their deceit of being able to secure appointment dates for them with ease, he said the consular section was taking the pain to further educate the Nigerian public on the need to avoid possible misconception and misunderstanding surrounding U.S. visa application.
His words: “There is large demand for appointments and we try as much as possible each day to structure these to manage. It behoves on the public to note that the middlemen or touts are not involved with the management of visas. Their activities do not whatsoever influence our decisions in visa adjudication process. We analyse bookings everyday to know how to manage if they are over subscribed.
“There is the need for visa applicants to apply and book their appointments early to avoid problems.”
Latimer advised applicants who believe that appointment dates can no longer be booked after such periods have been over subscribed that daily analysis of bookings are done and structured for effective management.
‘If you wait until the last minute, you will run into problem because they may be over subscribed or may have their cases turned down. So I suggest people should book early and not wait till the last minute to do so,” he stressed.
Latimer said the consular section has been successful in minimising people being turned around from the port of entry, but cautioned that track information and records were invaluable during visa adjudication process.