Travel agent's or these days known with various names like travel gurus, travel consultants and travel facilitators; do at times play a very important role in planning your foreign tour. A travel professional, if true to his work/job will always guide the best for you.time, flight & accommodation arrangement's, services etc. Most of the people are net savvy enough to arrange the most economic package, but trust me, the professionals will do it much better then you due to their regularity and updated information about the sectors they are dealing with. However, many travel agents are not true to their profession and are only interested in making money. The making money starts from the very first aspect of travel.that is the Visa application.
VISA.is a permission to a foreigner to say in a country for a limited period for a specific purpose. Many travel agents describe visa application in such a manner that people start to think it is something very difficult. Please understand certain aspects that is applicable to most visas:
Visa form: A visa application form is a summary of all the information required by an authority to decide is decision to grant you visa. Try to fill and sign the visa form yourself. In any case, forging signature is a criminal offense with or without permission. A personal interview may be called for after submission. Your statements should match the information in the visa form.
Covering letter: The covering visa letter is a request to the authority to request for a visa. Only thing matters is that the same is addressed to the correct authority. Otherwise it doesn't require a specific format. However, it should be on behalf of the lead passenger or the major sponsors of the tour with a brief description of the intention to visit the country and with an assurance that you will be returning back after the said period.
Financial evidence: Quite relevant! The authority wants to understand that you have the sufficient money/finances to afford the said tour. Usually the same is provided with last 6 months bank statement last 3 years income tax returns. However, source of income is required to be provided in come cases:
Salary slips( last 3 or 6 months),if employed. Quite naturally, Proof of employment( letter by the company Hr) and no objection certificate is required.
Business registration and balance sheet. If it is a partnership firm, then you need a no objection letter from your partner/s.
The occupation proof is justified by the above mentioned documents too. However, for students,you need their copies of the I-card and leave sanction letter or the diary page where the dates are mentioned as holidays.
In some countries, you also require the following
Hotel bookings and ticket PNR to validate your travel
Travel insurance: you can handle emergency situations, if required.
However, it can be noted that at times visa is rejected even if all your documents are in order. This is because of instructions received by the embassy or authority to stop or restrict visa sanctions. You may be called for personal visa interview in some cases. If you are not fluent in English, you can always politely ask for an interpreter. In most cases,the interview is to cross check the information provided in the visa form. Therefore, before appearing for the personal interview, double check your travel dates, period or place of stay, tentative tour program and other information provided in the visa form. There is nothing to be worried if you do not have any legal sanctions or unwanted past records( criminal)however,if you have any query about any particular visa,you can ask me at arghya@tourismcarnival.com or consultant.travel@rediffmail.com for free.