In order to get a visa, you need to apply to the consulate of the country you wish to go to. The consulate is an office which represents a certain country in other countries. In any country you visit, there would be a U.S. consulate. You might go there if you lose your passport, have an emergency, are a victim (or are accused of) a crime, or just need help with something that can not be solved easily by local authorities. When I am in Chennai, this will be the consulate office I can go to: U.S. Consulate- Chennai. Look under "U.S. Citizen Services" in the top drop down menu for information on how the consulate could help a U.S. visitor to Chennai.
In order for me to get a visa to visit India, I need to apply to the Consulate General of India. The closest one is in San Francisco. Indian Consulate- San Francisco. However, they have "outsourced" their visa applications to another company (that means another company handles all of the visa applications for them) and you can fill out the application online at this website: Visa Application for India. That's what I did. Don't worry, you can create a made up one to see what it's like, then erase it.
I decided to apply for my visa by mail, because I don't really have time to go to San Francisco to apply in person. In order to apply for a visa to India by mail, I had to fill out the online application which included the following information:
What type of visa you are applying for: I'm not going there for business or medical reasons, for a conference, to work, or as a student, journalist, missionary, researcher, or medical worker, so I just applied for a tourist visa. U.S. Citizens can apply for a 6-month visa, a 5-year visa or a 10-year visa. The 5 and 10 year visas allow a person to go to India as many times as they want during that period, as long as the visits are no longer than 6 months, and they spend 2 months in the U.S. between visits. Because I will likely go to India many times with Raja and the kids, and because I am hoping to volunteer there in 2011, I am applying for the 10-year visa.
Your Current Nationality and Nationality at Birth: Of course, I just put "United States," but if you were born in another country, you might have to put something different. If you were born in another country because your parent/s were in the military, you are a U.S. citizen, and can just put "United States."
State of Residence: I live in Washington, so that's what I put.
Then, they will lead you to a series of pages where you have to enter a bunch of personal information:
- Personal information: Name, Last name at birth (If different), Marital Status, Gender, Date of birth, Place of birth
- Spouse information (if married): Maiden name, Name, Nationality
- Nationality: Current nationality, Acquired by birth or by naturalization
Nationality at birth, Any other nationality held at present/past - Present address: Street number, City, State, Zip, Have you continuously living in USA for over 2 years
- Permanent address: Street number, City, State, Zip, Country
- Contact phone: Home phone, Work phone, Cell phone
- Profession, Are you traveling on behalf of a company? (If yes): Provide details
- Employer information: Name, Address, City, State, Zip, Country
- Passport information: Passport number, Date of issue, Date of expiration
- Parents information: Father/Mother's name, nationality
Parents or Grandparants (paternal and maternal) held Pakistan Nationality? (If yes): provide detail - Visa information: Visa Type, Number of entries, Places to visit, Object of Journey
- Visited India before (if yes): Addresses visited, Cities visited, Consulate that issued visa
Starting/Ending Dates, Have you visited India on Tourist Visa in the last 2 months? - Have you ever been refused an Indian visa before? (if yes): Provide details
- Are you holding a valid "No objection" to return to India endorsement? (If yes): Provide details
- Expected departure date from USA, Expected arrival date in India, Port of arrival in India
- Reference information in United States: Name and address of reference in USA
- Reference information in India: Name, address and phone number of reference in India
- Countries visited in the last 10 years
I put Raja's parents address as my reference in India, and my mom's address as my reference in the U.S. If people do not have a reference person in India, they could connect with an organization which aligns with the purpose of their visit, or just put the name of their hotel or travel agency.
Once I print the application out, I will mail it to San Francisco along with my passport (they need it to put the stamp in), 2 more photographs (just like I did for my passport. If I had known, I would have ordered them all at the same time! Time to slap down another $7.99!), a photocopy of my driver's license (proof of residence/address), and a photocopy of my birth certificate.
I have to take an extra step, because I moved recently and I have not changed my address on my driver's license. I could change it by mail, which allows you to simply write your new address on the back of the license, but that might not be acceptable to the consulate. Thus, I have to go down to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) and actually get my license changed. That is going to be annoying, and unlike the other method, it will cost me $10.00. Still, it is less annoying than having my visa rejected!
Because I choose to get a 10-year tourist visa, I will also have to send in a fee of $163.00. This will allow me to go in and out of India as many times as I want in the next 10 years. I am required to wait 2 months between visits; however, I can apply for a special letter which will allow me to return sooner. If I want my visa to be processed within 5 days, I will send the company a money order. That's a special paper you can get from the bank that is just like cash money. The amount is taken out of the bank immediately when you "buy" the money order, so the company you're sending it is guaranteed their money.
Once I have all of the stuff together, I will take it to the post office. I will send it Priority Mail because that way, I can track the package online to make sure it doesn't get lost (I use USPS Package Tracking to track packages. There I can see every step of my packages' journey by truck, ship, or plane, and I know where my package is right now, where it's going next, and when I can expect it to arrive.) Federal Express (FedEx) is another way to do that. I also have to send a pre-paid return envelope so that they can send my newly stamped passport back to me. I will most likely use their Medium Flat Rate box ($10.70) to send all of the information, and include a flat rate envelope ($4.90) so that they can send my passport back to me. I have to get a medium box so that I can fit the envelope inside. I'll be able to track the journey both ways. After all this work, I certainly wouldn't want to have to start back at square one!
This is a lot of work, but it brings me one step closer to my dream, and fulfilling dreams is never easy; however it is definitely worth the effort!
Questions and Challenges:
1. If I were to add up all the expenses I have paid so far to get both my passport and my visa, how much will I have paid? Don't forget the money for pictures, driver's license, fees, postage, etc.
2. Why do you think that countries make us go through all of these steps just to visit them? Do you think it's worth the trouble?
3. Look up the consulate for the country/ies you'd like to visit. What do their requirements for entry look like?
4. Look up the U.S. consulate site for the place or places you'd like to visit. What are 3 interesting facts you can find on that site?
5. With your parent or teacher's help, make a visa stamp for your passport representing the countries you would like to visit. This site shows how to make rubber stamps from scratch. However, you will need an adult's help as there is a sharp blade involved. Make Rubber Stamps
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