Tweet
I wanted to pass along the following information in case it might help others.
I applied for an entry visa about one week after the Indian government instituted the surrender certificate rule last May. Anyway, after many weeks of waiting and miscommunication between CGISF and Travisa, I did not get a visa and I requested the return of my passport.
I reapplied in February of this year. I first applied for just the surrender certificate directly through the consulate before they gave it over to Travisa. It took exactly five weeks from when the consulate received my paperwork to when they approved and returned the cancelled passport.
A few weeks later, I applied for my Entry visa.
I came to this country in 1973 as a small child, and then became a naturalized citizen. As some of you know, the SF consulate has its own "unique" set of rules in order to obtain an entry visa or an OCI card. For people who came before 1980, they slightly relax the rules and ask for an affidavit of how one came to the US, witnessed by two people and then notarized. They require govt documents to show lawful proof of entry (green card, visa approval note, university entrance letter, etc). This request for documentation makes sense for adults, but certainly not for children, who come just to be with their families.
Anyway, I gave them the few papers my parents saved for me - a preschool class photo, elementary school report cards - to prove I was in the country before 1980. I also sent in my college diplomas, some employment papers to show that I was legally here after 1980. I was worried that they would need more proof so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.
On 3/28 Travisa sent an email acknowledging receipt of the paperwork. Two days later they sent the papers to the consulate. On 4/4 I got an email saying they need proof of my change in name from maiden to married - copy of my marriage certificate plus an affidavit witnessed by two people and notarized. They never mentioned that this was required in their website, so I was upset that I needed to get two people AGAIN to go with me to a notary. I faxed the documents to Travisa on 4/6, and I got my visa approved on 4/11.
So it took a total of 5 weeks to get the surrender certificate/stamp, and 2 weeks to get the entry visa (with the name change hiccup).
I applied for an entry visa about one week after the Indian government instituted the surrender certificate rule last May. Anyway, after many weeks of waiting and miscommunication between CGISF and Travisa, I did not get a visa and I requested the return of my passport.
I reapplied in February of this year. I first applied for just the surrender certificate directly through the consulate before they gave it over to Travisa. It took exactly five weeks from when the consulate received my paperwork to when they approved and returned the cancelled passport.
A few weeks later, I applied for my Entry visa.
I came to this country in 1973 as a small child, and then became a naturalized citizen. As some of you know, the SF consulate has its own "unique" set of rules in order to obtain an entry visa or an OCI card. For people who came before 1980, they slightly relax the rules and ask for an affidavit of how one came to the US, witnessed by two people and then notarized. They require govt documents to show lawful proof of entry (green card, visa approval note, university entrance letter, etc). This request for documentation makes sense for adults, but certainly not for children, who come just to be with their families.
Anyway, I gave them the few papers my parents saved for me - a preschool class photo, elementary school report cards - to prove I was in the country before 1980. I also sent in my college diplomas, some employment papers to show that I was legally here after 1980. I was worried that they would need more proof so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.
On 3/28 Travisa sent an email acknowledging receipt of the paperwork. Two days later they sent the papers to the consulate. On 4/4 I got an email saying they need proof of my change in name from maiden to married - copy of my marriage certificate plus an affidavit witnessed by two people and notarized. They never mentioned that this was required in their website, so I was upset that I needed to get two people AGAIN to go with me to a notary. I faxed the documents to Travisa on 4/6, and I got my visa approved on 4/11.
So it took a total of 5 weeks to get the surrender certificate/stamp, and 2 weeks to get the entry visa (with the name change hiccup).
