The last two years have been tough for everyone. Jobs, savings,
GDP all took a hit. Now there seems to be a turn around. The economy is turning
around and jobs are being created and the situation is certainly improving. But
the effects of the lockdown are still felt. Travel abroad can be quite an experience
for anyone interested in doing so. Today it is not unusual for a person who
applies for a visa to the EU, UK or America to be prepared to wait for a long
period of time. And by long it could mean several months for a visa. The
situation was not helped by the fact that VFS Global had decided to shut down
its services in Goa.
Earnest Dias COO, Sita, one of the big
players in the country said it was very difficult to get visas to travel to the
west. He said “In some cases it is not easy to get an appointment for a visit
to the EU. Many of these countries are delaying in giving visas. Each and every
country has a different schedule when it comes to giving dates for interviews.
For example Spain can take fifteen days or longer at the very least. If you want
a visa, you need to show flight details. You need to be prepared to take that
gamble. If you don’t get the visa then you lose it all or part of it depending
on the kind of ticket the individual has purchased.”
Gautam Bhende, an associate partner at Zest Tour and Travels
said the situation was grim. He said if someone wanted to visit the USA for the
first time, he or she would get a call for an interview in 2023. If a person
wanted to renew his or her visa the call could come in four or five months. He
said “In the EU, countries like Germany are not taking all the applications.
They have placed a cap on the number of applications they will receive
everyday. Goa does not have the VFS now. They moved out during the virus and
the lockdown that followed and have not returned after that”. He went on to say
this delay was due to reasons like a paucity of staff. He said anyone
interested in going to the UK would have to wait for a month or two to get a
visa. He said there was an increase in business from the corporate sector. He
said “We flew down staff of the VSF along with the equipment to Goa, they
completed all the formalities of the personnel and flew back to Mumbai by the
end of the day.” Retail business to the west he said had reduced by business
from the corporate world had increased. When asked if he was subtly promoting
destinations in the east, he said people were going to places like Dubai,
Thailand and Singapore to name a few destinations. He said it was easy to get
visas from these destinations and it was also possible to get visas on arrival.
The cost of tickets however had increased due to the number of flights being on
the lower side.
Ashvina Dias a manager at Akbar travels said it was a fact
getting a visa would take a great deal of time. She said the number of
applications for visas ran into the lakhs that were pending with the
consulates. Ashvina said the VSF had moved out of the state during the Covid
and according to sources may not return because it was not economical. Speaking
specifically about certain countries, she said a call for a US visa could take
months or even a year if the applicant was doing so for the first time. People,
she said, were aware of the situation and were choosing to go to other
destinations especially in the east if they wanted to go on a holiday.
Destinations like Thailand, Singapore, Greece and Baku were popular with Goans.
Stephen
Fernandes, a business man based in the north had plans to go to the UK but is
now contemplating a country in the EU since it could mean faster time in
processing his visa application. Like him there are scores of others in Goa and
they will be hoping the situation improves.
