Continental Shift

Even visiting a country for a short-time holiday often requires obtaining visas for entry and exit. For a longer-term stay in any country – ‘longer-term’ being anything from six months to several years to permanently – you will require some kind of visa, work permit or residency. The type of visa or permit required will differ depending on:

• The country you are going to and the country you hold a passport with
  e.g. Australia has various arrangements with the UK allowing some freedom of stay for certain Australian citizens (those with recent UK ancestors).
• Your planned length of stay
  e.g. for six months you might get away with a tourist entry, and for one year a temporary resident visa, but for three years you may need a proper residency.
• Whether you wish to work in the new country
  e.g. if you plan to work, you will probably not be allowed to enter on a tourist visa, but must obtain a business or work visa.
• Who is coming with you
  e.g. your required visa or permit may change if you are bringing in your partner and children on it as dependents.

Assuming you’re not being transferred by your company, you will have to arrange your own visas. Start by visiting the immigration website of the country you want to move to.

This should give you a good overview of what particular permit type you need to apply for, the cost, the expected turn-around time (so you know how long before you plan to leave you should apply), validity length (so you know how long you’ve got to get into the country once it’s issued), and other pertinent information. You could probably also download the relevant forms you will need to fill out.

Call or email the nearest embassy, tell them your plans, and ask for the relevant forms. Get their advice on how long they think the application will take, as the website could be pessimistic or optimistic. You’d rather not apply three months in advance and have the permit returned to you two weeks later with only one month to get into the country before it expires. You’d also rather not apply two weeks before you’re due in the country and miss your flight because the visas are delayed.

Make sure you allow enough time to have any necessary documents translated and/or notarised (witnessed as being a true copy). You should also make sure your passport has enough time left on it – at least six months – and, potentially, enough pages left in it (some countries take up an entire page with their visa stamp every time you come in and out; yes, I’m speaking again from experience) to allow the visa to be issued with no problems.

If you are planning to stay longer in the country than your passport is valid for, you are well-advised to get a new passport before you leave. Your own embassy or consulate can help you get a new one once you are overseas, but it is often easier to plan ahead. In particular, having to give up your passport for a long renewal period stops any travel plans you might have had and traps you in-country for an unknown length of time.

You can arrange visas via a travel agent if you are using one. This is especially advisable if you are transiting through other countries on your way to your final destination; sometimes the transit country will demand you have a visa even though you are only passing through.

Be honest about your requirements. Some countries, for example, the European Union, do not require tourists to apply for visas (instead, they are automatically issued). You may be tempted to simply go in on a tourist visa as it seems easier. However, this will severely limit your ability to work, move freely and stay long-term in the country, and you should make the effort to get the proper visa instead.

Even if your company is arranging all this for you, it is still your responsibility to provide all documents and information they ask for, and to monitor your passport’s validity.

Here gives a brief overview of the visas required by many countries. Remember to always clarify the requirements with someone in the know; visas can be complicated and you should not try to work it all out by yourself.

Be aware having a valid visa in your passport does not guarantee entry to the country. For example, some countries (read: Middle Eastern) will bar your entry even with a visa, if they find a passport stamp or visa for a country they don’t like (read: Israel). Discuss any concerns you have with the embassy, your travel agent, or your company if applicable.

CASE STUDY
While visas have become an ongoing issue for me (not a month goes by when I’m not kicked out of the country…), the initial visa to get into Libya was easy for us, and arranged entirely by my partner’s company. We merely supplied vital documents like passports, birth certificates and evidence of qualifications on request. These were translated and notarised and returned to us.

My partner went on a business visa, I on a tourist visa. After a time, my partner went on to a work permit (and it is now the standard procedure to come directly into the country on a work permit), and then a residency. I remain on four-week tourist visas, which is why I must leave once a month, get a new visa, and return. But that’s a whole other issue.

ACTIVITY
I bet you can guess what the activity is going to be, can’t you? That’s right, go and find out the visa requirements for the country you’re moving to, make sure you qualify for one, and, depending on your planned timeframes, get the application process underway (for both yourself, and your family if applicable).

Remember that usually visas work out, but sometimes they do not. Officials in some countries (cough*Libya*cough) seem to wilfully want to mess about with issuing visas so they can deny you or members of your family entry. (We encountered examples where both parents were allowed but their young daughter was refused, or where a 3-month-old baby was allowed but the mother denied.) Officials in some countries will especially do this around about holiday times when many people are on the move to visit families. Officials in some countries are outright wankers and do damage to the reputation of their country. Stay patient, double-check your paperwork, and allow plenty of time.

That’s it for this week.

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