Blondepuff
25-09-2005, 23:52
We found out 6 weeks ago about the visa requirement and considering we travel in the first week of October, we panicked! I thought our experience of the timescales, processes etc may help someone.
My OH was arrested, charged and fined for drunk and disorderly over 20 years ago so needed a visa. We got an interview with the Embassy 4 weeks exactly from the date we contacted them.
We applied in person to the courts for the Memorandum of Conviction and after 4 days they contacted us to say they had no record of the fine as it was so long ago. They only hold records to 20 years ago. We obtained a letter stating that and went to New Scotland Yard (via Regional Police Headquarters) for the Subject of Access. Again, we applied in person and after 2.5 weeks it came back stating that there was no Person Record held in his name.
The interview at the Embassy took around 3.5 hours and was mostly waiting around. The interview itself took less than 10 minutes. According to the website, it takes around 5 working days to process from a decision being reached and then around 2 working days to courier back. He was told that he would get a text message the day before it was being delivered back.
The interview process finished at 12.00 on the Thursday and there was a knock at the door at 0930 the following morning with his passport and visa! I was allowed to sign for it as long as I had proof of his id.
He doesn't have a police record according to the Subject of Access (whether he did and it's now been deleted we don't know) but as he was arrested we needed to declare it.
We were very uncertain on how the passport would come back, who could sign for it etc and it worried us. The Embassy wouldn't give us any details so I thought this may help if someone was in the same situation.
My OH was arrested, charged and fined for drunk and disorderly over 20 years ago so needed a visa. We got an interview with the Embassy 4 weeks exactly from the date we contacted them.
We applied in person to the courts for the Memorandum of Conviction and after 4 days they contacted us to say they had no record of the fine as it was so long ago. They only hold records to 20 years ago. We obtained a letter stating that and went to New Scotland Yard (via Regional Police Headquarters) for the Subject of Access. Again, we applied in person and after 2.5 weeks it came back stating that there was no Person Record held in his name.
The interview at the Embassy took around 3.5 hours and was mostly waiting around. The interview itself took less than 10 minutes. According to the website, it takes around 5 working days to process from a decision being reached and then around 2 working days to courier back. He was told that he would get a text message the day before it was being delivered back.
The interview process finished at 12.00 on the Thursday and there was a knock at the door at 0930 the following morning with his passport and visa! I was allowed to sign for it as long as I had proof of his id.
He doesn't have a police record according to the Subject of Access (whether he did and it's now been deleted we don't know) but as he was arrested we needed to declare it.
We were very uncertain on how the passport would come back, who could sign for it etc and it worried us. The Embassy wouldn't give us any details so I thought this may help if someone was in the same situation.