Post
by skchatterjee2006 » Tue Dec 04, 2007 2:06 pm
I have read through the detailed communication as regards the harassment & chaos which all of us have been facing at the Belgian Visa Application Centre (VAC) in London, (address 5 Lower Belgrave Street, Victoria, London SW1W 0NR). The reason that I am writing about my case is to seek recourse as to what action should I be taking next. As noticing that there are many individuals such as myself who have previously been through this predicament, & are still going through this predicament such as that I am going through, it would be good if we could somehow start a serious complaint & grievance process, which would involve the media, as well as any suggestions which you may have.
Let me summarise the details of my case in fact form.
1. I am a British Citizen, a British passport holder, travelling to Belgium on a regular basis.
2. My wife is an Indian passport holder with an Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) on her passport. She also has a 10 year USA B1/B2 visa on her passport, as well as a previous Schengen Visa (from the French Embassy…getting that was a nightmare best forgotten!) which has expired on August 2007 this year.
3. As previous, we were advised by the Belgium Embassy to visit the Belgian Visa Application Centre in London so as to get the Schengen visa for my wife (she would be accompanying me on regular trips to Belgium) as when-ever it suits her.
4. I being British, & my wife being a spouse of a British Citizen, filled in the Schengen Visa application form as requested, & provided all the documentation that we need to provide (as was previously done for the Schengen Visa which she had from the French Embassy).
5. The documentation that is needed is our passports, our marriage certificate, 2 passport photographs, & the Schengen Visa application form.
6. Also it is my understanding that we do not need to fill in those sections of the Schengen Visa application form which have been marked with an asterisk (*). In the form it specifically mentions that those areas marked with an asterisk (*) do not need to be filled in by spouses of EU/EEA/British Citizens.
7. We (my wife) submitted the form at the visa centre in London (we do not live in London, so it was a hassle to get there. As I did not need to make an application, I was told very rudely not to sit next to her, as that would jeopardise the application process, which was not only embarrassing but also made me feel that I was committing some fraud!!
8. My wife was asked when & where she would be travelling, followed by a plethora of documentation that was requested which included the following:- 6 months bank statements, original travel tickets, hotel bookings, full journey itinerary, travel insurance, employer letters, home office letters, life insurance policies, invitation letter/purpose of journey letter from Belgium.
9. When I intervened & challenged the individual clerk concerned at the visa application centre, I was told that if those documents are not provided then the application would be rejected. Further, she mentioned that although the Schengen visa form had asterisks on them, we would still need to fill in the full form, & provide the full-visa fee & the application fee as well.
10. I obviously was completely taken aback by all this, & when I tried to intervene again, I was abruptly told to leave the premises, as I was seriously hindering the application process.
11. My wife mentioned that she would be travelling with me to Belgium in the next week sometime, as the tickets would be provided to us at the station (St Pancras) as they are in e-ticket format, provided as a gift to us by our friends. I would then be getting other tickets while staying in Belgium to travel around a bit with my wife in Europe (as she has not done that much travelling but I have due to my work purposes).
12. When she mentioned the above, the clerk at the VAC said that she would not be able to take the application. At this point I again intervened (I had not left as you may have guessed), & mentioned & explained how we propose to spend the near 3 weeks holiday in Belgium, & probably in some other countries as well (we make up trips as we go along – as we hate package holidays!)
13. When I mentioned Eurostar as our mode of travel, it was mentioned that tickets to Eurostar would not be valid (firstly because the were e-tickets, as the originals you get only when you punch in the numbers on the vending machine with your credit card at St Pancras in London, & secondly, because Eurostar would not travel to Belgium directly, but would go via France, hence my wife could not get a Schengen from Belgium!)
14. Then they mentioned that if we were to travel by Eurostar, she could only get a Schengen visa from France (although we would be going to Belgium, staying in Belgium & not travelling to France at all!) After this argument failed, they mentioned that we could not get the Eurostar to Europe (Belgium) as France becomes the first point of contact. When I mentioned that we would be spending the most time in Belgium, they said flying was the only option.
15. When I then mentioned that what I would do with the e-tickets on the Eurostar, which I have already paid for, they said that I should not have booked the tickets, although the very next moment they said that we needed to show the original tickets (a complete oxymoron!!)
16. At this point I was really losing it, but I kept calm & let my wife apply anyway, as we would be hitting Belgium next week anyway. They happily then proceeded towards payment, & charged us a hefty amount (£64), which when I asked, came down (they were charging for the visa fee as well if I had not pointed it out!) They still charged £22 which is apparently illegal, & have sent the passport to the Belgian Embassy.
17. Now, it as been a week & they are not replying to any phone-call, email, letter or communication at all. Whenever I or my wife has contacted them, they are saying that it is in process, & refuse to comment on what the status is, & when the passport will be returned with the Schengen Visa. When we applied, the VAC said it would take 48 hours (& so did the Belgian Embassy), but it has long gone over 48 hours.
18. What we are concerned is that all our December holiday plans would be jeopardised. Although we are also going to Italy & probably Germany & Austria as well, & could have applied at the Italian Embassy, they are even worse (no appointment before second week of January 2008, & we would be spending a longer time in Belgium, as well as visiting Belgium more number of times), hence the approach to the Belgium Embassy.
19. After all this we are in a serious conundrum. My wife’s passport is stuck at the Embassy, they are being deliberately non-responsive (I think they realised that they would not be able to get the documentation that they are looking for, & that the documentation that they are asking for is not a pre-requisite anyway…as I have learnt from the communication that I have followed through on your website, hence them being non-responsive!!), & they have charged £22 which they are not willing to refund as well.
20. We both a trying desperately to get back the passport, but have had not much of a success at present. If they reply & give the Schengen visa by this week, then its going to be fine, or else we would loose all the money on our tickets & the bookings for the tickets, car-hire etc, & even the money for the hotels etc etc.
21. I am thinking of a way…I have used this site before, & previously some advice that was provided to me was very accurate & really helpful, so I am asking for the next course of action that I/we should take. Worst comes to worst, should we be going to the police? It is quite strange, but in my 35 years in UK (I am British born), & my wife’s nearly 5 years in UK, we both have never been treated so badly & embarrassingly before. I really need to make this public, make others like myself aware of all this, & I think we need to take a joint & collective action against this with immediate effect.
22. Just to add, after mentioning that I was a local government staff, & my wife a medic, working in public health within the NHS, they seemed to calm down slightly (as before that the staff at the VAC were shouting & behaving very rudely).
With all the above in details, what would you suggest should be the next best course of action? Please help. Thanking Mr & Mrs S K Chatterjee.