Well, continuing with the last post, let’s talk today about the Visa. It’s obviously not as important as the passport but it can be the next most vital thing in your trip. Well, the plane ticket also, but that’s another story.
The most common misunderstanding about visas is that they’re your absolute key to get into one country. Well, they’re not! Visas are only the way countries have of knowing who wants to visit them, before they intend to do so. The very word comes from that concept. Visa comes from the Latin carta visa, which means, “document seen” as in passport seen. There’s a difference between visa and permit. Visa is the authorization they give you to travel to that country, and permit is the… well, permission they give you to travel inside the country. The thing is that for countries that do not require you to ask for a visa before traveling, both the visa and the permit are given to you at the same time by the immigration officer at the point of entry. That is, having a visa does not necessarily mean that the country’s going to let you in, whatsoever. A visa can be revoked at any time and without any explanation, either before traveling or on the spot (point of entry). This means, that even if you have a valid visa, the immigration officer can still deny you entry into his country. What you need from this guy is a permit. All right, let’s say it in a few words. First, you need a visa… and then, you need a permit. That’s how it works. The visa is given to you by an embassy or consulate, and the permit is given to you by an immigration officer at the point of entry into the country itself, although some countries do not require you to have a visa before traveling, as they’ll give it to you at the same time as the permit. In other words, they give you a visa on arrival.
Visas are usually stamped in one of the pages of your passport, although they can also be issued as a separate document (like a kind of I.D.).
There are some important things you must know about your visa. First, Do I need one? Where can I get it? How long does it lasts? How much is it? How many entries does it allow me to do? You can look for this answers in the website of the immigration office of the country you want to visit.
Now, there are several kinds of visas and they each have a very specific purpose. The most common is the Tourist Visa, which is issued to people that want to visit the country for, let’s say, “leisurely” purposes. That means no working to pay for your trip! Usually they give you a certain amount of days you can stay, 30 or 90 but sometimes as little as 15 days. Many countries do not make you apply for a visa if you just want to travel in the country for less than certain amount of days.
Another one is the Transit Visa. Now, there are two kinds of Transit Visas: the ones valid just to be at the airport and the others valid to be in the country from 1 to 5 days at the most. This gives you chance of moving through the country if you are traveling by land.
The Student Visa is one that is required to engage in academic activities, but some countries do not make you get it if you’re studying for less than 3 months. A letter of admission from an academic institution is always required.
There’s another one, the Work Visa. This is mainly for purposes of business. It allows you to work in the country, sometimes even in a permanent job. Some variations exist, like the Business Visa (just to be able to do some commercial activities) and the Working Holiday Visa (between countries with cooperation agreements that allow you to work temporarily on the country to pay for your trip).
A curious fact. Some countries even ask you to have EXIT Visas. This means, they have to give you permission to leave the country. But this is not very common and almost only happens in extreme situations, like a political or security crisis. But some ask it for foreign workers, and you have to present a letter from the employer that says that you have completed your job and you can leave.
Well, see you next time!!
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