DO I NEED AN INVITATION LETTER BEFORE I APPLY FOR VISA ?

A thought provoking question huh ???…Well the answer may largely depend on the strength of your ties and the undoubted likelihood of your return to your home country after the visit. In fact, the joy of any consulate officer, if I may speak for them is, even if they care, after issuing the visa is to note the return of a traveler to his home country after a visit.

One of the main requirements for a tourist visa to a foreign country for most missions is to have a booked   return ticket home and to have a booked accommodation to the country of destination.

However, it is more convenient for an applicant to be refused a visa without an invitation than to receive a visa with an invitation.  An invitation makes “your path straight”. It doesn’t leave things to chance.

The foreign posts are not just interested in granting you a visa, they are also interested in tracking your movements in their country. They need to know where you would be at a particular time. That is why having an invitation makes everything very easy.

In most cases, the purpose of travel with its accompanying invitation is paramount to the consular officer than anything. In fact it shows consistency and a strong purpose of visit.

You need to have to reason to visit a foreign country, good one…!!! And an invitation letter at least satisfies the reason for traveling.

In a nut shell, having an invitation to a foreign country makes things easier and keeps the consular officer away from negative speculations as whether your claim is trustworthy or not.

But what kind of invitation is valid for a visa?….watch out for our next episode…

Writer

Andy Pratt