Bank systems hinder French visa applications

ABSA bank is
considering changing
certain processes,
as clients are having
difficulty applying for French
visas because their bank
statements are in Afrikaans.
One agent told TNW her
client had to withdraw an
application for a French visa
because the Capago office
in Johannesburg said the
French consulate would not
accept bank statements
that were in Afrikaans.
On requesting that ABSA
change the bank statement
from Afrikaans to English,
the client was told by the
bank that the statement
could not be changed
without re-doing the client’s
Financial Intelligence Centre
Act (FICA) validation, “which
is something most clients
refuse to do because this
can take ages, in some
cases,” the agent said.
Absa Retail and Business
Banking ce, Jan Moganwa,
confirmed that, currently,
it was necessary for
an individual’s FICA
validation to be re-done if
the language used on a
bank statement needed
to be changed. “When
the language indicator is
updated, the system will
validate if the address
corresponds with the
language selected. However,
if the address and language
do not correspond, an error
message will be displayed
to update the address
field. This will in turn will
require the customer to
re-do their FICA attestation.
We can unfortunately not
switch this validation off,”
Jan said, adding that the
FICA validation process is
system generated and fully
automated.
Absa told TNW the
incident has highlighted
a possible area where it
could enhance its FICA
attestation process and
that it may investigate the
possibility of building in
some permutations within
its validation rules going
forward. “Our customers are
the heart of our business
and we are committed to
making every interaction
they have with our bank
as easy and convenient as
possible,” Jan said.
Meanwhile, visa
application officer at
Capago, Zandile Mayekiso,
told TNW: “Bank statements
in Afrikaans need to be
accompanied by a signed
and stamped visa letter
from the bank, on the bank
letterhead, which should
be in English, confirming
the account holder has
enough funds to travel. This
requirement is applicable to
all Capago offices.