Capago Johannesburg has confirmed that there is currently a
two-week waiting period for premium appointments for French and Italian visa
applications.
Visa companies canvassed by eTNW said clients looking to book premium appointments (at an
additional cost) had been unable to secure them due to the high volumes of visa
applications the centre is currently processing.
A spokesperson for Visalogix explained that the annual peak
season for Schengen visa applications (consisting of leisure travellers looking
to vacation in Europe during the summer months) had come to an end. “In the absence
of this, the current influx of applications for France and Italy could be
attributed to corporate travellers who are rounding up their international
trips for the year, or corporate incentive trips (which often take place in
September) and comprise group visa applications – a process that quickly saturates
a visa centre’s appointment schedule.”
The spokesperson added, however, that processing times for
French and Italian visas were still on track. “The last one I submitted came
back within a week.”
Visazone confirmed that the Cape Town premium appointments were
unaffected.
How has your business been affected? How are you working
around this? Email savannahf@nowmedia.co.za.
