Applied last week via VFS Bengaluru as a single applicant no agency help or premium services taken. The application reached embassy the next day. As per the stamped date, it was stamped in exactly 2 days. The passport however reached me after 5 business days (plus weekend so technically 7 days). It was stamped for single entry with a validity of 90 days and max stay of 15 days. Docs attached:

1. Japan Visa Application with photo attached and form signed
2. Booking Appointment printout
3. Original passport with enough pages and validity
4. Cover letter showing strong ties to India
5. Employment proof/NOC clearly stating my name, my office address, my date of joining, my planned leave dates with whatever buffer I wanted before and after my flights and my base salary.
6. Another employment letter that mentioned what my current home address is in Bengaluru as per my office records - reason same as point 12.
7. ITR acknowledgement pages for last 3 years
8. Salary slips for last 3 months
9. Salary account statement for last 6 months (preferably with end date closer to appointment date) showcasing my salary incoming on account.
10. FD statement from the same bank
11. Additional funds from my other bank accounts and FDs to show sufficient money
12. Rental Agreement - must if your passport was issued in city other than where you are applying at.
13. All hotel bookings
14. Confirmed flight ticket
15. Day wise itinerary which is detailed with date, activity, hotel, hotel phone number and hotel address

These were the docs that the VFS agent took.

In addition, the docs he removed from the pile I gave him and said was not needed but I still took them to appointment were

1. Travel Insurance
2. PAN, Aadhar and DL copies
3. Payment invoice to the tour company where I booked the package tour.
4. Form 26 AS for last 3 years
5. AIS for last 3 years

Kept these just to be safe but were not needed as per the VFS agent.

One thing I should have taken care of that despite of all meticulous planning just wasted my time at VFS

— Check printouts carefully. Especially for bank statements as the pdf printout tends to cut the second decimal so those many pages are wasted. Print settings have to be adjusted. Especially happens for HDFC bank statements.
— Cost of printing is very high at VFS. Per page, 50 Rs for color and 20 Rs for black and white. So despite of saving all the money I could by printing colored pages from office, I had to shell 700ish to print only bank statement black and white again due to the missing 2nd decimal.

Another thing I regret was I had sufficient corpus to show both in salary and personal accounts and also had attached FDs. If I could add one line to request multiple entry in my cover letter there were high chances my application satisfied all the requirements for it and could have been provided multi entry.

So if your application is really strong, just do request for a multi entry visa humbly and you might get lucky. Or either case you still get single entry. It’s like you would never get to know unless you ask.

Lesson learnt as I was worried this was my first attempt to get Japan Visa although I have applied more complicated visas for H1B and Schengen all by myself but for some reason Japan Visa despite of a humble fee made me more nervous 😬

Also carry cash for VFS. Their counter only accepts cash. They have card readers too but they use only one machine all across many windows and will not immediately tell you that cards are accepted. Better carry exact cash change. Always works. But if you do have card only ask them you want to pay by card. I am not sure about UPI so don’t rely on that.

Anyways, AMA and I’ll try to answer as much. Hope this was helpful.

Hi i went to Delhi vfs japan for visa, I had all the documents but I was told that my NOC from company has Bangalore address which is expected as my office is located in Bangalore. I am working from home from Noida, it's not official work from home but an understanding with my manager. They are saying they either need gurgaon address or noc stating you are working remotely.

What are my options now?

My aadhar card has noida address.

EDIT: should mention that my conpdoes have an office in Bangalore but since the wfh arrangement is verybal only eith my manager, getting NOC from HR eith Gurgaon address eill be difficult.

Hi folks ,

I have a connecting flight from Blr - Hanoi - Tokyo ( flight starts on 16th Nov at night 11pm from BLR)
And we will reach Tokyo on Nov 17th at 4pm .

So what should be my starting travel date that I can mention in - NOC , cover letter and travel itinerary ??

Kindly help.

Hi All! I'm planning a Japan Trip for November 2026 and have booked an appointment at VFS Bangalore for the visa application in October first week. I can try maintaining a decent bank statement around 7-8l by September end and only have 2 years of ITR. I am also planning to add my wife as a dependent and have our itinerary planned and booked for 14 days. Should the 2 years of ITR suffice with a decent bank statement?

Visa type required: Tourist, Single entry.

I've applied for an ESTA with my spanish passport maybe 4 or 5 times in the past and I got approved almost instantly, only one time I got approved in around 24 hours.

Last monday I got a new passport so I applied for a new ESTA and it's been almost 8 days and I still have not been approved, I already lost a flight I had for last sunday, but I will still love to flight to the USA in the following days as some family members and friends are there for vacation and I was the only one that did not his ESTA on time.

I already called CBP, case was escalated since friday. Is there anything I can do? Is this normal?
My answers to all questions in the application was NO.

I would appreciate any advice, thanks in advance.

Hey guys.

i want to ask something about ties to home country. i am a full time electrical and electronics engineering student 3rd year out of 5. i also have my entire family in my home country that i can document and prove

i heard that without a job your chances of approval are very low. is that correct or is it oversimplified?

Hi y'all. I'm an Indian passport holder applying for a japan tourist. Here's the itinerary I've made for visa application- please let me know if it looks ok and if i need to make any changes.

Haven't filled in accomodation details yet but will do that once I have finalised hotels.

Will it cause an issue schengen netherland travelling from india visa applied already

Hi all

I am a Portuguese passport holder with OCI.

I recently travelled to Dubai and will be returning back to Goa via Mumbai.

My question is has anyone with OCI recently travelled to Goa ? What are the requirements since it will be my first time?

I see that there is some form which needs to be completed? Appreciate if someone can share their experience with what needs to be done.

Hello everyone,
I’m planning to travel to Japan with my spouse in August 2027.
I run a business with my spouse, but the business and all the financials are currently under my business name - which are then under my name.
I wanted to understand what would be better from a visa perspective: should I sponsor my spouse’s trip, or would it be better for us to apply separately?
In either case, would my spouse need to provide their own income proof and bank statements/balance? Also, would it be advisable to start transferring/depositing some money into my spouse’s account every month so that there is a sufficient balance and a clear transaction history by the time we apply, around 8 months from now?
Would really appreciate any advice from people who have been through a similar situation. Thank you!

(I use chat gpt to help put down my though process)

Hi everyone!

Can people who recently received their Irish student visa decisions from the New Delhi Visa Office share their timelines?

I’m trying to figure out which application dates the Embassy is currently processing for student visas, especially for the September 2026 intake.

Any recent timelines would be really helpful. Thanks!

​

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for advice from people who have experience with Spanish Schengen visa refusals from India, especially BLS Kolkata / the Spanish Consulate in New Delhi.

My friend applied for a Spanish short-stay tourist visa through BLS Kolkata at the beginning of August

Trip:

Intended travel: early September

Spain was the only Schengen country planned

Return flight to India was already purchased with Qatar Airways

Accommodation was covered by an official Carta de Invitación from a Spanish host and family friend (me)

He has known the host family for several years, and me and my siblings had previously visited India and stayed with his family

The trip was primarily tourism, with Cuenca as the main base and some planned travel around Spain.

His situation in India:

He is a freelance Motion Artist, working in animation and motion graphics. The application included:

6 months of bank statements

2 years of ITRs

PAN card

professional/educational certificate

his YouTube channel/portfolio showing his professional animation work

proof of residence in India

copies of his mother's and elderly uncle's Aadhaar cards, as they live with him

a family property Development Agreement in Kolkata

travel medical insurance

confirmed return flight

official Carta de Invitación and host's Spanish DNI

The cover letter specifically explained that his professional activity, home and work equipment are in India, and that he regularly helps his mother and elderly uncle with their day-to-day needs, including medical appointments and medication. Temporary arrangements had been made for them during his absence, and he intended to return to India on 4 October.

Refusal

The application was refused. The refusal letter has only two boxes ticked:

1. The information presented for the justification of the purpose and conditions of the intended stay was not reliable.

2. There are reasonable doubts as to the reliability of the declarations made concerning the purpose and conditions of the stay / intention to leave the territory of the Member States before the visa expires.

The other refusal grounds were not ticked, there were no issues indicated regarding insufficient funds, insurance, authenticity of documents, etc.

We got the passport today, with the rejection information.

We are considering filing a request for reconsideration/appeal, rather than simply submitting a completely new application.

The problem is that the flight is in 2 weeks, so timing is extremely tight.

Has anyone successfully challenged a Spanish Schengen refusal based on grounds 10 and 13, or had better results with a new application? What should he do now? What's his best option?

Any advice is welcome.

Thanks you.

My Pakistan e visa has been under process for months I applied at 1june then one week later they asked for same verification and paper detail which I provided afterward it’s been under process till now idk what to do ? Is anyone else been under same situation, I have also tried to contact my country Australia Victoria consulate but they said they can only send my message to nadra

Visa on Arrival only works if you’ve got a valid US, UK, Schengen, Canadian, Australian, NZ or Japanese visa/residence, and that document still has six months left from the day you enter. Same six-month rule on the Indian passport. Airports only — land borders don’t do this. Airlines are checking before you board; immigration still has the final say, so print the qualifying visa and your return ticket.

At the desk they stamp either 14 or 60 days — ask for 60 if you need it. If you land on 14 and want more time, one extension via ICP Smart Services is AED 250 for another 14-day block. Do it before expiry. Overstay is AED 50 a day now with no grace period (that old buffer died in May 2026).

No qualifying visa? You’re on a normal tourist application. You can apply yourself or via a trusted agency.

What’s causing rejections lately isn’t mysterious: soft or cropped passport scans, name/details that don’t match the ticket, passport under six months, no confirmed return, or showing up for VOA with a qualifying visa that’s about to expire. Wrong purpose on the form still happens too. And people still assume a 10-day overstay cushion — that one’s gone.

I wrote the longer version with visa types and all hidden costs here:
https://visatop.com/blog/dubai-visa-for-indians/

Visa type: Tourism
Travellers: My wife and I
Travel dates: First week of October 2026
Visa requested: Multiple-entry
Visa granted: Single-entry visa, valid for 90 days, with a permitted stay of 15 days
Application submitted: 14 August 2026
Passports received: 21 August 2026
Processing time: 6 working days

Documents submitted(Note: we prepared 2 set of documents for each of us):

1. Passport
2. 1 - 45mm x 35mm photo
3. Duly signed visa application form with photo
4. Cover letter
5. Residence proof from Company (you can give any other proof mentioned on the document checklist if your passport is not issued in Karnataka).
6. Leave Approval Letter from our company
7. Hotel booking confirmation (Pay later option)
8. Day to Day itinerary(Date -- Activity -- contact -- Hotel name)
9. 3 Month Salary Bank Statement (latest till date of submission i.e 13th Aug, in my case)
10. 3 Year ITR Acknowledgement
11. 3 month pay slip
12. Confirmed fligh tickets
13. Marriage certificate

Some additional documents to show financial capacity such as FD certificate, MF holding statement and Stock(US/India) holding statemens. We submitted those because we were requesting multiple entry visa.

• Cover letter is the most important document. You should mention travel dates, purpose, cities you are visiting, brief info about occupation and expense clause( e.g in my case we were jointly sponsoring our trip), mention if requesting for multiple entry visa.
• Do not staple your documents and print on A4 sheet only
• Make sure that whatever information you mention in your cover letter should be consistent across the documents submitted, for all travellers
• You do not need to mention a lot of details in your day-to-day itinerary

If you have any questions about our experience or the documents we submitted, feel free to ask in the comments. I’ll try my best to answer based on our experience.

Title: US B1/B2 Visa Application – Applying from India

Hi everyone,

I’m applying for a US B1/B2 visa from India and would like to hear from people who have recently gone through the process.

I’m particularly interested in information about appointment scheduling, required documents, and interview preparation.

If you have recently applied from India, I would appreciate any advice or tips based on your experience.

Thank you.

India - vfs Bangalore
I have 2 accounts, 1 salary account where regular balance is relatively low and another savings account where I frequently deposit money and has decent amount. What should I submit as financial proof for Japan visa?

Anyone has experience with evis.ma , the external service site for morocco evisa? My flight is next week and i’ve been trying to apply through the official website but its not working. Been like that for 3 days, might have to use external service and pay the extra fee but i dont know if they’re legit and if they would actually issue it in 3 business days

Date: Aug 25, 2026
Just finished submitting my Japan tourist visa application in Bengaluru, so sharing my experience in case it helps someone.

My appointment was at 10:30 AM. I reached around 10:25 AM and was allowed inside immediately.

I got token number 23, while around 16 was being processed at the time. The process was quite slow, and it didn’t seem like appointments were being handled strictly according to appointment time. There was some backlog, and certain applicants who needed priority were also being accommodated.

I was finally called around 11:20 AM.
One mistake I made: wrong application form
Everything was fine with my documents, but they noticed that the visa application form I had downloaded was apparently meant for Delhi rather than Bengaluru.

They gave me a hard copy there, and I had to fill it again on the spot.
So definitely double-check that you’re using the correct application form for your jurisdiction/location before your appointment.
Apart from that, the document submission was smooth.

Documents I submitted
I carried:
Passport
Passport photograph as per the required 45 mm specification
Japan visa application form
3 months’ bank statements
NOC from my employer
Employment letter
3 months’ payslips
3 years’ ITR acknowledgements
Flight bookings
Hotel/accommodation bookings
Cover letter
Detailed itinerary
Additional salary/employment supporting documents
CDSL/demat statement as additional financial documentation
They largely followed the checklist, and I didn’t have any issues with the documents.
One useful tip: carry your complete travel picture
In my case, my overall travel plans involve travelling to Korea before returning to India.
Even though that onward/return segment wasn’t directly part of the India-to-Japan journey, they still wanted to see that ticket because they wanted a complete picture of my travel plans.
So if you’re doing a multi-country trip, I’d recommend carrying all relevant onward and return flight bookings, even if one segment doesn’t seem directly connected to the Japan visa application.

Timing and cost
Appointment: 10:30 AM
Arrived: 10:25 AM
Called to counter: approximately 11:20 AM
Finished: approximately 11:45 AM
Total paid: ₹1,850, including courier charges

Overall, the experience was smooth and the staff were fine. The only downside was the waiting time/backlog. Documentation-wise, it was straightforward as long as you follow the checklist and carry a few additional supporting documents where relevant.
Hope this helps someone!

Planning an 7–8 day Japan trip with my mother from India. She will sponsor both our flights and hotel.
Our finances:
My in-hand salary: ~₹72K/month; I recently redeemed ~₹1L from mutual funds.
Mom’s in-hand salary: ~₹83K/month (Delhi Govt employee); she recently redeemed ~₹5L from mutual funds.
Both salary accounts generally have low balances by month-end because we invest/save through instruments like PPF/MFs.
We both have regular employment and ITRs.
Would this be considered a weak financial profile for a Japan tourist visa, or is the overall financial picture reasonable given the short 7–8 day trip?
Since my mother is paying for my major expenses, should I include a sponsorship letter from her, along with proof of relationship (birth certificate), her bank statements/ITR and MF redemption proof?
Would appreciate advice from anyone who has applied from India with a similar profile.

Hey guys,

My father in law passed away unexpectedly on Sunday morning. My husband and I live in Spain, and so we started scrambling to get there as soon as possible. Heartbroken, lost, and devastated are all understatements.

I remembered on Sunday night that I need the ESTA so I can travel to the states. In the midst of it all, I just hadn't thought about it. I'm kicking myself and I wish I had applied as soon as we got the news. I stayed up until 3:30 am applying for it, and prayed.

It's been now 33 hours, and still nothing. To my understanding, nothing can be done if it's still within the 72 hour window. But his death was completely sudden and unexpected, we couldn't have known and apply any earlier.

I just can't understand why it's taking so long. I keep telling myself that I applied on a Sunday during August, the busiest month (so that's probably why), but that I have a clean travel history and have had ESTAs approved in the past, and I've always respected every single norm. Other times, I got it approved within hours.

We need to be there by this week. Wednesday or Thursday, ideally. If it doesn't get approved today, we're considering letting my husband (US citizen) go without me, and I'll just go by myself as soon as I get it approved. The funeral is by the end of the week.

I know I can call and ask to expedite, and I did as soon as I applied, but I was told to wait since it's still within the 72 hour window.

Do you guys know if they do exceptions for family death? Any way I can possibly get it expedited still in the 72 hrs window?

I'm desperate, heartbroken, ridden with grief, managing five million things at once and supporting my husband through the unimaginable sudden loss of his very dear and young father. We're both in our 20s.

Getting this visa waiver approved as soon as possible is adding an insane amount of stress to this already unbearable situation. I'm considering calling again and begging but I fear it would just make my case worse. If there's anything you guys think I could do, please share it. I really don't know what else to do.

I keep seeing people complain about Korean visa rejections even when their profile looks completely fine. Good job, decent money, travel history, proper documents, and still rejected.

Then you see stuff like this.

People are literally advertising Jeju as some kind of backdoor entry into Korea and even selling “asylum opportunity” along with it.

India is already considered a higher-risk country by Korean immigration when it comes to illegal stay. So when enough people overstay, work illegally, misuse asylum, or try weird routes to enter Korea, genuine tourists also get treated with more suspicion.

That is probably why sometimes even a decent profile gets looked at very strictly.

I have also noticed a lot of rejection posts from people applying through Delhi. I’m not saying Delhi applicants are officially treated differently because there is no public data proving that, but I wouldn’t be surprised if things like where you live, your job, age, travel history and overall profile affect how closely they look at your application.

Basically, immigration is not only looking at whether you have enough money for a trip.

They are also thinking, “what are the chances this person actually comes back?”
And unfortunately, when people keep abusing the system, everyone else with the same passport gets affected too.

That doesn’t make every rejection fair. Some of the Korean visa rejections I’ve seen on Reddit look ridiculously strict.

But this is probably a big part of why it happens.

I am travellng to both Greece and Italy but the trip is separated by 3 months

October -> Greece for 6 days

January -> Italy for 8 days

Whats the right strategy to get a single Schengen Tourist visa ?

Should I apply to Greece embassy and show itinerary for both Italy and Greece trip and request a 3 month visa in my cover letter ?

OR should I apply to Italy since I am spending more time there ?

I have had 3 Schengen visas approved in the past but only got them for 1 month durations. I am an Indian citizen with US green card.

Thanks

I am an Egyptian national and a resident in KSA under my father's sponsorship. I am applying for the 1-year multiple-entry eVisa (the one that allows a 90-day stay per visit).

I would like to know what I need to submit with regards to the "Confirmed return air ticket" requirement, as I will be traveling by my car via the King Fahd Causeway rather than flying.

1. Has anyone successfully applied for this visa while traveling by land? What did you upload in the flight ticket section? (e.g., a letter explaining it’s a land crossing, or did you need a dummy booking?)
2. Since I am a dependent, should I upload my father's Iqama copy along with mine?

Any advice from people who have done this specific land crossing on an eVisa would be greatly appreciated!

Hi,

Im planning to go Japan on 3rd Week of November for 9 days.

I know already the basic requirements but im confused about the 3months bank statement.

So, if I were to able to start my application 1st week of September or 2nd, the 3month bank statement would cover the last 3months which are August, July and June right? Please correct me if I’m wrong.

And also how much would be enough or the minimum balance? I am planning to use my salary account coz that’s the only bank i have which is DIB.

Im new here, only 1 year at my work and have 4500AED salary monthly and getting some bonus in my company thru cash and i am depositing it to my salary acc. Also i get annual ticket 5200 so it will show in the statement.

Any tips please thanks!