A mobile UK visa application service will start in Vientiane this month, meaning residents of Laos will no longer have to travel to Bangkok to submit a UK visa application.
Mr Philip Malone.
The new mobile visa clinic will be available approximately every three months at the British Embassy in Vientiane, with the first to take place on September 26.
The information was revealed at a press conference held on Friday by the British Ambassador to the Lao PDR, Mr Philip Malone.
“W e are pleased to be able to introduce this service to residents of the Lao PDR. The new service reflects the importance we place on strengthening the relationships we have with the Lao people and our desire to see more people from here visit, do business, invest and study in the UK for the benefit of both our countries,” he said.
“It also underscores our commitment to continually improve the visa service we offer our customers by providing them with products and services that better meet their needs.”
Mr Malone said customers applying for a UK visa previously had to go to Bangkok in Thailand to provide their biometric data (fingerprints and digital photograph) and submit their documents.
Now Lao customers can make an appointment to attend one of the mobile visa clinics at the British Embassy in Vientiane to complete the application process. Applications are then sent to the visa processing hub in Bangkok to be assessed by UK Visas and Immigration staff.
The UK Visas and Immigration service aims to process non-settlement visa applications within 15 working days and settlement applications within 12 weeks.
Customers using the service will have to pay a fee of £75 (about 900,000 kip) in addition to the visa application fee. This includes the cost of sending the application by courier to Bangkok and returning it to their nominated address in Laos once processed.
This is a more convenient and less expensive option than travelling to Bangkok to make the application, although anyone who wishes to do that can still do so without paying any additional charge.
The new service will be run by UK Visas and Immigration's commercial partner in South East Asia, VFS Global. VFS Global operates most of the UK Government's visa application centres across Asia. The clinics will be held at the British Embassy premises in Vientiane. Those wanting to take advantage of the service should first complete an online application form (http://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk/ApplyNow.aspx), and then pay for the service online via the VFS paymentportal
Customers can apply for a visa to travel to the UK up to three months in advance. Further information about the mobile visa clinics in Vientiane and how to apply for a UK visa can be found on the Thai pages of the UK Visas and Immigration website
By Times Reporters (Latest Update September 09, 2013)
It was you (PDR's governemnt) that has to follow the International rule of law or otherwise, you and your PDR' s government need to be Isolated like 70 and 80.
It was you (PDR's governemnt) that has to follow the International rule of law or otherwise, you and your PDR' s government need to be Isolated like 70 and 80.
