MINSK, 25 February (BelTA) – In 2015 Poland denied visas to less than 1% of the applications filed by Belarusians, BelTA learned from Marek Pedzich, Head of the Consular Affairs Department of the Embassy of Poland in Belarus, on 25 February.
“I cannot say the exact figure but less than 1%,” stated the official. On the whole, Polish consular institutions issued about 400,000 national and Schengen visas to Belarusians in 2015.
Belarusians will be able to get Polish visas from visa centers in four Belarusian cities as from 1 March. Marek Pedzich pointed out that the consular institutions will be the ones to decide on the type and duration of the visas. Regardless of where the application is submitted, the consul will personally decide whether the visa should be granted, denied, annulled and so on, he said.
VFS Global is the company the Polish visa services in Belarus have been outsourced to. Prabuddha Sen, the company's regional director for Russia and the CIS, stated that the visa centers will handle the administrative procedures involved in the processing of visa applications. “We are very pleased to open visa centers for the Embassy of Poland in Belarus and provide standardized and optimized services for applicants. The centers will help us reach the common goal of making the visa issuance process convenient, affordable, and continuous. Moreover, the opening of the visa centers will allow making a considerable contribution to the development of tourism between Poland and Belarus,” said Prabuddha Sen.
Poland's visa centers will be opened in Minsk, Brest, Grodno and Gomel. Belarusians will have to pay €60 as a consular fee and €15 for services of the visa center. The latter will be paid in Belarusian rubles. Belarusians will be able to book the time they want to submit documents at in advance by using the website of the visa center or by phoning the call center. Visa applicants will also be able to buy insurance, make photos and copies of documents. Clients will be able to track the progress on their applications and will get SMS about their visa's status. Passports with visas can be delivered to the applicant's home.
At the same time Belarusians will still be able to apply for Polish visas to the Consular Affairs Department of the Embassy of Poland in Minsk and to the general consulates in Brest and Grodno. Later on Poland's visa centers will be opened in Mogilev, Pinsk, Baranovichi, and Lida.
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