Don’t go through agents for student visas: US Consulate

Ahmedabad: United States Consulate authorities have warned students against going through agents to apply for visa to study.
Many cases have been found where agents lured students with the idea of studying abroad and made them produce fake academic or financial documents, hampering the chances of the student to get a student visa.
Lisa Larson, vice consul, US Consulate, Mumbai, who was visiting the city on Thursday, advised students on various issues at a presentation at Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA). She said that the global downturn may have seen a drop in visa applications but there was a silver lining. “The number of visa applications have gone down across the board and the trend is visible in all types of visas. But because of this, the date of the visa interview is now issued within five days of the application,” said Larson.

“The US Consulate, Mumbai comes across various cases on a regular basis where the students applying for visa are trained by the agents to behave in a certain manner. They also produce documents that are not needed or asked for. The officers at the visa office are trained to spot these frauds,” said Larson.
“We ask students to avoid going to agents and find all they need to know on the website of the consulate. The US government takes fraud very seriously and any record of producing fraudulent document can be used against the student in any further instances of the student applying for visa,” she added.