IM so happy for you Lin b I know you have been worried about the visa ....i was just looking at our visas this morning and Puja got them on the 11th .....and the visa was granted on the 13th so they have got us them right away puja are a brill place to send them off to ...colleen

Anyone know where I can get a list of visa surgeries in the Manchester area for 2008. Commission website only shows them for 2007 and want to get a visa for holiday in March. Not really happy giving my passport to a travel agent

You don't need your passport for Dublin if you have a driving licence, you can use this to enter southern Ireland, so you can send your passport off after you've used it in November.

Debs

Thanks just ordered a photo driving licence over the internet for a tenner. I can fly to dublin from england with my photo dribing licence.

So i'm going to send my passports and visa forms off on monday.

So that will give me all nov/dec and 2 weeks of jan.

hopefully that will be long enough.

Lozza

We don't go until 2 March so I am going to hang on until January when I hope everything has clamed down.

Oh and I am hoping they may come up with some more visa surgeries

we got our visas in the post this morning
we dropped them off at seagull travel ( in the visa agency list ) on monday dinner time and got them back today , i have just phoned them to say thankyou for the very fast and efficient service, and the lady said they also accept applications by post , you can pay by cheque if your not going for a couple of weeks or put your phone number in the letter and they will ring you to pay by credit or debit card,
the cost was £30 for the visa and £30 for them to do it plus £5 for special delivery.
i know this might sound expensive £125 for two visas but it would cost £60 anyway , and if like me you dont live in london , it saves on travel costs , you dont have to queue and you dont have to take a day off work , so it could work out saving you money !!!!!!!!
i will say thankyou once again to seagull travel for thier wonderfull service , i told the lady to look at this forum, but i will stress i have no affiliation with their company or any other in the travel industry , i am just a happy traveller..........kerala here i come november 1st

Hi i know the answer to my quiestion is on this thread somewhere but cant find it, Can anyone who has gone to london themself for there visa tell me how do you pay? cash or postal order, and is it £30, we were going to use a travel agent and i have just come back from one they cant do my husbands as he has a southern irish passport, he has to do it himself, so no point in them giving them mine, what a waste of time,OH is not a happy man. Many thanks maureen

GEL

It is either cash or postal order and is just £30. Definitely no cheques or credit/debit cards.

Candybabe

Maureen
The usual fee for a visa obtained at the HCI London is £30.00

However, their website does mention an additional fee of £10.00 for non-UK passport holders.

I'm fairly sure that they only accept postal orders or bankers drafts.
I don't THINK they accept cash and most definitely not personal cheques.

It does actually give you all this information on the application form so you'll know when you download it.

I'd be inclined to read this thoroughly before you go:
http://www.hcilondon.net/visa/index.jsp

There's lots of other sections about visas under this one.

Polly

Thankyou Candybabe i could not remember if they said postal orders only, cash is better not sure if OH will have to pay extra £10 for not holding uk passport, thats not a problem if its cash. Many thanks for your prompt reply. Maureen

Hi Prettypollycat i beginning to think i am completly stupid i hope i have the right forms printed out as i cannot find anything on these to tell me how to pay in person.I know OH might have to pay an extra £10 i have found water rates bills in his name for this year and last and was going to give them to him to take, as i was just told by the travel agent he has to show proof of him living some where for a 1 year. Perhaps someone who has just been can help on the methade of payment. Many thanks maureen

GEL

I have always gone direct to HCI (including this year about 4 weeks ago) and I always pay cash - they definitely accept this.

Candybabe

Thankyou candybabe, thats great, so even if they charge extra £10 wont be a problem many thanks maureen

GEL

Just to make you completely sure the following has been copied by me from the second page of the downloaded visa form as Part A

"(A) REQUIREMENTS: Original Passport valid for at least 6 months, correct visa fee, two passport size photographs, supporting documents
where necessary and duly filled application form. Visa fee can be paid at the counters by the following methods only:
(a) Bank Draft/Postal Orders, payable to 'High Commission of India'.
(b) Cash (only at the counters and not through Post). Credit/Debit Cards and Personal Cheques are not accepted."

Of course "not through Post" is a red herring because you cannot post but that is India for you - why make it easy when they can make it hard. Persevere - once you are in Goa it will all seem like a bad dream.

Good luck on getting them. It can be a bit daunting the first time, especially with all the extra confusion this year.

If you need anything else you can always send me a PM. I am an old hand at the London office and should be able to answer any questions you have.

Candybabe

greeneyedlady
I've pm'd you

V Day for us tomorrow Hope its not too bad. Going to Edinburgh very early doors but no doubt it will be the usual shambles

hi all we planned to use an agent to get our visas the same one we used last season we dropped everything off with them paid the fee was assured they would be back before we fly on the 14 nov then got a phone call from them yesterday to say they cant do it after all because they didnt have enough to do a trip before the 14th and it wouldnt be worth their while so we are off to qeue at birmingham monday morning has anyone qeued at birmingham ? anita and john

A colleague of mine went to Birmingham last week. She said people were turning up at 9am and going straight to the front of the queue, tempers were very frayed and some fighting broke out, as those already in the queue told them to go to the back. She said it was horrendous. Best of luck, hope you get your visas.

Just a thought, do you think the HCI, are getting a percentage off all the agents they are using to process are passports????

Think of the amount of on cost this situation is creating????

"Just a thought"

........jxk8

hi polly have you any idea what time they start qeuing