UK VISAS FOR DOMINICANS

Aguaita29

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Jul 27, 2011
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Even though many locals would be interested in visiting the UK, they may be turned off by the unfamiliarity and complexity of the application process. Other factors include: expenses and visa length awarded, and the reduced amount of popular places of interests you can visit, compared to other visas.

So, I decided to take the plunge and finally try myself; these are the steps:

1. Fill Out the visa Application: https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa. The form requires a lot of information. If you think that the US application requires too much info, this one wins!
You can save your application and return to it to make changes. You can choose the questions to be only in English or in both English and Spanish.

2. Finish the application and pay the visa fees: The total cost for the application ends up being USD$202, including the VFS application center fee. This is for a regular 6-month visa. There are other options for longer term visas, as well a priority application fee to get yours decided on in 5 business days.

3. Schedule your appointment: you’ll be prompted to a calendar to select your appointment date. Appointments are readily available and can be changed later. Just like the Schengen visa, you should pick an appointment date that is within 3 months of your intended travel date.

https://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/dominicanrepublic/english/book_appointment.html

4. Gather your Documents : Do not staple your application or supporting documents. You’ll need similar documents as for other visa applications: bank statements, property titles, proof of employment or business registration, etc; if you have kids or anyone who depends on you, include their birth certificates.

You should also include copies of valid and expired visas and from stamped pages on your passport.

You don’t need to buy travel insurance.The application guide says that you don’t need to include hotel or flight reservations, but the checklist does, so I think it’s better to include them and have your application as complete as possible
They also accept University diplomas as supporting documents.

5. Translate Documents that are not in Spanish or in Welsch. Well, it says everywhere that everything must be translated. I only got a couple of documents translated and brought the rest in Spanish. I asked the person in charge of checking the application if they also accepted documents without their translation and she said yes.

6. Attend your appointment:
You need to go to the application center in person and get your biometrical data taken. The UK VFS application center is at the IOM office, Calle Moisés García No. 25, between Rosa Duarte and Pedro A. Lluberes, Gazcue. You should be there 15 minutes before your appointment.

Things go kind of slow here. You can bring your cell phone but no laptops. We were waited on according to the time of our appointments. First you'll wait outside and will be asked to come in to a room with other applicants. They'll check your application and supporting documents, clasify them and see that everything's okay. You'll also pick a delivery address to get your passport returned.

After more waiting, you'll be asked you go into another room for your biometrics. They'll scan everything with a superfast printer and return it to you.

7. Wait for a decision and get your Passport Back: They'll send your passport back to you via Fedex. Most applications are processed within 10-15 business days. This may take longer If you have ever been a US or UK visa.
 
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Aguaita29

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Jul 27, 2011
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I got my visa only 8 days after attending the appointment, so that was great. It is also very convenient to have it delivered by courrier and not to have to go back to pick it up.
 

cavok

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Jun 16, 2014
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Cabarete
It's more expensive and sounds a lot harder than getting a US visa. I'm not surprised that more Dominicans aren't applying for one to go to the UK(?).
 

Matilda

RIP Lindsay
Sep 13, 2006
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Fabulous Aguaita, thank you. I will be applying for Mr. Matilda and Chivirico to go to the UK in July all being well. Can you clarify the 12 weeks before. Is that for the appointment at the Visa centre or the submission of the original application? I don't really want to book the flight tickets before we have the visas, so hopefully that won't be an issue!

Matilda
 

Aguaita29

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Jul 27, 2011
2,618
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Fabulous Aguaita, thank you. I will be applying for Mr. Matilda and Chivirico to go to the UK in July all being well. Can you clarify the 12 weeks before. Is that for the appointment at the Visa centre or the submission of the original application? I don't really want to book the flight tickets before we have the visas, so hopefully that won't be an issue!

Matilda
The date of your appointment is the date of the submission of the application. First, pick a travel date and choose your appointment date based on that.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
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Very dificult to get the visa and very expensive country for a mortal Dominican.
Yeah, very expensive! As for the visa, It's easier to get once you have a decent travel history and they can see your travel patterns.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
2,618
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They are not like USA? I traveled 10 countries maybe Im lucky with UK.

You should try! Having a Canadian visa is a plus for your application. And hey, if you haven't, you should try Shcengen too. Out of them all, I found it to be the least complicated one.
 

Linda Stapleton

Well-known member
Jun 3, 2003
633
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All this information was very helpful, Aguaita 29. We went through the process yesterday for the Standard Visitor Visa. I have just one thing to add to your instructions. All the documents you bring must be A4 size, so any legal documents (including a lot of translations we had) have to be reduced to A4 size. There is a place within walking distance, but much better to have everything the correct size before you get there. They ask for everything to be originals, so probably best that you take those if they are on different sized paper, e.g. foolscap, so that they can check them. Otherwise everything went very smoothly, they were running late so we were probably there an hour and a half in all but they were helpful and allowed us to make the changes, which prevented a return visit. Now we wait for the results.
 

Riva_31

Bronze
Apr 1, 2013
2,533
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San Pedro de Macoris
You should try! Having a Canadian visa is a plus for your application. And hey, if you haven't, you should try Shcengen too. Out of them all, I found it to be the least complicated one.
Soon I will have to renew my passport and also Canadian visa and after I do it and travel to Canada that will be the next destination if I dont fall into Perù or Brasil now that we dont need visas. Most of the time i travel with friends and we have talked about go Europe, lets see what we end up doing. We catched an offer to Cancun with Aeromexico that was not planned so lets see what its coming.
 

beeza

Silver
Nov 2, 2006
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All this information was very helpful, Aguaita 29. We went through the process yesterday for the Standard Visitor Visa. I have just one thing to add to your instructions. All the documents you bring must be A4 size, so any legal documents (including a lot of translations we had) have to be reduced to A4 size. There is a place within walking distance, but much better to have everything the correct size before you get there. They ask for everything to be originals, so probably best that you take those if they are on different sized paper, e.g. foolscap, so that they can check them. Otherwise everything went very smoothly, they were running late so we were probably there an hour and a half in all but they were helpful and allowed us to make the changes, which prevented a return visit. Now we wait for the results.

Yeah, we had the same issue. What bureaucratic idiots! Where does it say that the documents have to be either A4 or letter size on the website? It's not until you arrive at the visa centre that you find out. And they don't offer a copier service, you have to go walkies. LEGAL translations are done on LEGAL size paper! And the Dominican women representing the UK visa service are some of miserable, sour faced cows I've ever had the pleasure to meet!

The process took a couple of weeks. No updates, no emails, no way to track progress, just a phone call from the courier saying he has your passport.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
2,618
271
83
All this information was very helpful, Aguaita 29. We went through the process yesterday for the Standard Visitor Visa. I have just one thing to add to your instructions. All the documents you bring must be A4 size, so any legal documents (including a lot of translations we had) have to be reduced to A4 size. There is a place within walking distance, but much better to have everything the correct size before you get there. They ask for everything to be originals, so probably best that you take those if they are on different sized paper, e.g. foolscap, so that they can check them. Otherwise everything went very smoothly, they were running late so we were probably there an hour and a half in all but they were helpful and allowed us to make the changes, which prevented a return visit. Now we wait for the results.

Great observation! My translations were already in A4 format. As for originals, they did accept a few things that were not originals, like photocopies of my university diploma and my car registration.
 

Linda Stapleton

Well-known member
Jun 3, 2003
633
45
48
Yeah, we had the same issue. What bureaucratic idiots! Where does it say that the documents have to be either A4 or letter size on the website? It's not until you arrive at the visa centre that you find out. And they don't offer a copier service, you have to go walkies. LEGAL translations are done on LEGAL size paper! And the Dominican women representing the UK visa service are some of miserable, sour faced cows I've ever had the pleasure to meet!

The process took a couple of weeks. No updates, no emails, no way to track progress, just a phone call from the courier saying he has your passport.


The process took a couple of weeks. No updates, no emails, no way to track progress, just a phone call from the courier saying he has your passport.[/QUOTE]

Yes, the whole thing is so confusing. There are three different websites covering all this:
https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration Apply online on the government website.
https://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk/home/welcome Another place to apply under a trial pilot scheme.
https://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/DominicanRepublic/english/index.html The website of the company that manages receiving the documents etc. and where you have to go for your appointment.

In wading through all this, I did see somewhere about some visas requiring A4 documents, but it was talking about the different Tier visas, nothing about this Standard Visitor's Visa. https://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/DominicanRepublic/english/pdf/Barcode-Separator-Eng.pdf

There were a lot of other contradictions on different aspects, two different checklists giving you conflicting information, the whole thing is very messed up.

They did have the pages with the barcode separators to hand at the office and sorted the documents according to the category, although that didn't correspond either to the other checklists. I consider myself reasonably good on admin and English is my first language. How anyone who has limited English would manage this, goodness only knows!

My husband did receive an email the following day confirming his documents had been forwarded to New York and we were also given a FedEx receipt with a tracking number so that we could follow the return of the passport, so looks like they slipped up on that part of your process, Beeza.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
2,618
271
83
Yeah, we had the same issue. What bureaucratic idiots! Where does it say that the documents have to be either A4 or letter size on the website? It's not until you arrive at the visa centre that you find out. And they don't offer a copier service, you have to go walkies. LEGAL translations are done on LEGAL size paper! And the Dominican women representing the UK visa service are some of miserable, sour faced cows I've ever had the pleasure to meet!

The process took a couple of weeks. No updates, no emails, no way to track progress, just a phone call from the courier saying he has your passport.

Legal translations don't really need to be on legal paper size. You can call to inquire about the status of the application, but it'll cost you. You first need to enter your credit card Info. I don't recall exactly how much I was charged, I think it was around 4 pounds. Anyway, all they are allowed to tell you is that a decision has/hasn't been made, and that the passport is on the way, but they won't tell you if your application has been approved or not. As for the staff, I found them all to be polite.