Visa to Spain - Dominican with US Green Card

P

POP Bad Boy

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Jun 27, 2004
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Situation: A Dominican (23 year old single male) is a resident in the US with a Green Card, but still has a 2 year wait for citizenship. He has a job, bank accounts, credit cards, tax returns, no criminal history, entry and exit in passport to 4 countries which didn't need visa's with a Green Card etc and wants to travel to visit family and friends in Spain in May of 2008.

He has already purchased the airline ticket etc.......and I have helped him prepare the application for the Visa at the Spanish Consulate in NY......

When calling the Consulate, they say that you can only apply for the visa within 30 days of travel....(so not til April of 2008).....so trying to get ready early doesn't seem to be an option...... :ermm:

Has anyone had any experience as to whether it is easy to get this visa (tourist visa for 2 weeks) being a Dominican Permant US Resident?
 
H

Hipocrito Mejia

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Jan 5, 2006
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My brother just went through this same process at the Italian consulate last month month (same requirements for Schengen visa), and they basically just look to make sure that you have the required documents. There's no interview, no chance to explain anything, etc. The employees are basically robots programmed to look at documents and then approve your visa if you present all of the required documents.

If your friend has health insurance in the US and he wants to use that to fulfill the requirement, he must get a letter directly from the insurance company stating that he will be covered while outside of the US, the amount of coverage provided, and that the insurance includes coverage for emergency evacuation (air ambulance) to the US. I suggest that your friend request this from his insurance comapny 6 weeks in advanced, unless he wants to purchase separate international health coverage to meet the requirement.

Also, if your friend is using a hotel reservation, instead of a notarized letter of invitation from a legal resident of Spain, then the confirmed reservation must come directly from the hotel and include the room type, dates of stay, etc. They will not accept anything from a travel or reservation agent.
 
M

Musicqueen

Miami Nice!
Jan 31, 2002
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POP Bad Boy said:
Situation: A Dominican (23 year old single male) is a resident in the US with a Green Card, but still has a 2 year wait for citizenship. He has a job, bank accounts, credit cards, tax returns, no criminal history, entry and exit in passport to 4 countries which didn't need visa's with a Green Card etc and wants to travel to visit family and friends in Spain in May of 2008.

He has already purchased the airline ticket etc.......and I have helped him prepare the application for the Visa at the Spanish Consulate in NY......

When calling the Consulate, they say that you can only apply for the visa within 30 days of travel....(so not til April of 2008).....so trying to get ready early doesn't seem to be an option...... :ermm:

Has anyone had any experience as to whether it is easy to get this visa (tourist visa for 2 weeks) being a Dominican Permant US Resident?
Click to expand...

How much easier can it be than applying within 30 days of travelling? It doesn't look to me as if they are giving him a hard time, all he has to do is wait till April...

This is NOT like applying from DR to immigrate to the US...there are no lines, no waiting period, no tons of paperwork...

Just follow the instructions...he'll be fine! :cheeky:
 
P

POP Bad Boy

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Jun 27, 2004
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Hipocrito Mejia said:
Also, if your friend is using a hotel reservation, instead of a notarized letter of invitation from a legal resident of Spain, then the confirmed reservation must come directly from the hotel and include the room type, dates of stay, etc. They will not accept anything from a travel or reservation agent.
Click to expand...

Does anyone know how to get this and what is involved in getting it:

FROM DELTA WEBSITE:
Those travelling to Spain for private or touristic purposes
will be required to apply for a "Carta de Invitacion" through a
police station.

The Spanish Embassy website pages which show what is needed for the visa application are not working (and haven't been for over 2 weeks) and when you call they don't give you any useful information..........

Also, they did say that if you were going to stay in a hotel you need a copy of the hotel reservations (told by Spanish Embassy)......they did not say anything about getting it directly from the hotel..........which previous poster stated............could that be a requirement of the ITALIAN embassy only????? since that is what the poster was talking about???

...all these questions refer to the circumstances in my first post on this thread. Thanks for any insight.............

also, regarding the insurance, i figure for the little cost of getting it online, it would be easier than trying to get a letter from Blue Cross / Blue Shield. Has anyone used any one of the "online" insurance sites with success????? (which one?)
 
J

JC171

Member
Oct 20, 2002
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TRANSIT AND TOURIST REQUIREMENTS FOR DOMINICAN CITZENS TO VISIT SPAIN AND OTHER SCHENGHEN COUNTRIES
FOR VISA



1. Schengen Visa application form, filled out in print and signed, and 1 photocopy.



2. 2 recent passport photographs. Glue the original picture to each application form.



3. Original regular passport or travel document, still valid for at least 6 more months with at least one blank page for the visa.



ALL DOCUMENTS LISTED BELOW MUST BE SUBMITTED ORIGINALS AND 1 PHOTOCOPY:



4. Alien Registration Card or notarized copy of it, Visa, Reentry Permit or other USCIS document allowing return to the US.



5. Proof of financial means for the length of stay, at a minimum rate of $700 for up to 9 days, and $70 per each additional day (i.e. bank statement of the last three months).



6. Official itinerary or airplane ticket for the entire trip (in order to apply for the visa, you do not have to purchase the airplane ticket, but you must have a reservation showing confirmed names and dates of travel).



7. Confirmed hotel reservations or invitation from legal resident in Spain obtained from their local Police Department in their place of residence (BOE n? 113, 11 de Mayo, 2007) or proof of housing.



8. Written confirmation from insurance company of a valid health/accidental insurance with full international coverage in Spain and rest of Schengen countries with a minimum coverage of $37,000. Or Travel/accidental insurance coverage for the entire trip.



9. Notarized letter of employment in the US (with salary and dates of employment). If self-employed, provide business license and tax return. If unemployed, proof and source of steady income.



10. For applicants under 18 years of age, a notarized authorization from both parents, with the Apostille of the Hague Convention (contact the Secretary of State for your state of residency) and a copy of the applicant’s birth certificate showing parents’ names.



11. $ 92.40 money order, payable to the Consulate of Spain. No cash or personal checks. This is a non-refundable visa processing fee
 
P

POP Bad Boy

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Jun 27, 2004
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FOLLOW UP: Well he got it...........

and I will post his experiences (and mine since I went with him) on how the process went ................. since there was just another article posted regarding the gentleman that got his visa renewed at the Spanish Embassy in Santo Domingo who was going to Poland...........and didn't have any problem.

He went to the Spanish Embassy on April 1st since he is leaving on May 1, 2008 and they told him that they couldn't apply earlier than 30 days to date of travel.........

We were there at 7:00 am since they will only allow a certain number of people to enter per day and will not take appts.....#4 in line........had to wait outside til 9:00 before they brought the line in...........they took about 20 people and there were maybe 5 more that didn't make it...........

We were there the 1st day that they changed the fee and of course NOONE had the correct amount......since they didn't even post it on the website til later in the day, but informed everyone that they needed to get an additional money order (they wouldn't take cash).....so they sent everyone outside to the corner to get the additional $$$$ order........WHILE everyone was already down there.............they changed their minds and decided they would take cash........IF EXACT but it was already too late since everyone had left.......

It is now about 11:00 am and they start taking the applicants, one at a time and you can hear the whole conversation since the room was small. The first two ( a nice girl from Santo Domingo with US Green Card who had been refused entry the day before) and she was turned down for not having her credit card statement with her.......... The second couple, from Peru I believe, (older man and women) were also turned down for not having the required documentation......

The 3rd women was approved for single entry 1 month and so was my friends application..............single entry 1 month.................starting 5 days before his reservation.......

He then had to RETURN to NY to pick up the passport with the VISA one week later to pick up the visa and had to be there between 1 and 2........

He did that and the other people that were approved on April 1 were there too.........

AND GET THIS, they were all told that they have to RETURN within 5 days to the Embassy in NY once they come back or they would never get another Schengren visa........ (I didn't believe that he understood them correctly, so I went in myself and asked and sure enough.......they said it is their new policy)

So basically, to sum it up, it seems that even with the "green card" they are quite tough unless you have all the required documents WITH YOU ...and it will involve a total of 3 trips to NY .....and seem to be limiting the amount of time that they are issuing the visa........

Hope this info is helpful to someone.
 
P

POP Bad Boy

Bronze
Jun 27, 2004
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Now two Questions........

...........as in the DR, IMO, two of the most talked about topics relate to obtaining $$$$ and phone cards..........and since there are many Dominicans that have been to Barcelona........

For a Dominican traveling from the US to Barcelona.........

1. Obtaining Cash.....
A. If from an ATM via a debit card, would he be getting USD or Euro
and would that be wise?
B. If he has USD$$$ Cash, where should he change it? Are there
"cambio's" such as RUSA in POP? Any tips on getting the best
rate etc?

2. Phone Cards
He is traveling with an ATT phone which is already unlocked and
has ATT US chip and a Dominican Codetel chip. Are there
phone companies in Barcelona that you can buy a "cheap" phone
chip such as ORANGE and CODETEL in the US to use while there
instead of roaming.???

Thanks for any information anyone can offer..............He is leaving on Thursday....
 
M

Musicqueen

Miami Nice!
Jan 31, 2002
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Musicqueen said:
How much easier can it be than applying within 30 days of travelling? It doesn't look to me as if they are giving him a hard time, all he has to do is wait till April...

This is NOT like applying from DR to immigrate to the US...there are no lines, no waiting period, no tons of paperwork...

Just follow the instructions...he'll be fine! :cheeky:
Click to expand...

OH, BOY!!! I AM HAVING TO EAT MY WORDS RIGHT NOW...I posted this back in October, 2007...

The hard reality of this all is that now my husband wants to go visit his Mom in Spain...and the damn visa is hard as hell to get!!!!

First, since he's staying at his Mom's house...he needs the letter of invitation...which his Mom has to get at the 'Comisar?a Policial' where she lives in Salamanca...

So we sent her his GC (a copy), BC original, bank statements, bills in his name plus copy of driver's license to certify his address, ALL of this notarized!

She went to the police, and now has to wait 10 days for them to give her the letter of invitation...

After we get this back, we need to make an appointment at the Spanish Embassy here in Coral Gables (Miami)...where they STATE that you can't buy your ticket until you have the visa in hand, and that takes up to 60 days to get!!!

I had bought him an AA Award travel ticket with my miles, 40,000, as a gift for his b-day...now I had to change the travel dates...till NOVEMBER of this year...because now it's high season and I don't have enough miles to cover 100,000 that they're asking!!!

Damn the Spanish government and all this stupid requirements...it's WORSE than applying for a Visa to the US!!!! Even if there's no interview...the amount of paperwork is ridiculous!!!!! :devious::devious::devious:
 
P

POP Bad Boy

Bronze
Jun 27, 2004
984
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Yep, everythings getting harder.............

.............and now back to my post of 2 questions.............2 posts back.........

Isn't there any Dominican, or anyone for that matter, that uses DR1 that's been to Barcelona than can give a little insight?


Just two little questions???

Thanks,
 
PICHARDO

PICHARDO

One Dominican at a time, please!
May 15, 2003
13,280
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Santiago de Los 30 Caballeros
The whole purpose of the Spanish inquisition to get a visa to go there is to try and avoid people who will abuse the visa to stay and work there.

The need to re-visit the office in the US after returning from their trip to Spain is the procedure that allows the office which approved the visa to keep tabs on their vesting of visa candidates; thus making adjustments to thin the non-working and adding the needs to the process.

I made a terrible mistake once in a trip to the UK, when asked by one official in my departure the reason for my trip there and I candidly said that it was mixed since I enjoyed the week for tourism and also made some biz contacts as well.
It turned out that biz dealings of any kind while having a pleasure visa is a no-no, and add a big one to that...

Since then I can say that getting visas to any part of Europe has been trouble free...

I got the chance of getting a hard to get entry permit to then East Berlin, and believe you me! That was about the hardest visa/permit to get, both from the East Berlin authority and the DR's as well (you needed a written consent from the DR to be able to enter a communist held country).

If you think getting a visa to Spain is hard, you should be thankful that you never needed to travel there...
 
Q

qgrande

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Jul 27, 2005
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POP Bad Boy said:
Just two little questions???
Click to expand...
Dear mr. Bad Boy. It has been a couple of years since I've been to Barcelona, but I would not need that to know you get euros not US dollars from cash machines there. If I go to Chicago do I get rupees or yen from the ATM? Dirhams perhaps?
It would also be wise to get euros, so that's good luck. Euros are quite extensively used in Spain. It's their currency you know. US dollars are of limited use there. They would be of more use in, say, the US. So getting US dollars when in Spain would not be wise.
In Barcelona you will also find they do indeed have phone companies. And those phone companies have shops. And those also offer relatively affordable chips to use within Spain. Your friend will have little problems finding out about schemes, as most people in Barcelona speak Spanish. Check whether the phone works in Europe.
 
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