Beat the peak from the #VeryFirstStep

VFS Global Regional Head Pranav Sinha – Pic by Lasantha Kumara

• Travelling to the metro cities or taking a day off to apply for visas has become a thing of the past, and here’s why

The strong growth in outbound travel from Sri Lanka is reflective in the rising number of visa applications. Low airfares, third party travel aggregators, better connectivity, and convenient visa applications have been key contributors to this phenomenon. To keep pace with the growing traveller community, VFS Global has developed and implemented a host of initiatives to beat the peak in the travel season.

VFS Global’s optional services are designed to suit the evolving requirements of the new-age traveller, and to make the visa application process more convenient, exclusive, personalised, time saving and hassle-free. Having transformed the overall application process, these optional services are extremely useful to beat the peak.  

Premium Lounge: Travellers often encounter issues particularly while filling out the form for their visa application. However, with the Premium Lounge, a trained staff handholds the customer throughout the visa application process, putting them at complete ease. The personalised attention and step-by-step assistance make the Premium Lounge suitable for first time travellers and senior citizens.

Visa at your doorstep: Doorstep visa is a landmark service in the visa industry. This technology-enabled service brings the visa application process to the remote locations and hinterlands of Sri Lanka – giving them the luxury of an easy application process. A trained team visits the individual or group at their preferred location to enrol their biometric data and collect their visa application documents. This service is available for UK. 

Prime Time Service: Students, working professionals and other individuals who may not be able to visit the visa application centre during regular working hours can immensely benefit from the Prime Time Service – which allows individuals to apply for their visas without interrupting their schedules. With Prime Time Service, applicants no longer need to take leave from office or school for visa appointments.

eVisa on Arrival: The eVisa on Arrival service does away with most documentation such as flight tickets, accommodation details, financial statements and payments before the journey even begins. Furthermore, for urgent visa requirements for Thailand, travellers can avail online the Express eVOA service for quicker processing, and also get a decision within 24 hours at an additional fee. 

Self-upload for UK Visa: The new self-upload option for UK visa applications replaces the need to carry endless documents for UK Visa applicants. UK Visa applicants can now visit the centre with just their passport after having uploaded documents prior to visiting the Visa Application Centre using their smartphone, tablet or other camera/computing device. 

With these services, applying for a visa becomes simple and least troublesome. Those with round-the-clock commitments, those with minimal access to metro cities, those wishing for additional support and a paperless experience – all have their needs addressed. Having taken care of each pressing issue of visa application, the globetrotters can now start their first leg of their journey with ease.