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US Embassy issues new visa schedule
By Guo Nei (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-05-17 08:25
The US Embassy in Beijing released a new schedule of visa application
procedures on Sunday, indicating officials will accept applications on a walk-in
basis.
Visa applicants
wait for interviews outside the US consulate in Guangzhou, Monday,
May 17, 2004. [newsphoto] |
With the information Call Centre for US visas still closed due to allegations
it was illegally operating, the embassy and four consulates in China will begin
to accept applications from all comers, embassy officials said.
The call centre, which was in charge of scheduling visa appointments and
providing general information to the public, ceased operations last month after
the allegations surfaced about overcharging.
Effective on June 3, the embassy in Beijing will begin accepting visa
applicants on a walk-in and first-come, first-served basis, said Sun Bo, an
embassy spokesman.
Bo said bearers of ordinary passports applying for business, tourism and
other unofficial business can visit the Embassy on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and
Friday starting at 7:30 am.
Public passport holders can approach the embassy on Wednesday from 7:30 am.
Student and exchange visa applicants, and American Chamber of Commerce
applicants can receive interviews from Monday through Friday after 12:30 pm.
Sun also advised applicants to check the embassy's website frequently for
updates on visa application procedures.
At the moment, US officials are still accepting applications from those who
already have scheduled appointments.
Currently, US universities are suffering a decline in the number of
applications from international students, owing to the strict visa policies.
Richard C. Levin, president of Yale University, told China's Central
Television on Saturday that at Yale, the number of overseas students had
decreased by around 30 per cent.
Xu Jie, a senior at the Beijing-based Renmin University of China, said she
did not apply to a US university though that country was once her destination.
She was, however, admitted to a university in the Republic of
Korea.
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