Questions tagged [visa]

For questions relating to the politics behind the policies regarding the documents issued by one state to a citizen of another state granting that person permission to visit their territory legally. Other questions about visas may be appropriate for our sister sites Travel Stack Exchange and Expatriates Stack Exchange.

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What is special in the relations between Bhutan and Switzerland?

The requirements to get a Bhutan visa include (...) nationals of Switzerland and Thailand who hold diplomatic or government-official passports, are also eligible for a visa on arrival at their port ...
WoJ's user avatar
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Is Israel limited with informers by whether they will grant visas?

I've read that the USA gets informers by promising visas for them and their families. Does Israel do something similar or no? I'm asking since they have different immigration policies.
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Has Israel denied visas to high-level UN personnel before?

Politico writes Israel’s U.N. ambassador Gilad Erdan told Israeli radio on Wednesday morning that the country has denied a visa to U.N. Under Secretary-General Martin Griffiths, following Guterres’ ...
Fizz's user avatar
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-2 votes
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Why does the US CBP require airlines to have some US Customs Visa Waiver Agreement to be allowed to transporting passengers to the US who rely on it?

I read on https://simpleflying.com/philippine-airlines-us-visa-waiver-carrier-agreement-expires/: Philippine Airlines' US Customs Visa Waiver Agreement has expired, preventing them from transporting ...
Franck Dernoncourt's user avatar
-5 votes
2 answers
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Why is there typically no psychiatric assessment involved when applying for Visas?

I see it that for many visa that we have to apply for in this world, it is simply asked some formalities of the document. They typically would ask also over travel history, in hopes to get assurance ...
tryst with freedom's user avatar
9 votes
3 answers
4k views

Why did Poland, Finland and some other EU countries ban Russian citizens from entering? [duplicate]

I was surprised to learn that Estonia, Czechia, Finland, Poland, Latvia and Lithuania banned Russian citizens from entering for tourism purposes. What are the practical reasons for doing so? Or was it ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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8 votes
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Why do most United Kingdom visas restrict working as a sportsperson?

The majority of UK visas, for example the British National (Overseas) visa, and the Graduate visa, appear to include a restriction on working as a professional sportsperson: Why did the British ...
theonlygusti's user avatar
5 votes
0 answers
226 views

What would be the reasons for the exclusion of the UK and others from the Indian e-Visa?

This is a follow-up to this Travel question The UK, Canada, China and others have been excluded from the Indian e-Visa program when reintroduced in October 2021. I'd assume this has been done to force ...
Nicolas Formichella's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
178 views

Are there any legal challenges announced against Eastern European countries that have decided to stop admitting all Russians with tourist visas?

According to Latvian public news portal New restrictions come into force on Monday, September 19 that are designed to prevent Russian nationals with Schengen tourist visas from entering or ...
Fizz's user avatar
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5 votes
3 answers
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Why did the EU suspend the 2007 visa facilitation agreement with Russia, if it doesn't cover tourist visas?

The EU has suspended the visa travel deal with Russia. The (more or less symbolic) reasons for this step have been discussed elsewhere. I took the trouble to read such 2007 travel deal and I was ...
Miguel's user avatar
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4 answers
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Would a Russian visa ban be compliant with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights says: Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country. Would it therefore be legal to implement a Russian visa ...
Crantisz's user avatar
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8 answers
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Why does the EU have a huge amount of sanctions on Russia but not on the USA?

America has many times been seen intervening in countries without the approval of the current governments. Sometimes this has happened on blatantly far-fetched pretexts (chemical weapon in Iraq). Why ...
Markus's user avatar
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26 votes
8 answers
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What does Ukraine gain by having Western countries ban all Russian visa?

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said earlier in an interview with the Washington Post that Western countries should ban entry to all Russians. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, in turn, ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
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Why did the U.S. DoS issue guidance to consular officers in China that could result in shorter visas for some Chinese students beginning June 11 2018?

I read on bu.edu/isso: The U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) has issued guidance to consular officers in China that could result in shorter visas for a small number of Chinese students beginning June ...
Franck Dernoncourt's user avatar
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1 answer
94 views

Where can I find the UK visa issue rate in South Asia?

I want to know the visa issuance rates by the UK for various South Asian countries. over the years since 2022 Where can I find it?
user366312's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
217 views

How come the Maldives accepted Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa's visa, but not the USA?

This site says (emphasis mine): According to the report to BBC, the President has left for the Maldives. The Hindu newspaper revealed that the United States has rejected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’...
Alamdhir J's user avatar
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Are there examples of visa-free travel agreements between countries that have no mutual extradition agreements whatsoever?

I imagine that lack of extradition treaties is somewhat of a hindrance for establishing visa-free travel between countries, on the argument that if (potential) criminals can enter freely (and then do ...
Fizz's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
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Why doesn’t the UK allow asylum applications to be made from overseas?

As I listen to plans to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, I can’t help think it would be more effective to prevent people smuggling activity by allowing asylum seekers to apply from overseas. It could be ...
Daniel's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
532 views

How would one go about getting the USA to brain drain Russia by giving out green cards?

It has been suggested that offering green cards to Russians with STEM degrees can be an effective sanction against Putin. What would the political process for that be? Which political body in the USA ...
seed's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
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Why does the United States government utilize random selection (a "lottery") to determine eligibility for an H-1B visa? [duplicate]

According to my understanding of the H-1B application process, applicants must be selected for further consideration by random selection (a "lottery"). Why doesn't the US consider all ...
moonman239's user avatar
-5 votes
1 answer
109 views

Afghan refugee vetting in addition to security concerns

The Biden administration has promised that Afghan refugees being lifted out will be vetted and backgrounds checked against biometric data. Though this is not necessary isolated to only Afghan refugees,...
paulj's user avatar
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0 votes
2 answers
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Who in the UK to email or write, to advocate counting time spent on Student Visas towards the required 5 years of continuous residence?

If I want to reform or campaign for time spent on a Student visa (previously called a Tier 4 (General) student visa) or a Youth Mobility Scheme visa to count towards the required five years of ...
user avatar
-3 votes
2 answers
181 views

Why doesn't time spent on a Student or Youth Mobility Scheme visa count towards the required 5 years of continuous residence?

Time spent on a Student or Youth Mobility Scheme visa doesn't count towards the required 5 years of continuous residence for settlement in the UK. What's the policy reason? I note that non-UK students ...
user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
180 views

Why didn't the Thai government decide to enforce a COVID-19-related automated stay extension longer than 1 month?

As a result of COVID-19-related travel restrictions, the Thai government decided on April 7 to allow an automated visa extension till the 30th of April 2020. Why didn't the Thai government decide to ...
Franck Dernoncourt's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
31 views

US Pre-1987 Visa Issue Data?

I can see a count of nonimmigrant visas issued by classification on the Dept. of State Bureau of Consular Affairs website going back as far as 1987, but the H-1 visa was established in 1952. Does ...
John Vandivier's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
393 views

Why does the Thai government have high skill visa requiring a 200 000บ (6600$US) monthly salary?

(My mistake, correct salary is 200 000บ/month Document here (Thai language): https://www.boi.go.th/upload/smart%20visa%20details_Thai_25Jan%202018_51278.pdf) Thailand has a "smart visa" for high-...
Châu's user avatar
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9 votes
1 answer
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Are there any concrete measures taken by the European Commission to regulate the "golden passports"?

I have recently seen an older interview (end of 2017) with Ana Gomez arguing about the issues of the so called "golden citizenship" / "golden passports", the practice of giving visas and citizenship ...
Alexei's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
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Is there such a thing as a voluntary extradition visa?

Suppose someone is on trial for a crime in a foreign country, for which they would need a visa and with which their home country does not have any extradition treaties. They could stay in their home ...
gerrit's user avatar
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-1 votes
1 answer
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UK visitor Visa & Brexit [closed]

I'll admit that the subject that I'm trying to unveil might be a little bit shallow, but I hope that it'll make some sense nonetheless. I'll be applying next year early January for the uk standard ...
james smith's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
327 views

Why are governments moving away from true visa-free access to pre-authorization systems like the ESTA?

20 years ago, visa-free access only had one meaning: you hop on a plane, reach your destination and then proceed to the immigration counter. That's how it worked for EU citizens visiting the US, ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
282 views

What factors drive the power of passports?

Why do most of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries (ultra-rich) have lower Passport power as compared to Russian Federation (antagonistic to the West)? What factors drive the higher power of ...
user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
726 views

Why didn't Ireland and the UK unify their visa regimes?

Ireland and the UK share an open-border area just like the Schengen countries, but unlike the Schengen area they lack a common short-term immigration policy. As a result, pretty much anyone can obtain ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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8 votes
1 answer
319 views

Is there a list of persons affected by Proclamation 7750?

On January 12, 2004, George W. Bush issued Proclamation 7750 - To Suspend Entry as Immigrants or Nonimmigrants of Persons Engaged In or Benefiting From Corruption: The entry into the United States, ...
Alexei's user avatar
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52 votes
4 answers
20k views

Why do Mauritius passport holders have such easy visa access to so many countries?

As per Wikipedia: As of 1 January 2017, Mauritian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 131 countries and territories, ranking the Mauritian passport 33rd in terms of travel freedom ...
Porcupine's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
374 views

Why do the Federated States of Micronesia allow all nationalities in without a visa?

Many countries have relatively open visa policies, but the FSM allow residents of every country in the world to enter without a visa, visa on arrival, or any other form of authorization. Even ...
user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
4k views

Why did the presidents of US and Romania contradict each other about the Visa Waiver Program?

One question, addressed to US President Donald Trump, was related to the Visa Waiver Program. Specifically, if he and Romanian President had discussed the Visa Waiver Program for Romanians. Inclusion ...
Alexei's user avatar
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11 votes
5 answers
1k views

Why is visa-free travel such a big deal in politics?

There is currently a motion within the European Parliament to allow visa-free travel for Ukrainians. However for some reason I don't understand why it's such a big improvement - most Ukrainians who ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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3 votes
2 answers
222 views

What is the motivation behind the US I-Visa?

Whereas travellers to the US for "business or pleasure" may enter for up to 90 days visa-free (under the Visa Waiver Program / ESTA), you need a special one if you're "representing the ...
benxyzzy's user avatar
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13 votes
4 answers
1k views

Why does the U.S grant visas via lottery?

It is reasonable to grant a visa for education or investment but granting it by chance seems odd. I'm not sure if any other country does the same but there should be reason(s) for this (except giving ...
Xaqron's user avatar
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