US embassy denies $$ increase for visas

Persons wishing to apply for US visas need not worry about increases in application fees as embassy officials yesterday deemed media reports inaccurate.

Officials yesterday responded to media reports carried via television and in another newspaper, that there were plans to increase fees from $610 to a maximum $1000. According to the official, “There are no plans to increase any fees. This is all speculation on the public’s part and we have no idea where they might have received this information.” When Newsday posed the question to members of the public yesterday about how they felt about the rumoured increase, many deemed the move unfair and a slap in the face of poor people trying to make ends meet.

One man, Boyd Lyons from Tunapuna, said, “this is too ridiculous. A thousand dollars, and no guarantee of whether you going to get the visa or not? The 9-11 incident was all an indication that the United States has a lot of enemies. And now they doing this to us in Trinidad? All they doing is creating more enemies.” Another woman from the San Fernando area said she feels they went a bit over board with the supposed increase. “Is this the way they plan to control the number of people visiting their country? This is just so unfair, especially to the citizens who don’t even earn as much as a basic salary.”

While reports of an increase in application fees have been dismissed by embassy officials, fingerprinting exercises of visa applicants has already begun in other countries around the world. Photos placed on the world wide web show the fingerprinting and photographing of persons entering the United States. Authorities began scanning fingerprints and taking photographs of arriving foreigners as part of a new programme meant to keep terrorists out of the country.

The same exercise is due to start in Trinidad and Tobago within the next month. Embassy officials confirmed that systems are being put in place to have visa applicants photographed and fingerprinted. “The equipment is here and is being put in place. It is just a matter of testing the process to make sure it works. Following that, it will be introduced to the general public,” the official said.