THINGS TO BE CARRIED TO THE CONSULATE

This is the list of things that you are supposed to carry along with you to the consulate for the VISA interview.

Arrange all the materials in a "HARMONIUM" file. This is a kind of file which has many sections and has a small tag holder for every section, where you can place a small tag about what the section holds, so that when u put your finger on that tab and opens the section you get the required documents.

Materials to be carried along

1) I-20(signed) and Admission Letter of the University you want the VISA for + AID Letter (if any)

2) I-20s and Admission Letters / Acceptance Letters / Rejection Letters of other Univs you applied 2

3) GRE & TOEFL Score Reports (Originals)

4) Bank Passbook of the SB or Current type account + Bank Certificate (Opt) + Papers clarifying big entries in your PASSBOOK

5) INCOME PAPERS :- IT return Statement of your sponsors( Form 16) /If your sponsor is into business.. BUSINESS Papers + Agricultural Income Proof

6) CA Statement + Affidavit of Support

7) FIXED Deposits + (ICICI or RBI or else) Bonds + Private FDs

8) LIC + UTI + PF + PPF + Super-Annuation Papers of your sponsor

9) NSC + Indira Vikas Patra + Kisan Vikas Patra + Share Certificates

10) House Tax Bill(Previous) + Land Papers (If showing agricultural income or immovable) + Factory Papers (If into mfg)+ Evaluation of Land &/+ House ( to show the value of your immovable assets)

11) Emails of correspondence with professors of your Univ + SOP + Biodata

12) Degree Certificate / Provisional Degree Certificate / Bonafide Certificate from your College

13) Original Marksheets of your Undergrad, HSC, SSC

15) PASSPORT + VISA Form + 37 mm x 37 mm VISA Photographs, with white background( 2 Nos)

Note:

1. If sponsor is employed then....Salary Certificate (Latest) and Employment Certificate if sponsor is doing a job. If tax is deducted at the source by the company, carry the TDS certificate as well.

2.If sponsor is a businessman then...

a)Income-Tax Returns of the Company (atleast 2 years)

b)Title / Partnership deed

c)Passbook of the business account

d)Balancesheet

3.Fund Flow Statement

a)Jewellery Evaluation

b)House Evaluation

c)Land Evaluation

FINANCIAL QUERIES

1. What is a Summary Statement?

A - This lists all your assets and their worth in US Dollars and Indian Rupee. This is especially necessary for the Consulate Office at Mumbai where the officers have openly stated that they dont value CA Statements.

2. How to show bonds?

A - Again this is something, which the VISA officers ask for provided they are listed in your Summary Statement. So carry your bonds with you. If you possess too many of them, carry the important ones atleast. In addition to this, carry a summary of all the bonds you have.

3. How to show stocks?

A - Provided you have dematted your shares, you can carry the transaction statements provided by the institution which has your demat account. Then you neednt carry the physical shares. In case shares are not dematted, carry some of the important physical shares you possess. In addition to this, you may carry a summary of the stocks.

4. Is a CA Statement necessary?

A - Not at all necessary for Mumbai Consulate. I know of a few cases where the CA Statement was just thrown aside by the VISA Officer in Mumbai. I think other Consulates still value CA Statements.

5. Is property evaluation necessary?

A - Its sufficent to simply carry the property papers. Its unlikely that the VISA officers will ask you for them, but you never know. A formal evaluation from an architect is not necessary at all. Simply list the worth in the summary statement according to what you think it is but dont quote an exaggerated value. VISA officers dont give importance to the value of your property as they assume you are not going to sell off your property to finance your education. It is essential only to indicate that your roots are in India.

6. Is jewellery evaluation necessary?

A - A formal evaluation is not required. Only the approximate worth of the jewellery you own needs to be listed in the Summary Statement. However, dont exaggerate the amount too much. You can quote jewellery of about 2.5 to 4 lacs without evaluating. But for showing values larger than that, you need the evaluation papers. You can get it evaluated from a Jewellery shop, or Govt. approved appraiser.

7. What is a Fund Flow Statement?

A - This statement is not essential. But it will help you in demonstrating to the VISA officer, how you are going to actually furnish your expenses. It lists the semester wise breakup of the amount required and what part of your assets will cover for it.

8. Is Affidavit of support required?

8. Is Affidavit of support required?

A - This is NOT required if your sponsor are your parents (which should be the ideal case). However, if its not your parents you will need an affidavit of support from your sponsor notarized on a Rs. 20 Stamp Paper.

9. Who should be the sponsor?

A - Ideally, it should be your parents. Even if you dont have the funds with you, try to borrow funds from your relatives, friends etc for the bank statements and then you can return the money. The entire amount borrowed shouldnt be deposited in the bank all of a sudden. It should be in bits and pieces - deposits ranging from Rs. 10000 to Rs.2,00,000 would be fine. I would also recommend you to often pick some money in units of 5000 or 10000 to make it appear as if the account is an active one, and all the money belongs to you.As far as really paying for your education is concerned, you can take a loan or take support from some other sponsor. But try to show to the officer that you havent taken a loan and no external person (not even your uncle / aunty) is sponsoring you. It should be your parents only.

10. How to show funds for the finances?

A - The most ideal scenario would be to have the amount equivalent to the first year's expenses in your savings account and the amount equivalent to your second year's expenses in your fixed deposits and/or provident funds. Other assets such as property, stocks, bonds will then serve to show that you are well to do. And it will pose you no problems as far as finances are concerned. However, this is the maximum. The minumum would be to cover your first year's expenses using your savings and fixed deposits and depend on your stocks, bonds, jewellery, property etc for your second year. Make sure that you can show that there is a sufficent amount left even after your second year's expenses so that they dont think that you will have nothing left after your education. You can arrange for any amount above the minimum specified.

So the simple mathematics is :

Bank Balance

Minimum : One Year's Expenses + 1,00,000Rs

Maximum : One Year's Expenses x 1.5

Bank Fixed Deposits

Minimum : 3 -> 4 lacs

Maximum : 5 lacs + Gold Ornaments and

other Jewellery

Minimum : 2.5 -> 4 lacs ( without evaluation )

Maximum : 5 -> 8 lacs ( with evaluation papers )

Annual Income

Minimum : 20 % of the total expenses of your full period of studies

Maximum : As much as u can show

11. Can I show more than 1 bank account?

A - Yes, you can. No one keeps 10-12 lakhs in a single account. So its ok to split it up into multiple accounts (say 3). But make sure that your bank statements are issued on the same date. This is just to avoid the Consulate Officer from thinking that you have simply rotated the same money from one account to another.

12. What to show - bank statements or passbooks?

A - Show both. Passbooks are absolutely essential - bank statements are optional, but its good to arrange for it. Both should be issued for a date as recent as possible. Also put a Paper clip onto your passbooks so that the page having the last entry is readily visible.

13. Which should have more funds? savings acc or fixed deposits?

A - Ideally, the amount should be in savings as indicated above. However, its ok to have an equal amount in both savings and fixed deposits. But its NOT advisable to keep a small amount (2-3 lakhs) in savings and the rest in fixed deposits. It would make sense to break your FDs and put the money in your savings. Its because they directly see the entries in your Passbook as to what is the amount reflected by your current savings. They interpret the current savings as the money that you have to spend for immediate expenses. So the bottomline is that whatever your fees be, even if you have full aid, your savings account should reflect atleast 8 to 10 lacs.