With few exceptions, travel to another country requires a passport but you may also need a visa. A passport is a document issued by a traveler’s home country government that verifies one’s country of citizenship. It is shown when entering a foreign country and also provides the credentials necessary to re-enter one’s home country.

What is a Visa?

Visas are the permission of the foreign government for a visitor to spend time in their country. Your purpose of visiting – tourism, business, diplomatic, study or transit – dictates the type of visa you may need. Visas are not required for all border crossings or for all nationalities. For example, U.S. citizens do not need a visa to enter Singapore, but do need one to enter Kuwait. Visas are often issued in the form of a stamp in the traveler’s passport, although some countries like Australia and Argentina issue them electronically. Usually the traveler mails an application form and their valid passport to the foreign country’s consular division for the visa to be issued. Whenever a passport is mailed, a trackable delivery service, such as UPS or FedEx should be used.  Some countries like China do not allow the traveler to mail in the required documents directly, but instead mandate that a professional visa processing service be used. Others like Kenya and Turkey issue visas to visitors upon arrival in the foreign country.

Cost of a Visa

There is a government fee for visa issuance, although the fees vary from country to country, from $20 to $160 or more. Fees may also vary for a particular country, depending on the length of intended stay. If you are traveling soon and need the visa processing to be expedited, it can usually be pushed through faster – for an additional fee, of course.

Visa Document Requirements

The requirements for a business visa are often more stringent than for a tourist visa. Generally, all visas require proof of onward transportation (a ticket to leave the country) and sometimes a passport-style photo is required, but if you are transacting business in a foreign country, there are additional requirements. Many countries also require that the business traveler submit an invitation from their business hosts and/or a letter of financial responsibility from their home business. Additionally, the cost of a business visa is often higher than a tourist visa.

If a visa is required for your destination, it is absolutely essential that you have it in the required form or you will be denied boarding or even worse, be denied entry upon arrival and returned to the U.S. Your first resource for finding out if you do indeed need one is your travel advisor. Since every visa is a little different, it’s best to have a professional working with you.  When you make reservations with Covington’s detail oriented advisors, they ensure that you know any visa requirements and can assist in obtaining them. And you can worry about more important things like packing!