The procedure for obtaining a visa to visit Italy is not complicated. Applications are accepted at the Consulate General or Visa Application Center. After submitting the documents, applicants are interested in how to check the readiness of the Italian visa. Organizations that provide services for issuing entry permits to the country work according to international standards, so it will not be difficult to get full information on the status of the application.
How to find out the status of a document
The check option should be chosen depending on where the papers for the visa were submitted. Information about the status of the document can be found in the following ways:
- Online check on the website of the visa center. You will need the number of the contract for the provision of services, which is signed when submitting documents and issued to the applicant.
- Phone call to the Consulate General or Visa Application Center. Phone numbers can be found on the websites of the Visa Section of the Consulate General and the Visa Application Center of Italy. Visa centers provide an additional paid service - SMS notification (a short text message is sent to the applicant's phone number that ready documents are available).
- Personal appeal to the institution, whose employees carried out the acceptance of documents for an Italian visa. As a rule, lists of applicants for whom a visa has already been issued are posted at the stands or doors of the consulate.
On the website of the visa center
To check your visa status online, go to the official website of the Italian Visa Application Center in Russia:
- On the main page, select the branch where the documents were submitted.
- In the "Application status" section, click "Check the status of documents".
- In the fields of the special form, indicate the number of the agreement concluded with the visa center (issued to the applicant on the day of submission of documents), date of birth and code in the image. Click "Continue".
During the verification process, the following statuses may appear:
- “Fully accepted” - the documents meet the established requirements and are accepted by the visa center for consideration.
- “Forwarded to the embassy” - the papers were checked, processed by the employees of the intermediary organization and transferred to the Italian diplomatic mission.
- “Received from the consulate” - the passport is ready and can be issued to the applicant.
Along with the main marks, you can see additional information about the consideration of securities. Statuses can mean that:
- the document requires correction (“Visa Correction”);
- not all papers were provided, or errors were found in the certificates (“Incomplete package of documents”);
- the applicant's passport has a valid visa (“Own visa”);
- no permission to enter Italy has been granted (“Denied”);
- a passport with a visa provided to the applicant (“Issued to the customer”);
- documents must arrive from the embassy (“Waiting to leave the embassy”).
For more detailed information (how many days it will take to obtain a visa, at what stage the application is considered, what are the reasons for refusal), you should contact the consulate.
Features of submission of documents
To avoid problems when applying for a permit to enter Italy, you need to know some of the nuances.
The application should be submitted directly to the Consulate General in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar, other cities of Russia or through an accredited visa center of the VMS company.
Beware of intermediaries who offer quick and easy visa options.
The passport must meet the following requirements:
- valid for at least 3 months after the date of the end of the trip;
- issued no more than 10 years ago;
- contains at least two blank pages.
It is necessary to provide an international passport, which has expired, if it contains visas issued within the last two years.
The consular fee for visa processing services is paid only at Banca Intesa, with the exception of some cities in Russia. The receipt for the payment of the fee is valid for 3 months.
The package of papers must contain a document confirming legal residence in the country:
- invitation from an Italian citizen;
- hotel reservation;
- invitation of the host hotel, if the tour is purchased from a travel agency;
- confirmation of ownership of real estate or a lease.
In addition, the foreigner must have sufficient funds to stay in Italy during the validity period of the entry permit. As confirmation of the availability of the required amount, a 2-NDFL certificate, a certificate of purchase or currency exchange, electronic statements not certified by the seal and signature of a bank employee will not be suitable (an exception is an extract from the Tinkoff bank account).
Medical insurance must meet the requirements indicated on the website of the visa center (the insurance period is equal to or greater than the number of travel days, the amount of insurance coverage is at least 30,000 euros, the insurance contract is valid in the Schengen area).
In what cases do they not issue a permit to enter Italy
There are a number of reasons why a Schengen visa may be refused. The most popular are the following:
- The applicant provided false information or false documents.
- The questionnaire is incorrectly drawn up or the package of papers contains an insufficient number of certificates for making a decision.
- The passport does not meet all the necessary requirements.
- There are suspicions that the stated purpose of the trip does not correspond to reality.
- It is assumed that a person can pose a threat to the security of the country.
- When checking the observance of the terms of previous visas, violations were found (the foreigner left the territory of the country out of time after the end of the validity period of the permit, did not use the visa for the trip).
- The foreigner is listed in the database containing the data of persons who are undesirable to be granted an entry permit (the person committed a crime or violated the law, as a result of which he was expelled from the country, the visa was canceled).
The reason for the refusal may also be a clean passport. Individuals who are applying for a visa for the first time should pay special attention to the documents. Consulate officials are wary of the issuance of a permit to enter the Schengen country for single girls and people traveling without a family.
Is it possible to appeal a consular decision
In case of refusal to issue a visa, you must contact the Italian Consulate General with a request to submit a document explaining the reasons. If the applicant has complaints about the procedure for considering the application and the decision made, you can file an appeal.
The document must indicate the last name, first name, date of birth, passport number, date of refusal, name of the consulate, current mailing address, describe in detail why the refusal is unreasonable. The appeal should be accompanied by papers that support the argumentation and can influence the decision.
After the letter of appeal arrives at the embassy or consulate, the employees of the diplomatic mission are required to re-consider the application for a visa.
The visa department may require additional paperwork from the applicant or clarify the information provided. If a decision is made to grant a visa, the applicant will be invited for an interview at the diplomatic mission. If denied, the citizen will receive a letter explaining why the denial remains in effect.
Finally
Usually, the processing time for a tourist visa to Italy takes 4-5 working days. It takes a few minutes to check the readiness of a permit to enter the country.
Visa centers provide information online using the contract number or send an SMS notification if the applicant orders this service. Consulate staff advise in person or by phone.
It is important to prepare a complete package of documents and fill out the form correctly. You should not seek help from people who offer preferential conditions for visa applications.
