Opinion-Columns | MIGRANT MATTERS: Pay to enter, fees to leave

“OPEN sesame!”

If only the same magical phrase in the story of “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” works when applying for a visitor visa to a country of the intended destination.

In the real world, unless there is an agreement among a group of countries allowing the free movement of citizens in the participating nations, a visa is required to visit or stay temporarily. An example is the Asean, 10 member nations, which include Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

However, whether a visa applicant is a citizen of one Asean nation or not, he/she needs a visa to visit any of the five DestiNations (DNs) — Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the US.

Applicants for visitor visas may choose online or paper application processing, albeit online application is recommended for faster processing.

The fee charged by Australia for a tourist/visitor visa is AU$195 (the equivalent of US$132.32; UK, £115 ($151.25); and New Zealand, NZ$211 ($132). Canada charges the lowest at CA$100 ($74.14). The US charges $185.

How about when leaving the country?

Upon completion of the purpose or end of the visit (whichever comes first), three of the five DNs impose an exit or departure fee: New Zealand, NZ$25 (as departure tax). The UK none, unless the applicant is flying from the UK to the US. In these cases, the fee is £87 ($112) for economy passengers and £216 ($27) for premium passengers by April 1, 2025.

Canada and the US do not currently have nor intend to charge an exit fee in the future.

The exit fee for travelers leaving Australia is now one of the highest in the world.

On July 1 this year, the Department of Home Affairs’ Australian Border Force announced an AU$70 ($47.50) exit fee for international travelers leaving the country to “support Australia’s biosecurity systems.”

When an applicant’s visitor’s visa is issued, the conditions are implied or considered to have been met during the visa processing and/or interview.

Unlike the other four DNs, where applicants let their documents speak for themselves (whether by online or paper processing), the US requires a personal interview for B1 and B2 visitor visa applicants. B1 is a temporary business visit visa, and B2 is for pleasure. However, the majority of visitor applicants to the US apply for and are issued the B1/B2 visa.

The DS-160 nonimmigrant visa application presents a series of questions related to an applicant’s admissibility, which the applicant must answer truthfully. Since a visitor visa is temporary in nature, the applicant must provide evidence that he/she has permanent ties in the country of residence/nationality, a residence that he/she does not intend to abandon.

The other conditions that a US visitor applicant pledges to comply with are not to become a public charge, possession or access to sufficient funds for the duration of the intended visit since working while on a visitor visa is prohibited.

In certain instances, the visa issued comes with annotations such as “No change or adjustment of status.”

Change of status refers to applying for another temporary visa, such as from tourist to student or working visa. Adjustment of status, on the other hand, relates to a change of status from temporary to permanent by way of a spouse or family sponsorship or an immigrant visa based on an approved petition by an employer.

A visitor visa applicant to Australia may be issued a “no further stay” visa condition preventing visa holders from overstaying.

Other visa conditions for visitors in Australia:

– 8101- Cannot work in Australia.

– 8201- Allows studies or training for a maximum of up to three months.

– 8503 – Prohibiting overstayers.

– 8531- Under any circumstances, the visa holder must leave Australia before the expiry of the visa.

New Zealand visa conditions

A visitor visa holder must meet specific conditions, the most common of which are:

– Visa expiry date – last day to stay in New Zealand on the visa.

– Return/onward travel not required – visa holder must have a ticket to leave New Zealand, enough money to buy a plane ticket out of New Zealand, or an acceptable sponsor who can pay for the outbound ticket out of NZ to the applicant’s country or another country where the applicant is allowed entry and expiry date travel.

– The last day to enter New Zealand.

– Number of entries – “Multiple entries” – how many times a visa holder may re-enter New Zealand before the ‘expiry date travel.’

Failure to leave NZ after the expiration of the visa could result in not being able to return to New Zealand.

Staying for 42 days or longer without a valid visa subjects the person to detention or deportation.

UK visitor visa holders must:

– Leave the UK at the end of the stated visit;

– Have funds for support during the trip (or have funding from someone else to support the applicant);

– Pay for the return or onward journey (or have funding from someone else to pay for the journey); and

– Not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits or make the UK the visa holder’s main home.

Fees for staying longer

A visitor visa in each of the Five DestiNations usually allows a foreign national to stay an average of six months.

In Canada, the duration of lawful stay may be issued by the immigration officer on the passport stamp upon entry. If a visitor’s record is issued, the person must leave Canada by the expiry day listed on the visitor record.

If the passport is not stamped and the applicant goes through a primary inspection kiosk, he/she can only stay in Canada for up to six months from the day of initial entry or until the passport expires, whichever comes first.

In practice, such an occurrence is rare or few and far between. The fee to extend such a stay is CA$100.

In Australia, the cost is AU$380: the visa cannot be extended once it expires. A subsequent extension costs AU$1,045.

The good news is that the initial Australian visitor visa may be up to 12 months, although the period granted might be shorter — three or six months, depending on the circumstances and details of the intended visit.

New Zealand charges NZ$210 for variations in visitor visa conditions ($131.35).

UK visa holders may extend temporary stay if the applicant has permission to be in the UK for less than six months. The maximum period a visitor can stay in the UK in such status is only up to a total of six months.

Nevertheless, a visa holder can only apply for longer than six months if he/she is a patient receiving medical treatment, an academic needing to meet the eligibility requirements, a graduate retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board (PLAB) test or doing a clinical attachment.

In all cases, the visa holder must apply to extend the authorized stay and pay the £1,000 fee, regardless of nationality.

US visa holders pay $470 (paper filing) or $420 online.

And as with all five DNs, the applicant must apply for an extension or privilege to stay longer than the initial period while still in status and before the current visa or permission expires.

Otherwise, if one’s lawful status expires without the authority to stay longer — case closed.

“Close sesame!”