Personal Appearance to be Required for Visa Application Submission

At a Glance

Effective March 19, 2018, Peruvian immigration authorities will require foreign nationals applying for visas in-country to appear in person to submit biometrics. Currently, third parties, including authorized law firms, can submit visa applications on behalf of foreign nationals.

The situation

Third parties will no longer be able to submit in-country visa applications on behalf of foreign nationals as of March 19, 2018, according to an announcement by Peruvian immigration authorities (Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones).

New process

The new process foreign nationals will need to follow to submit their visa applications will be as follows:

• Fragomen will prepare and review all application documents and will schedule an appointment for the foreign national to submit the visa application.

• The foreign national and his/her dependents, including minor children, will appear in person at the Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones to submit the application and biometrics.

• The Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones will grant access to an online portal by issuing a username and password to each foreign national and dependent the same day the application is filed. The online portal will be used to notify the foreign national of application progress, observations, changes and approvals.

• Once the visa is approved, the foreign national will be able to make an appointment with the Immigration Information Registry (RIM) through the online portal to obtain their local identification card.

Impact

The new process will require more direct involvement by the foreign national, which may be time consuming. Foreign nationals should expect delays as the online portal is implemented.

Background

Previously, Fragomen was able to file visa applications, follow up on the progress of the visa application and receive all notifications regarding the process on behalf of foreign nationals through a power of attorney.

Looking ahead

Fragomen will continue to advise clients on all steps of the immigration process, prepare and review all documents, and coordinate and accompany foreign nationals to appointments where a personal appearance is required.

Fragomen will ask foreign nationals to provide their login information so the process can be closely monitored.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected]