Embassy Closures : week of 11 February – 15 February 11 February 13
Posted by Jonathan V. Phillips in Embassy Consulate Closure.Tags: Afghanistan, Cameroon, China, Chinese Consulate San Francisco, Embassy, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Taiwan, Vietnam
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This week starts a New Year for many in Asia. Lunar New Year is observed this week and many embassies and consulates will closed, some for an extended period. Starting on Monday the 11th of February China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam will all be closed. The Chinese embassy and most of it’s consulates around the country will be closed until Thursday February 14th. Vietnam will stay closed until Friday, the 15th of February. An addition to the New Year, there are closures at the embassies of Cameroon and Myanmar this week. Afghanistan will be closed on Friday to observe their Day of Liberation.
11 February, Monday:
Lunar New Year – China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam
12 February, Tuesday:
Lunar New Year – China and Vietnam
13 February, Wednesday:
Lunar New Year – China (Chinese consulate in San Francisco is open) and Vietnam
14 February, Thursday:
Lunar New Year – Vietnam (Embassy in DC is open)
15 February, Friday:
As is always the case for holiday closures, the closure means no new visa will be submitted or completed jobs picked up. A holiday does not count towards the total processing time associated with completing a request. Because of the two holidays travelers are advised to take into account any extra time their requests my require when determining to how quickly to process their visa request
Chinese New Year : Important closures next week 8 February 13
Posted by Jonathan V. Phillips in Embassy Consulate Closure.Tags: China, Indonesia, Korea, Lunar New Year, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam
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Happy Year of the Snake !The week of February 11 – 15 will see extended closures at numerous embassies and consulates. The Chinese Lunar New Year starts on Sunday, February 10. The holiday, which is not uniquely Chinese, is observed by many countries in Asia. The embassies of China, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam will all be closed. China and Vietnam will be taking an extended holiday while the others will only be closed on Monday the 10th. Those countries will not reopen until Thursday, February 14. The exception is the Chinese consulate in San Francisco, which will reopen on Wednesday, February 13. If you are in a travel crunch and need a Chinese visa asap, contact the G3 San Francisco office.
As is always the case for holiday closures, the closure means no new visa will be submitted or completed jobs picked up. A holiday does not count towards the total processing time associated with completing a request. Because of the two holidays travelers are advised to take into account any extra time their requests my require when determining to how quickly to process their visa request
.
Closures to make short week starting on January 21 18 January 13
Posted by Jonathan V. Phillips in Embassy Consulate Closure, Passport.Tags: Afghanistan, Cameroon, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Jordan, Mali, Russia, Vietnam
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There is a short week for visa and passport processing coming up. Starting on Monday the 21st, the combined Martin Luther King Jr. Federal holiday and the Presidential Inauguration will see closures at most Embassies and consulates. Monday will also close Federal Offices such as all Passport Offices and the Department of State Office of Authentications. Additionally, do to the scale of the Inaugural event and it’s impact on the City, G3’s Washington (Arlington, VA) office will be close operations at noon on the 21st. The other G3 offices in New York, Atlanta, Miami, Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco are not effected and will be open during normal business hours Monday.
Thursday the 24th of January sees an important holiday in the Islamic Calendar. Mawlid al-Nabi or Ma’uled Al-Nabi, which is a celebration of the Prophet Mohamed’s birthday, takes place. The holiday will cause closures at embassies and consulates from Islamic countries around the country who our commemorating the day. Although not a complete list as consular offices don’t always announce their intention to close,
The Embassies and consulates representing Afghanistan, Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Jordan and Mali have all announced closures on the 24th. Be advised that this list is not definitive as consular offices don’t always announce their intention to close. Other Islamic consular offices can be expected to be closed. We will up date the known closure list for the holiday as soon as we know.
As is always the case for holiday closures, the closure means no new visa or passport applications can be submitted or completed jobs picked up. A holiday does not count towards the total processing time associated with completing a request. Because of the two holidays travelers are advised to take into account any extra time their requests my require when determining to how quickly to process a passport or visa.
Embassy Closures Week of 12 November 2012 13 November 12
Posted by Jonathan V. Phillips in Embassy Consulate Closure.Tags: China, Diwali, India, Indonesia, Islamic New Year, Nepal, Russia, Vietnam
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A Federal holiday on Monday will see most embassies honoring US Veterans Day which is also Armistice Day for those in Western Europe. The State Department’s Passport Offices are all closed Monday as well. The Hindu Festival of Diwali will see closures at the Indian Embassy and it’s Consulates General but their outsourcing operations are still open. This week also has Islamic New Year which will cause delays and closures at various consulates and embassies.
The full list of weekly closures by day
12 November, Monday Veteran’s Day/ Armistice Day
US Passport Offices
Brazil
Cambodia
Vietnam
China (DC, NY, SF only)
India
Laos
Russia(outsourcing closed, consulates open)
Angola closed for Independence Day
Azerbaijan closed for Constitution Day, (outsourcing open)
13 November, Tuesday
India closed for Diwali (outsourcing open)
14 November, Wednesday
Nepal closed for Sambat New Year
15 November, Thursday Islamic New Year –
Algeria
Bahrain
Djibouti
Egypt
Indonesia
Iraq
Jordan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya
Malaysia
Morocco
Oman
Syria
UAE
Yemen
(expect other consulates to close that have not reported their holiday schedule)
Belgium closed for Dynasty Day
Cote d’Ivoire closed for National Peace Day
Remember when consular office are closed there are no visa processed
or new applications accepted on that day. When an embassy or
consulate is closed, that day does count as a processing day and
applications currently in for process will have the visa processing
extended to include the non processing closure day. Please account
for extra time if you are applying for a visa to a country whose office closed because of holiday.
If you have any questions on how long your visa request will take
for a particular country please feel free to contact our
professional staff for more information.
Embassy Closure List week of 22 October 2012 22 October 12
Posted by Jonathan V. Phillips in Embassy Consulate Closure.Tags: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Benin, Cambodia, Eid al-Adha, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Turkmenistan, visa, Zambia
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Embassy closures has the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha causing closures at the end of the week. Applicants can expect to have visa processing delays due to embassy closures at consulates and embassies representing Muslim countries. This week’s other notable closures include Kazakhstan’s national day, independence days for Zambia and Turkmenistan and Thailand closing for Chulalongkorn. India has a closure for Dusshera but the processing center is open for new submissions, applications in process and will take an extra day to process visas as the Indian embassy and all their consulates are closed.
23 October, Tuesday
Thailand closed for Chulalongkorn Memorial Day/King Rama V Day
24 October, Wednesday
India closed for Dusshera; Travisa open for submissions
Zambia closed for Independence Day
October 25, Thursday Eid al-Adha begins this evening; closures will include:
Bangladesh
Saudi Arabia (embassy and all consulates)
Kazakhstan closed for Republic Day
October 26, Friday Eid al-Adha – closures will include:
Afghanistan
Bangladesh
Ethiopia
Ghana
Indonesia
Malaysia
Saudi Arabia (embassy and all consulates)
Benin closed for Armed Forces Day
Cambodia closed for Coronation Day
Turkmenistan closed for Independence Day
Uganda
Remember when consular office are closed there are no visa processed
or new applications accepted on that day. When an embassy or
consulate is closed, that day does count as a processing day and
applications currently in for process will have the visa processing
extended to include the non processing closure day. Please account
for extra time if you are applying for a visa to a country whose office closed because of holiday.
If you have any questions on how long your visa request will take
for a particular country please feel free to contact our
professional staff for more information.
International Protest Update, September 21 21 September 12
Posted by Summer Jenkins in State Department Update.Tags: Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Ecuador, Gabon, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, protests, Spain, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda
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Ten days after the first protests broke out at US Consulates in Egypt and Libya, demonstrations continue, and have now spread to nations beyond the Islamic world. In some nations, protesters have targeted locales deemed to be American interests, such as fast food restaurants and movie theaters. French Embassies and interests are also now at risk, following a French magazine’s publication of cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammed on September 19.
The US State Department has responded by temporarily closing dozens of diplomatic missions abroad, and has issued official warnings for the following countries:
- Austria – planned protest at the US Embassy in Vienna on Saturday.
- Australia – possible demonstrations in multiple locations in Perth this weekend.
- India – Several US Consulates have been closed as a precaution following last week’s protests in Kashmir and Chennai.
- Ireland – planned protest at the US Embassy in Dublin on Friday afternoon.
- Jordan – several demonstrations planned at the US Embassy and other locations in Amman on Friday afternoon.
- Mali – high risk of protests and civil unrest targeting the embassies of USA and France in Bamako on Friday and throughout the weekend.
- Mauritania – high risk of protests at the embassies of USA and France in Nouakchott, as well as at the Grande Mosque and Marche Capital areas on Friday and throughout the weekend.
- Nigeria – the US Embassy in Abuja and the US Consulate General in Lagos will close at 11:00AM today as a precautionary measure, as demonstrations are likely.
- Norway – two planned demonstrations on Friday afternoon, one at the US Embassy in Oslo, and one in Oslo’s Youngstorget area.
- Pakistan – the US Consulate General in Lahore is temporarily closed due to violent protests. Demonstrations are ongoing in other cities, including Peshawar, Islamabad, Karachi and Rawalpindi.
- Tunisia – protests at the US Embassy in Tunis are expected on Friday. The Embassy and Consular Section is temporarily closed to the public.
- Turkmenistan – although no protests have yet been announced, the US Embassy in Ashgabat warns US citizens of the possibility of demonstrations arising spontaneously.
- Uganda – the US Embassy in Kampala urges US citizens to “keep a low profile and avoid unnecessary travel,” as demonstrations are likely to occur throughout Uganda this weekend.
Further protests have occurred in Kabul, Afghanistan, Jakarta and several other cities in Indonesia, Quito, Ecuador, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The US State Department has also issued warnings for Gabon, Spain and Malta, although demonstrations in those countries are likely to be for unrelated political and economic reasons.
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