Visa services & DIY visas

Oceania offers the opportunity to get your visa from their subcontractor's service. You can also at a substantial savings do it yourself. That is good if you live near where the consulate is located. We tried that once. It worked, but was time consuming and a bit troublesome. We decided this time to use the service offered and pay the fees, albeit dear. Now only to find out because of the myriad of stamped pages our passports were almost full and China has a particular need for facing blank pages were necessary.

We need to pay an additional fee to get added pages put in by the Department of State through the visa servicing company. Whew! it is adding up fast.

Now, today on CNN we hear that Dept. of State will no longer put extra pages into passports due to passport violations that they expect due to the international situation. I hope we are in the pipeline for the extra pages, plus the Chinese visas. We won't know until mid December if we need to get new passports. That cuts it close to our travel dates.

Has anyone in the US had experience with the extra pages issue or using the visa services or are you in the same situation as we are?

This was in today's International Business Times and other news publications:

"The U.S. government will stop adding extra visa pages to existing U.S. passports beginning Jan. 1, the State Department announced Thursday. Previously, U.S. passport holders could buy an additional 24 pages when they ran out of space in their passports for necessary visa stamps. Within two months, however, they'll need to scrap the old passport and get a new one."

Therefore, you shouldn't have a problem obtaining the extra pages in December…but "shouldn't" doesn't necessarily mean "won't."

This was in today's International Business Times and other news publications:

 

"The U.S. government will stop adding extra visa pages to existing U.S. passports beginning Jan. 1, the State Department announced Thursday. Previously, U.S. passport holders could buy an additional 24 pages when they ran out of space in their passports for necessary visa stamps. Within two months, however, they'll need to scrap the old passport and get a new one."

 

Therefore, you shouldn't have a problem obtaining the extra pages in December…but "shouldn't" doesn't necessarily mean "won't."

I guess that this is another instance that CNN or the instant internet news cycle does it again. Maybe someday in the near future we will get the story straight.

My wife and I heard it so I wonder now if we heard wrong. I doubt it. Thanks for the info.

This was in today's International Business Times and other news publications:

 

"The U.S. government will stop adding extra visa pages to existing U.S. passports beginning Jan. 1, the State Department announced Thursday. Previously, U.S. passport holders could buy an additional 24 pages when they ran out of space in their passports for necessary visa stamps. Within two months, however, they'll need to scrap the old passport and get a new one."

 

Therefore, you shouldn't have a problem obtaining the extra pages in December…but "shouldn't" doesn't necessarily mean "won't."

Does this fall into the "you need 6 months from time of departure and arrival left on your passport expiration" rule?

Does this fall into the "you need 6 months from time of departure and arrival left on your passport expiration" rule?

Don't believe the 6 months left and adding pages are in the same category.

Suggestion is that it costs $82 to add pages while only $110, $28 more for the renewal and you can get additional pages in the renewal by simply checking the additional page box for the same price and with the renewal you extend validity an additional 10 years so if you are about 3 years or more into your passport validity, better to get it renewed and always ask for the additional pages from the start since they don't cost extra.

So, really not such a big deal or significant extra cost to have the option to get additional pages only put into your passport.

Suggestion is that it costs $82 to add pages while only $110, $28 more for the renewal and you can get additional pages in the renewal by simply checking the additional page box for the same price and with the renewal you extend validity an additional 10 years so if you are about 3 years or more into your passport validity, better to get it renewed and always ask for the additional pages from the start since they don't cost extra.

 

So, really not such a big deal or significant extra cost to have the option to get additional pages only put into your passport.

Someone recently wrote about holding a three-year multiple-entry visa for Russia. I thought of that cruiser when I read the WASHINGTON POST'S article about the new passport rules.

There's an interesting wrinkle with the new passport rules if you run out of pages and can't buy new pages, but your old passport still hold valid visas. Simply renew your passport, but bring both the old and new ones. Here's what William Cocks, a spokesman for the Bureau of Consular Affairs said, "Anyone applying for a new passport will get the old one back. Though the passport will be canceled, any unused visas in the old book will still be valid"

Here's the link to the entire article:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/11/19/a-big-passport-change-is-coming-that-could-affect-frequent-travelers/?hpid=hp_hp-cards_hp-card-national%3Ahomepage%2Fcard

This article is another source for the new rules going into effect January 1.

Someone recently wrote about holding a three-year multiple-entry visa for Russia. I thought of that cruiser when I read the WASHINGTON POST'S article about the new passport rules.

 

There's an interesting wrinkle with the new passport rules if you run out of pages and can't buy new pages, but your old passport still hold valid visas. Simply renew your passport, but bring both the old and new ones. Here's what William Cocks, a spokesman for the Bureau of Consular Affairs said, "Anyone applying for a new passport will get the old one back. Though the passport will be canceled, any unused visas in the old book will still be valid"

 

Here's the link to the entire article:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/11/19/a-big-passport-change-is-coming-that-could-affect-frequent-travelers/?hpid=hp_hp-cards_hp-card-national%3Ahomepage%2Fcard

 

This article is another source for the new rules going into effect January 1.

Excellent Pet Nit Noy, the ability to bring with you your old visa that contains a still valid Visa has been the case for many years and for US people really helpful with the Brazil Visa we can get here in the states that is valid for 10 years and will always outlive the passport it is put into.

And, so people are not concerned when the new Passport arrives without the old no longer valid Passport, the old passport with a hole in it making it invalid is sent in a different envelope so, if you need your old Passport because your valid visa is contained in it, you have to allow more time for delivery of the old passport or you will be stuck without a visa for your trip.

I was planning on getting extra pages for my passport in time for the September cruise that we ended up cancelling. But I saw the notice about the impending end of the possibility of adding extra pages during the summer and when I compared costs I decided just to renew my passport early. Now I am postponing doing so since we don't have any foreign travel on the books until next October.

We are in the process of waiting for our passports to be returned with extra pages and a China Visa for a cruise in March. Is it true that the passports will expire in two months. Will that mean we need to get new passports now?

Don't understand why you are asking us when your passports expire?? Only you know that based on the date on the passport. Nothing in what we have discussed changes the expiration dates. Putting pages in your passports has no effect on your passport beyond more blank pages

We are in the process of waiting for our passports to be returned with extra pages and a China Visa for a cruise in March. Is it true that the passports will expire in two months. Will that mean we need to get new passports now?

This article https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/11/19/a-big-passport-change-is-coming-that-could-affect-frequent-travelers/

Doesn't mention the two month expiration. Where did that come from?

Bill

This article https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/11/19/a-big-passport-change-is-coming-that-could-affect-frequent-travelers/

 

Doesn't mention the two month expiration. Where did that come from?

 

Bill

The "two months" above referred (very approximately; it's not much more than one month now) to the time when someone would need to get a new passport INSTEAD OF "just new extra pages".

That's how we understand the situation, anyway.

GeezerCouple

Don't understand why you are asking us when your passports expire?? Only you know that based on the date on the passport. Nothing in what we have discussed changes the expiration dates. Putting pages in your passports has no effect on your passport beyond more blank pages

It has to do with the two month cancellation notice mentioned in an earlier posting. I could not find it. Fortunately, I don't believe now that it pertains to my passport expiring in 2019. We hope we have three years to fill up the extra pages before getting new passports.