London:
The company “Travel Coordinator” went on line and checked the official requirements for visa application to Saudi Arabia and all seemed fairly straight forward, if a little bureaucratic. Must have a valid passport; must provide two identical passport photos (which must be different from the picture in the passport and from pictures previously submitted to the embassy for expired past visas); must have an invitation letter from the company you are visiting in Saudi Arabia; must fill a “pdf” downloadable form giving job title and purpose of visit; must pay visa fees in advance. The whole thing took a significant amount of the coordinator’s time to sort out but, sort it out she did.
You then had to go to a Saudi Embassy somewhere to submit the application package which had been painstakingly assembled for you and wait for a couple of days to find out if your application was successful or not.
On one occasion, I was too busy to go in person so I asked my daughter if she could go and do it for me. She was told in no uncertain terms that although it said clearly on the system that the right fee was paid on-line, she had to present a printed receipt of the paid fee to complete my application. My daughter rang me and asked what she should do next. I said she should thank the nice man behind the counter, collect the whole package and abandon mission without upsetting him in case he bore a grudge.
Subsequently, my colleague, the “Travel Coordinator” printed a receipt and a few weeks later I travelled to London for meetings and took an extra day to visit the Saudi Embassy to re-apply for a visa.
I arrived at the embassy at 9:15 am, 15 full minutes before official opening hours. I was delighted to see I was the first in line and expected to be in and out by 9:35 at the latest and began fantasising about a croissant and a coffee at a nearby coffee shop.
At 9:30 sharp a security chap opened the doors to the Visa Section, checked me for absence of weapons and instructed me to take a seat inside where there was a long counter behind thick glass with three empty chairs opposite 3 circular holes for applicants to interact with Embassy staff; if there were staff to interact with. Although the Saudi Embassy is in one of the most prestigious areas of London occupying a very impressive and imposing building with stunning façade worthy of the rich country it represents, the Visa Section had a separate side entrance which, to be honest, reflected badly on the image of the country. The place was uninviting, the décor was old and in need of attention, and the fixtures & furniture were decidedly Seventies in style. In fact the not-so-ergonomic chairs behind the counter had holes in the upholstery and would have looked more at home in a Harare taxi call centre.
At 9:57 a gentleman emerged through a door in the wall carrying a mug of smouldering coffee and commandeered one of the decrepit chairs behind the counter, shuffled a few pieces of paper in a self-important manner, kick started his computer, took a few sips of his coffee, coughed a couple of times and finally decided he was ready to do business, a full 31 minutes late!
Official: Who is next?
Me (handing over my immaculately prepared application pack): Good morning
Official: This is the wrong application
Me: What do you mean?
Official: you have filled the wrong form
Me: We got the form from your website!
Official: we have many forms; you filled the wrong form
Me: excuse my ignorance but, how do you know it is the wrong form?
Official (with the superior voice of an expert speaking to an idiot): You have filled the “Commercial Form” instead of the “Business Form”
Me: What is the difference?
Official: The two forms are different colours
Me: Sorry, I meant what is the difference between “Commercial” and “Business”?
Official: There are many differences
Me: Oh, that explains it. Can I have the right form to fill in now?
Official: Not from here, you have to go on our website and download it
Me: But I have no access to either the internet or a printer and by the time I get to a place with both and return, you will be closed
Official (with a hint of a smile): yes
Me: You have been most helpful, can I have my papers back please?
Official: Who is next?
I was about to ask why was this mistake on our part not mentioned when my application was originally submitted and rejected but to be honest, that would have been a waste of a question on this undiplomatic diplomat!
Ridiculous as it seemed to me at the time, I have no complaints about my visa application being rejected on the grounds of wrong colour form or my inability to fathom the difference between commercial and business visas. I accept that rules are rules and I have to follow them to be allowed into another country. I just wish they would employ people who show a slight interest in processing your application instead of delighting in rejecting it.
