Home

Contact Us

June, 2005
Back to index

UK announces new consular, visa fees

     London: Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has announced that the fees for passports, visas and chargeable consular services provided by British consular posts overseas are to change from Friday July 1, 2005. On the same date, the fee for legalisation services provided by the FCO in London and overseas will also change, an FCO release said. In 2004-05 British posts issued or amended 482,000 passports and issued 6,500 emergency passports. From 1 July 2005 the following passport fees will apply: Adult 32 page: 69.00 pounds (up from 56.50 pounds) Adult 48 page: 82.00 pounds (up from 67.70 pounds) Child: 45.00 pounds (up from 36.50 pounds) Emergency: 43.50 pounds (up from 35.50 pounds) Amendments: 57.00 pounds (up from 46.90 pounds) Temporary: 55.00 pounds (up from 45.60 pounds) Passport fees were last increased in October 2003. A new fee will be introduced to cover the costs of issuing Biometric Passports due to be implemented at overseas posts from December 2005. In 2004-05 British Posts and the London office legalised the signatures of officials, such as Notaries or Registrars, on more than 300,000 documents. From 1 July 2005 the legalisation fee will increase from 12 pounds to 19 pounds. The fees for these services were last increased in 1996. In 2004-05 British posts overseas processed 2.5 million visa applications. The fees for these services were last reviewed in 2002 From 1 July 2005 the following fees will apply: Six month visit visa to increase from 36 pounds-50 pounds Long term visas for stays of over six months (including student visas, work permit holders and working holiday makers) to increase to 85 pounds Settlement visas to remain unchanged at 260 pounds Long term validity visit visas will be reduced from 150 pounds (10 year visa) and 88 pounds (5 year visa) to 85 pounds. These changes will ensure that the full cost of providing services at home and overseas are fully recovered without any claim on public funds and to meet the increasing demand, while maintaining high standards of service. Full details of all new consular fees are available on the FCO website: www.fco.gov.uk/consularfees Full details of all new visa fees are available on the UKvisas website: www.ukvisas.gov.uk/news.
-June 10, 2005

Kashmir readying itself for Amarnath pilgrimage (Go to Top)

     Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir state government has agreed to commence the two-month long Amarnath pilgrimage from June 21 setting aside the controversy over its duration. "The pilgrimage from Baltal route would begin from 21st June and it would be for 60 days or two months. This time there would be no advance booking or registration for first 15 days, whosoever comes for the pilgrimage would be allowed. In these 15 days preference would be given to civilians," said J-K governor SK Sinha here on the sidelines of a national integration camp. Controversy had brimmed over the pilgrimage's duration as the state government decided to restrict it for a month citing security reasons. The decision was taken after Sinha, who is also chairman of the Amarnath Shrine Board, met with J-K chief minister Mufti Mohammad Syed on Monday. Major part of the pilgrimage route has been cleared and work is on to clear the remaining portion of the track in another ten days. Last year, around 300,000 devotees went on the pilgrimage. Several times militants have attacked the annual pilgrimage since the separatist revolt erupted in 1989. In 2002 eight Hindu pilgrims were killed in the attack on Nunwan camp in Pahalgam.
-June 8, 2005

Snow-bound Rohtang Pass still out of bounds for tourist vehicles (Go to Top)

     Kullu: Even after being thrown open to light vehicles, the Rohtang Pass still remains out of bounds for tourist vehicles until more snow is cleared. The 13,050-ft-high Rohtang Pass was earlier on Friday opened to light vehicles after nearly eight months. But, a whopping 65 feet of snow is still piled over the pass, which connects the scenic Kullu valley to the tribal Lahaul and Ladakh regions. "Since October last year, this pass was closed. This year we opened it on May 31. Although the pass has been opened to light vehicles, it will take at least a week before heavy and tourist vehicles are allowed to cross the pass. Right now we are standing at a height of 14,500 feet on the top of Rohtang Pass, said K.V. Raju, from the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). "This year due to heavy snow it was hard to figure out the alignment of the roads. When it snows the hills form their own shapes and so it is very difficult to figure out where the road is. Only experienced people can do that. So if at times we go out of track it takes a lot of time to get back on track," he added. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which looks after the upkeep of this high mountain pass, says the tourist vehicles are not being allowed as there is no parking facility on the pass, and could lead to traffic jams until more snow is cleared. In recent years, the pass has been opening in May.

     This year also the BRO had set a target to clear the pass on May 1 but, due to continuing snowfall in the summer, was able to open it only a month later. The pass received a heavy snowfall earlier this week, which is unusual. The mighty pass is around 55 km from the popular resort town of Manali. According to another official, over 20 million rupees have already been spent over the past few weeks to clear the snow in and around Rohtang. The pass is an important destination on the itinerary of tourists visiting the picturesque Kullu valley. Manali and other resorts in the Kullu valley are bursting with tourists escaping the searing heat of the plains. " We want to go to Ladakh if possible and I hope that like Rohtang Pass all other Passes are also open. We are enjoying a lot. The countryside is really beautiful. Such a huge amount of snow has surprised us," said, Michael, a foreign tourist. The opening of the Pass has also brought smiles to the faces of the villagers. "All the people in our village are very happy. The Pass is opening after some six to seven months. It will now become very convenient for us. We can now gain access to all kinds of facilities. When the Pass is closed we have to store vegetables and all kinds of food products. But now that the pass is open we can get everything fresh," said, Ramesh, a resident of Lahaul. The 480-km Manali-Leh road via Rohtang also forms an alternative route to the landlocked Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.
-June 7, 2005

                        Back to index                            Go to Top