Italy is among the most visited Schengen countries and gets more than 1.8 million visa applications from all over the world. Close to 1000 applications were Italy visa from Boston and many of them got rejected.
In 2016 alone, Italy had a visa rejection rate of 6%. So if you’re planning on making a visa application to the third most visited Schengen country, from down here in Boston (MA), then here’s your guide.
This guide will explain how I got my visa from the Consulate General of Italy in Boston.
Update : It is now mandatory to get COVID Insurance when you travel Abroad. Click the below link to get your COVID Insurance at cost price.
Applying for an Italy visa in the US involves the following four steps:
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Choose the correct jurisdiction or embassy from where you can apply for your Italy visa
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Get an appointment at the Italy consulate in Boston ( Get Schengen visa appointment for $ 10 )
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Have all the relevant documents with you when going for the interview
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Attend the interview and get your visa done
Click to Book Italy Visa Appointment
These are four very important steps to getting your Italy Schengen visa approved. It starts with deciding your jurisdiction for visa application and ends with a personal interview that secures the visa down. Despite the steps in the middle, the first and the last step to this process are the most important.
Do You Need To Apply For Schengen Visa at the Italy Consulate of Boston?
Determine if you are eligible to apply for a Schengen visa at the visa Consulate of Italy in Boston. Keep in mind that you will be going for a general Schengen visa that is eligible for the Schengen countries.
These are all the 26 countries in the European region that have abolished all need for passports and border patrol or check.
What if your travel plans include other Schengen countries like Sweden and Switzerland? Which consulate do you visit then?
First determine if or not you even need a visa. The Italy Consulate in the US has a website that will help you in doing that. Choose your preferred language from the top right and scroll down to enter the following details:
- Nationality
- Country of residence
- Length of your stay
- Reason for your visit
Select ‘Go to Answers’ to find out whether you will need a visa or not to enter Italy.
Which consulate do you approach for your visa?
This depends on many factors. You will need to apply at the Italy consulate if your stay in Italy will be the longest.
If you are planning on visiting multiple Schengen Countries, then which country’s consulate should you approach? This is simple. The country that you’re staying in for a longer duration. If you’re splitting your visit equally, simply apply for the Schengen visa of the country you’ll be entering in first.
The consulate at which you need to apply for a Schengen visa depends on several factors. You need to apply at the Italy consulate in Boston if your main “theme” of your trip is in Italy.
Do Green Card Holders (US Permanent Residents) Need Visa for Italy?
you are a non-US citizen, of any origin, living permanently in the US, then you will require a visa to visit Italy or any other Schengen countries.
If you are a green card holder, then you too would require a visa. If you are a US passport holder, then you will not require a visa to travel to Italy, or any other Schengen country.
How to Get an Appointment at the Italy Embassy in Boston?
The General Consulate of Italy in Boston only works through online appointments. You cannot make an application by walking into the office. You can begin your online application by logging on to the following website:
Book Italy visa appointment in Boston
Click on ‘New User Registration’ to begin your application.
This is one of the crucial stages of application. The details you enter a match, inexact, the details with what is in your passport.
Once your account is created, you will get an email confirmation along with a username and password, for your account. This will be an automated mail.
Once your account is activated, you will be able to access the appointment system.
It might be such that you are not able to find a suitable appointment. The consulate requires that you check in frequently, every 12 hours or so, since cancelled appointments are fairly common.
If you don’t need the appointment, make sure to cancel it, so that others can take it. Once you’ve successfully made an appointment, print your Schengen visa application.
On the day of the appointment, carry this printout along with all the relevant documents, including your original passport before heading out for the Boston visa office.
Documents Needed for Italy Visa at the Boston Consulate
Since you are applying for the Schengen visa for Italy, it is either the destination with the longest stay, or your first port of entry. Here are the documents you will need:
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Passport (in accordance with the number and specifications on the application)
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Photographs
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Permit Card of Permanent Residence
- Flight Itinerary
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Cover letter
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Proof of sustenance (this will be shown in the form of bank statements of the last three months from a bank in the US) and can be in the form of credit cards or travel cards
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Letter of employment (if you’re employed)
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Letter from college (if you’re a student)
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Company registration (if you’re self-employed)
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A medical insurance with a minimum cover of € 43,00 (read this article for more details)
Of course, in fact all the embassies mention the same. We have added links to the official visa pages which you can verify.
France Consulate
Your travel itinerary : you MUST BOOK your airline ticket but do not purchase until the visa has been approved.
We recommend that you do not purchase travel tickets until your visa has been approved. On the other hand, you may provide us with a reservation, a planned itinerary or an online printout of a roundtrip ticket.
Travel reservation to and from schengen area, not a ticket. Note: Make travel reservation which you can cancel
Flight (roundtrip)/travel reservations and full itinerary (if several Schengen States will be visited or if the trip covers several Schengen States and non-Schengen countries) with the name of passenger and one copy
Round trip ticket/reservation, originating in this jurisdiction to Europe (and ultimately to Italy) and back, including internal entry and exit points of travel i.e. EURORAIL tickets, car rental, internal flights. The names on reservations have to reflect the names on passports.
We can provide you with flight itineraries which is accepted by not only for Schengen visa but for all visas. We have customers using the same flight itinerary for Malaysia visa, Singapore visa, India visa, UK visa etc.
In fact the European union visa requirements for visa states the same.
As per the official document,
Round trip reservation or itinerary with dates and flight numbers specifying entry and exit from Schengen state.Schengen authorities accept the itinerary when applying for the visa but request the original air ticket when visa is collected.
That is why we have 100% visa acceptance rate although some of our customer have been requested to provide “additional documents”,none of their visa has been rejected for providing fake documents. With 80% of our customers being return customers or companies which process visas for their employees/clients, our approach is the best approach if you want to ensure the safety of your visa.
This is our orders screen for this month. Most of the orders have been placed by repeat customers.
The best part about our service is along with getting a flight reservation without payment, you can also get confirmed hotel bookings, personal cover letter, leave/no objection letter for your visa consulates.
A personal cover letter . It should include your purpose for travel and your travel itinerary. Mention the documents you are submitting to the embassy as well.
Proof of accommodation is also important. Don’t book your hotel just yet as you might have to face hefty cancellation charges.
Get Flight, hotel & travel insurance @ just $60.60 !!
You can try booking temporary hotels/accommodation with us, as a way to secure your accommodation and itinerary, without paying a hefty price.
If you are staying with friends/family, they will be required to send you a letter of invitation, along with their ID, or ‘permit of stay’ if they are a non-EU citizen. The form looks like what has been shown below;
Remember that your application may be cancelled if you do not provide both flight details and hotel/accommodation details.
Can I apply via mail?
No, you need to visit the embassy in person.
You are expected to carry a prepaid envelope of the US postal service, and a copy of the same, so once the consulate is done processing your application, they can return your passport to you safely.
If you are living in the US, but not as a permanent resident, then you need to provide a valid copy of the documentation that allows you to work and live in the US.
These could include any of the US long term visas, I-20, or the 1-797. All of these documents must have a validity of minimum three months post your return date from the Schengen.
What About B1/B2 Visa Holders?
However, if you hold a B1 or B2 visa, you are NOT applicable to apply for an Italian or a schengen visa from the Consulate in Boston. You will need to apply for your visa from your country of nationality.
What are the Visa Charges?
Keep in mind that the latest charge for visas, for the first quarter for 2018 is; 70.70$ for Short Stay (90 days or less), 136.60$ for Long Stay (exceeding 90 days), and 58.90$ for the Study Visa. All of this constitutes a non-refundable cost. These can be paid in money order only, at the consulate in Boston.
A very important reminder here is that the General Consulate of Italy in Boston offers the Schengen visa only to those who reside permanently in the cities of Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Maine. Your proof of residence in these states can be provided through a driving license, or the state income tax.
Why should I take Flight and Hotel Bookings from You?
We offer you the best rates as far as flight and hotel bookings for Italy visa application is concerned. We have processed more than 100,000 orders in less than 5 years.
When Will I Get My Visa?
Once everything has been done, it is a matter of time. The process can take anywhere between 5 to 15 days. The consulate will contact you with the news of either an approval or a denial of visa. If it is a denial, the full reasons will be listed out to you. If you are approved, check the duration of the visa provided to you.
Will my Visa be Granted for 90 Days ?
Even if you might have applied for a 90 day visa, you would get a visa that is valid only for the duration of your stay/travel. This is why you must keep your dates flexible, about 10 days before and after your intended date of arrival and departure. Click here for more details.
Keeping all of these things in mind should make your application more than valid enough to acquire a Italian/Schengen visa.
Related Italy visa links:
https://travelvisabookings.com/italy-schengen-visa-in-7-days
https://travelvisabookings.com/italy-visa-requirements-for-us-green-card-holders/