Students from Chennai who applied to study at Italian colleges have reported receiving a high number of visa denials.
Even after presenting all of the required documentation, such as evidence of admission (from the individual colleges) and bank statements, students from the city reported that their visa applications were declined. ‘Doubtful documentation’ is cited as the reason for most of the applicants. But there was no response when students tried to contact them back seeking more details in this regard, said Mir Hussain Ali, an applicant in Chennai.
His course starts on November 30 and his admission will get cancelled if he doesn’t submit his visa before that. Ali has already faced multiple rejections from the Italian Consulate in Mumbai. For the past two days, all their phone numbers are ‘not in use, he said.
Courses have already begun for a few other students, and they have been attending classes online to ensure that they do not fall behind. One of the students, who has been accepted into a land engineering program at Turin University, said, “Since the end of July, I’ve been waiting for my visa. It’s difficult to be sitting here unsure whether we’ll be able to travel to Italy or not”.
The student, who requested anonymity, stated that they expected to know the reasons for rejections because each application refusal comes with a hefty price tag. Every time a student visits the visa office, they must pay an application fee ranging from 7,000 to 12,000 dollars.
These students who have been denied visas without any reason have gone to social media to raise awareness of the issue, and their online petitions on sites like change.org are gaining traction.
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