Unofficial Visa Websites Can Cost Travellers Up To 500% More

DJB Visas have been helping customers obtain the visas and passports they need to travel for more than 25 years. We act as an advocate, using our knowledge of the application system and the way each embassy works to ensure that the applications we support have everything they need for approval, removing embassy visits and collection, delivered to your door.

The customers who use our Passport & Visa service vary between commercial and personal visas, with differing needs for speed and visa type. There’s often a need for a quick turnaround, or an urgency associated with this service; having spent so long in the industry, we have often seen competitors take advantage of this to charge extortionate prices.

An investigation by The Telegraph has found that some third party providers have paid more than six times the official embassy rates for their visas. What’s even more concerning is the resulting Visas are sometimes invalid or fake leading to lost time and money, or even denial of entry for travellers.

An analysis of the costs for travellers to obtain a visa for several popular destinations, including India, Australia and Egypt, showed that there were often substantial additions to the base charges for the visa. More than a charge for service, advice and support, these sites begin their services at high prices and add on hidden charges. For example, a Canadian ETA certificate costs less than £5 directly from the Canadian Commission, yet an outside site (iVisa.com) adds more than 1206% to that price for this service. Although a lot can be said for convenience or service charges, price increases at this degree are a dishonest addition to a process that’s a legal requirement for travel. A spokesperson for Abta, the travel association, said travellers may find third party providers helpful “but it is important that any charges made by these companies above and beyond the cost of the visa are made clear.” At DJB, we are up-front and transparent about what your service will cost above the base cost of a Visa. Embassies will not supply a refund for any additional charges that are added to the Visa cost by a third party.

More concerning than this are the provision of unofficial Visas that will fail to grant the holder entry to their destination country. We would recommend checking any visa that was gained from an outside provider with a trusted source, such as an Embassy, Government website or a DJB representative.

If you’re looking for a Visa and Passport supplier that you can trust, or you’re concerned about a product that you’ve already purchased, talk to DJB Visas & Passports. We’re Registered Handling Agents with almost every Embassy, Consulate & High Commission in the London area, ensuring a valid Visa with no hidden costs.