How to Check the Status of Your Visa Application

A stressful experience is waiting for notification of a visa application. Whatever your type of student visa, holiday visa, or other type of travel or immigration application, waiting to find out where your application is is stressful. The good news is that most governments and visa application centers have systems in place to allow you to find out with relative speed what your visa application status is.

This is a step-by-step tutorial that guides you through how to check your visa status and offers advice on how to remain up-to-date and prepared for your visa process.

1. Know Your Visa Type

The first thing you have to check your visa status for is knowing the visa type you applied for. Some visas have varying procedures and durations, and therefore knowing the type of your visa allows you to have the correct expectations.

The following are some common visa types:

• Tourist visa – for vacation or short stays
• Student visa – for studying or professionally being trained
• Work visa – to work outside the home
• Often, work visa – to work outside the home
• Business visa – for travelling on business or for meetings
• Spouse/family visa – to join a relative abroad
• Transit visa – to transit through a country for a short period to reach another place
• Permanent residence or immigrant visa – to live there permanently or immigrate.

Having the category will allow you to pass through the correct tracking system and know about the processing time, which may be few days or months.

2. Get Your Reference Details

After you applied, the reference number, application ID, or track code should have been provided to you. The number matters — without one, you may be unable to track your application status. It is normally provided through:

• Physical receipt upon your visit to the visa application centre
• A confirmation email in the event that you had applied online
• An SMS notification in the event that you had enrolled to receive SMS notifications

Save this number. You will be using it every time you try to check on your visa status or call the embassy or processing office in a bid to follow up.

3. Determine Where You Applied

The process by which you applied your visa will, to a great extent, influence the manner in which you trace the status. Visa applications are generally filed through one of the following:

• Through an embassy or consulate directly of a nation
• Through a legitimate government immigration website
• Through a third-party facility or visa processing center

Each of these entities may have its own procedure for status updates. For example, embassies may allow applicants to check status on their official website, while third-party centers might have their own online tracking systems. Some also offer customer service helplines or email support.

4. Use the Online Tracking Tool

Most modern visa processes are digitalized and offer online tracking tools. Typically, you’ll be required to enter the following information:

• Application/reference number
• Passport number
• Date of birth

After entering the correct details, you’ll be able to see one of several status updates. Common stages include:

• Application Received – The application has been submitted and acknowledged.
• Under Review/Processing – Your documents and information are being evaluated.
• Additional Information Required – The embassy may request more documents or clarification.
• Decision Made – A decision has been made on visa your application.
• Passport Sent/Collectable – Passed passport, visa stamp if picked up.
• Rejected/Refused – Application failure.

It can be a day before all systems catch up and you may have up to a number of days to show a substantial change, so be prepared to wait.

5. Join Alerts (If Available)

Notification schemes exist on the majority of visa application centres and genuine immigration websites. When applying, you might have been in a situation to register for:

• Email alerts
• SMS alerts
• Mobile app alert

All these alerts can save you from logging into the tracking system all the time. You will automatically be alerted in case there is any change in your application status or anything you need to do on your end.

If you didn’t register when you were applying, see if you can register afterwards. Possibly on some sites you can register to receive updates using your reference number as a means of logging in.

6. Call or Email the Visa Office

If you are late in processing your application or cannot utilize the online facility, phone the visa office. There are always dedicated departments for handling visa issues in most embassies and consulates.

The following facts should be at hand when emailing or calling:

• Your name (as appearing on the application)
• Your passport number
• Application or reference number
• Date your application was received
• Type of visa applied

Be polite but brief in your message. Remember that embassies receive hundreds of thousands of inquiries, so it could take days for them to respond to you.

7. Know the Processing Times

Processing times will generally differ by country, visa category, and season. Most embassies also publish average processing times on their websites. Some give an estimate upon filing with the embassy.

Some of the most frequent causes of delay in processing are:

• Inadequate or incorrect documentation
• Workload (school registration period, holiday season)
• Security or background investigations
• Interview and/or additional documentation requirements

Wait for at least the mean time before complaining. Whining too soon will do nothing and can deter other applicants from reaching out to you.

8. Know What Normal Status Words Are

Language varies slightly by country or programs, but status messages generally fall into some general categories. That is what some of the most common words generally mean:

• Received: Your application has been received and was registered.
• In Process/Under Process: Application in process.
• Pending Documents: Additional documents or clarification pending from the visa office.
• Decision Made: Decision has been reached, but it may not be immediately clear.
• Dispatched: Your documents or passport has been returned or can be picked up.
• Refused/Rejected: Visa refused; grounds may be stated, along with grounds for appeal.

It’s good that you’re concerned about such phrases so that you’ll have an idea of what to reply with and can do so accordingly.

9. It won’t update the status

There are instances where weeks or days after, your status won’t update. Don’t worry, it’s not worsening. System lags happen, especially if they’re happening manually or on a daily basis.

If anxious:

• Make sure you double-checked that you typed your passport and reference numbers correctly.
• In case you are in the wrong platform or portal.
• phone or pencil if status is not going to have been altered after a reasonable period of time.
• Check spam/junk mail folder — sometimes reminders end up there by mistake.

If this doesn’t work and visa must be processed in expedited manner, you can request expedited processing, but it is not sure and may cost extra.

10. Once Your Visa Is Approved

Once your visa is granted, observation doesn’t come to abrupt halt. The following are few things which you should do next:

• Check pickup or delivery method: Embassies send passports by courier for some countries but others you must pick up yourself.
• Check visa properly: Make sure name,date of travel and type of visa are correctly inscribed.
• Print or save copies – Although your visa is electronic, hard and soft copies for entry and travelling are advisable.
• Verify entry requirements – Certain visas have some entry requirements, i.e., medical examination or insurance reports on arrival.

Mistakes, if caught early enough, can be easily rectified before departure, so check your visa prior to departure from your home country.

11. How Not to Stress Out Waiting

Waiting does get one nervous, but there are ways of remaining calm and handy:

• Remind yourself to review your status from time to time (e.g., 3–5 days).
• Don’t compare other cases timeline to yours — every case is different.
• Get yourself organized with a folder of all the letters and documents that go out.
• Make travel plans that are flexible and not based on a scheduled visa approval date.

It can also relax you and get you ahead of the game in planning your trip or proceeding.

Final thoughts

Following your line of action of obtaining a visa is also immigration or traveling. Continued follow-through on your application in the correct forums, knowledge of status jargon, and patience in the face of inevitable delays place you in the best possible position to deal with your plans.

Always use official sources and never share personal or sensitive information with unverified individuals. The key is to be proactive, patient, and informed. With a bit of diligence, you’ll soon receive that long-awaited notice: your visa is approved and ready!