The application for a student visa in most countries is quite lengthy. It involves a lot of paperwork, convincing the government authorities of your candidature, and then finally waiting to hear if your application was approved or not.
Thus, most students find it convenient to hire a visa agent to increase their chances of being accepted. If you require a student visa and are considering hiring an agent for the procedure, then here are the pros and cons to aid you in taking the right decision.
Pros of Hiring a Student Visa Agent
They Will Deal with the Authorities on Your Behalf:
They shall deal with the immigration authorities, thereby simplifying the entire process for you. The liaisons might involve phone calls, appeals, and adherence to strict deadlines during the whole process.
Since visa agents have prior experience of working closely with the authorities, they ensure the smooth execution of the whole procedure.
They Shall Translate Things Back and Forth:
Sometimes, the official terminology used during the application process can be strict for a student to understand. Your visa agent shall translate the tricky words so that you clearly understand the requirements, thereby omitting the chances of any errors due to translation issues.
They Make the Entire Process More Organized and Manageable:
While applying for your visa, you might encounter several instructions that are quite contradictory to each other, making the whole process seem complicated to you. Hiring a visa agent implies that you do not need to worry about the tough part of getting your application approved.
Cons of Hiring a Student Visa Agent
It Is Expensive:
While preparing for your study abroad, you need to take care of your expenses such as your tuition fees, plane tickets and other miscellaneous costs. You also need to pay an application fee for the visa, so hiring a visa agent can increase your expenditure to such an extent that it exceeds your budget.
You Become Prone to Frauds
You need to check the authenticity of the agent before paying any money to his firm. Many fake companies trick students who require their visa. So, you must ensure that your payment is legitimately being used to secure your permit.
You Lose the Liberty to Determine the Content and the Date of Submission:
When you hire an agent, you are losing control of the application process. Although the agent shall be in touch with you and take your approval during each stage, it might be stressful for some students not to have a say in the matter.
Hiring a student visa agent is beneficial because he/she is an expert who is well-acquainted with the entire process. The agent shall gather information, sort your documents, aid you in filling the application forms and walk you through the whole process within the stipulated time.
Therefore, it is a good idea to hire a visa agent if you lack time and want to ensure that you have not missed anything. Moreover, they stay up-to-date with all the changes to legislation which makes them reliable. However, you should check the legitimacy and track record of the agent before hiring him/her.
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