Italian Visa Centers To Be Operational In Algiers, Constantine and Oran on March 7

The Italian embassy announced, on Sunday, that it has signed a contract with the VFS Global company to manage the files of Algerians’ visa applications.

A statement by the Italian Embassy in Algeria, which copy was received by Echorouk, stated that “a contract was signed with VFS Global based on the results of the tender that was launched in 2019, indicating that 3 new centres for the Italian visa applications will be opened in 3 cities which are Batna(eastern Algeria), Ouargla (south) and Saida (west).

The statement of the Italian Embassy in Algeria clarified that the appointment process or any additional information is made on the VFS Global website https://visa.vfsglobal.com/dza/fr/ita, indicating that, given the development of the health situation, the new partner in charge of receiving the files of visa applicants intends to open 3 new centres in Batna, Ouargla and Saida, in addition to the cities in which the Italian embassy is located in Algiers, Constantine, Oran, Adrar and Annaba, for a total of 8 centres across Algerian soil.

The statement explained that, given the current health situation, only the Algiers, Constantine and Oran centres will initially be operational from March 7, 2021.

The Italian Embassy in Algeria reminded Algerians of the types of visas that can be addressed because of the health situation and the current restrictions imposed on travel.

“The matter relates to applications for a long-term national visa type “D”, which is either a long-stay visa for professional reasons, independent and subordinate work, a long-stay visa for family reasons (family reunification), and a consular return visa, which is necessary if the residence card expires, and a long-stay visa for study.

According to the same statement, applications for a “C” Schengen visa are mostly suspended, except for the exceptional cases included in the recommendations of the Council of the European Union regarding temporary restrictions imposed on the unnecessary movement towards the countries of the European Union.

For reference, the TLS Contact Center was the one that was tasked with receiving Italian visa files for years, while VFS Global has been in charge of French visas since April 2018 in addition to other countries such as Turkey.