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Post by David_and_Nita on Apr 21, 2014 17:09:33 GMT
Bump. Back to the top.
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Post by fgonza on Apr 21, 2014 21:19:12 GMT
Any update regarding the visa blocks status with KSA authorities?
Thanks
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Post by David_and_Nita on Apr 21, 2014 23:46:12 GMT
Nothing from Houston. Asked about the visas again today while I was getting visa medical rescheduled. No answer. Guess it was a dumb question.
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Post by Washingtonian on Apr 22, 2014 15:17:14 GMT
You are not the only one whose emails are not always replied to. It's been a LONG time since I got any unsolicited update.
Got my medical tests redone yesterday.
Why don't they add visa le to be another contingency???
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Post by Parker Means on Apr 22, 2014 16:31:13 GMT
Did you all hear about this story about the MERS virus on the rise in KSA? VPainter and others: Have you heard any buzz about this? Do you know how this may impact the issuance of VIsas for people coming and leaving KSA? www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/04 ... s-evolving ..."The majority of the MERS cases, so far, have been in Saudi Arabia, although the virus has also turned up in several other Middle Eastern countries. And a few travelers have brought it to the U.K. and Europe. Last week, cases were also imported into Greece and Malaysia. Saudi Arabia needs to be more aggressive in combating the problem, Osterholm says. And it needs to be more transparent about what's happening with the disease. "It's time for the world to wake up and demand that the Middle East do the kind of job that we need done to stop this transmission [of MERS]," he says, "and to protect the rest of the world." |
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Post by Parker Means on Apr 22, 2014 18:04:25 GMT
I did just hear from a Saudi colleague, currently working in Houston, who just returned from a visit to the KSA and he states:
"Yes, it seems that there are some cases in Aramco hospital in DH
We call it 'corona' "
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Post by RICKB on Apr 22, 2014 18:47:05 GMT
Shouldn't this MERS discussion be on another thread? I thought this thread was about the Visa Block??
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Post by JeffSteiner on Apr 22, 2014 18:58:51 GMT
I am not a doctor; there, that's out of the way.
I have been reading about Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) for almost a year now and while it is likely that not all news from the Kingdom is unfiltered, I have not read of a single relatively healthy person contracting the coronavirus; it is a variant of SARS and is not easily spread from human to human. Virtually all of the individuals affected have pre-existing compromised respiratory or immune systems. To be blunt, it is not likely to affect those of us who are healthy enough to pass the medical to get to KSA!
And it has generally been identified in communities and under circumstances in which we expats are much less likely to find ourselves. To reinforce, I am not a doctor, but I have been casually monitoring this "outbreak" since mid 2013; it is significant enough to have attracted international attention, but it seems also to be restricted, in general terms to a vulnerable minority. From my perspective, and my opinion, it is no more severe or frightening than the measles outbreaks in North America. And those were (and are) entirely preventable through vaccination!
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Post by Parker Means on Apr 22, 2014 19:10:53 GMT
Sorry to inundate this site with these updates. Just heard from another colleague currently living in DH who wrote: ..."Here is a good site to keep up day to day with what KSA publishes regarding MERS. A year ago I was really tracking it. I was concerned about having trouble with air travel if countries got nervous about us traveling from KSA, but then it seem to die down and now it is picking up, and maybe mutating like the article said, so we do need to watch." www.moh.gov.sa/en/Search/Pages/D ... oronavirus Again, my purpose for posting this here under the "Visa Block" discussion section is to inquire if there could be a tie in to delaying the issuance of Visa Blocks if this MERS issue gets bigger and spreads more. |
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Post by erdna_oaoj on Apr 23, 2014 17:35:09 GMT
Update:
Still no news about the release of the visa blocks, hopefully they will be out in the incoming weeks.
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Post by Toronto2KHR on Apr 23, 2014 19:29:02 GMT
Same here.
My relocation adviser replied the same but very optimistic towards coming week or two.
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Post by BBQ10 on Apr 23, 2014 20:25:46 GMT
That's what I was told last week as well. The gist: Aramco expects to receive the visa block this week (which ends tomorrow). Then, the individual VLIs (visa line items?) will start coming from Aramco. Once received, the then complete application 'pack' can finally be submitted to the embassy. There is hope that all of this will happen for everyone stuck in the current "holding pattern" by the end of April.
I guess what I was told back in December still stands tonight: it can come tomorrow, next week or it can take a month. We just don't know...
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cgyguy
Advanced Member
Posts: 90
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Post by cgyguy on Apr 23, 2014 22:04:33 GMT
On top of that, once they have your visa le and all of your documentation is in order, and quoting my Relo: "... it is sent off to our visa department here every person must be registered into the ENJAZ government account and we pay for it to have it processed. Once each person is approved and a number is assigned to them it can be then sent to your Canadian consulate" .
This is done by only 2 people because is in Arabic and they are swamped, once my package was there, it took them 12 days to do this and send it physically to the embassy, exceding by 1 day my Medicals validity, but my Relo mentioned that, and I quote "They usually let us slide the medicals two extra weeks so we are going to go with it."
I only can say Insh they will let it slide, otherwise another month of delay for Medicals, they will give my visa le to someone "ready to go" and then wait again for visa block.
My advice is: once you know your visa le is there, put pressure on your Relo to follow up with the visa department, specially if your time frame has a constraint.
Regards
Ps: she never answered my question of the visa le with a "yes, I have it", except that, once she told me that if she wouldn't have it, she wouldn't be requesting my passports.
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Post by Washingtonian on Apr 23, 2014 22:15:02 GMT
cgyguy: I am confused. Did she request your passport? And no, you can't put pressure on anyone. Please update your records.  |
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Post by David_and_Nita on Apr 23, 2014 22:38:13 GMT
cgyguy post reported for advising the impossible..........
She requested mine weeks ago and still doesn't have a visa le. I think they do it all the time.
Further update/breaking news: Ominous silence from ASC Houston but I found out my nametag's on the door in RT.
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