Eco Bank In Ghana - Trouble Paying Visa Fee

[lgarris 2]

Has anyone paid their visa fee at any Eco Bank in Ghana? I knew nothing of the new process until there was no interview date listed in the packet. Returned with the paperwork at the embassy and a lady there just wrote October 11th in the blank spot...I called the next day and the lady told me there was no interview date listed in the system for my fiance. I am sick of Ghana and how people always trying to get over. I spoke with the manager name Alfred at the Mamobi branch Eco Bank and he said the Visa fee was $390 American dollars that he had spoken with someone at the embassy. I then called the embassy myself to verify and the lady said that the bank was wrong and the K-1 Visa fee was only $350. The man at the bank would not give me the phone number to the bank nor would he give me his last name. My fiance was at the bank all day long and they still told him to he had to come back tomorrow 4/05/2011 to pick up his receipt. My fiance gave them 604.50 in Ghana money I'm waiting to see how much they will say he gave them tomorrow. Why should it take all day to pay a visa fee???? He called the embassy and asked if he could come there and pay his fee and they said NO...My God what do you do? This process is jacked up! Does anyone have any suggestions? I think one of these is lerking in the midst of it all....

[HisWill 0]

http://www.ustraveldocs.com/gh/gh-niv-paymentinfo.html

This is the website that explains everything. I hope by now everything is good for both of you and you have secured an appointment.

[J J Moose 3]

Igarris,

My heart goes out to you. We had similar problems (as well as many other difficulties) with that consulate.

What type of fee are you trying to pay? Are you just trying to pay for the interview?

Assuming that's the fee you're talking about, I'll tell you a bit about me and my spouse's experience 6 months ago. It's not a comforting story, but hopefully you'll find it helpful. When we had my (now) spouse's k-1 interview in December, we paid the interview fee to the Standard Chartered Bank near TUC and Accra Polytechnic in Accra Central. We received a receipt and took it to the interview. At the consulate we were told that the amount we had paid was not sufficient (even though it was the amount listed in the letter in the packet), and we were sent home to get more money and bring it back to the consulate (and not to any bank). We were also assured that the money we paid to Standard Chartered Bank (as reflected in our receipt) would be deducted from the amount we would pay to the cashier at the consulate. We were given a date to return, which was about a week later.

When we returned on the appointed date with more money, the Ghanaian man who was always our first point of contact inside the consulate, (he would take our papers, fees, and sort things before we would see the officer who would interview us) assured us again that yes, the money paid to Standard Chartered would be deducted. He wrote the balance we had to pay on our file, and then he sent us over to the cashier (which was located in the same room). The cashier, however, told us that it was incorrect procedure to pay anything to the Standard Chartered, and that we should have paid the entire amount to him, that is, the cashier within the consulate. He then tried to get us to pay the entire amount again. We protested, and then the initial Ghanaian man who sorted our papers and wrote down what we should pay walked in to the cashier's booth, and the cashier then stopped arguing with us and just charged us the balance, and stopped trying to get us to repay the entire amount.

I'm not sure if they've changed their procedures (and moved their accounts to Ecobank) in the last 6 months, maybe it's different. Honestly, I'm amazed that you've been able to actually talk to someone in that consulate on the phone- my lawyer and I both tried to call dozens of times and never got anyone in visa services to talk to us. My senator's office couldn't even get the consulate to reply to his email and had to go over their heads and contact the Dept. of State to get an answer to a question for us. I wish I had something more comforting to tell you, but in our experience, take no one's word for anything. For example, in that packet they sent home with you that has your interview date written in a little blank...

Well in our packet like that, the paperwork inside misinformed and mislead us many times:

- the paper work had us pay the wrong amount in fees (possibly in the wrong location, I never figured that part out)

- it also told us to bring the wrong number of passport photos (it said 2 when they actually required 3, if I were you I'd bring 4 along)

- inside they also included forms for us to fill out. our lawyer was absolutely shocked to see that these forms had expired over 6 years ago, and were technically not valid if submitted to a U.S. government agency. (Our lawyer downloaded and filled out the current forms from the internet, but one form they included in the packet has been changed so much in the last 6 years that it has a new name).

So essentially, in this struggle you are going through, I would advise you to do tons of research on the web to know what to expect (check out VJ's consular reviews page- great resource!), and be extra extra prepared. Bring extra money, passport photos, evidence, etc. to the consulate. Dress professionally, smile nicely, and hopefully you'll get through it as soon as possible. Good luck!

[HisWill 0]

@ J J Moose,

You just received the wrong packet. The packet you received was for nonimmigrant visa not fiancee, which is why you went to the bank to pay (people who wanted to just get a visitors visa used the process you talked about). K-1's always paid at the consulate until the change in procedure which started this March 2011. Per the link I posted in earlier post LGarris should follow what is there as this is the newest policy.

[lgarris 2]

Igarris,

My heart goes out to you. We had similar problems (as well as many other difficulties) with that consulate.

What type of fee are you trying to pay? Are you just trying to pay for the interview?

Assuming that's the fee you're talking about, I'll tell you a bit about me and my spouse's experience 6 months ago. It's not a comforting story, but hopefully you'll find it helpful. When we had my (now) spouse's k-1 interview in December, we paid the interview fee to the Standard Chartered Bank near TUC and Accra Polytechnic in Accra Central. We received a receipt and took it to the interview. At the consulate we were told that the amount we had paid was not sufficient (even though it was the amount listed in the letter in the packet), and we were sent home to get more money and bring it back to the consulate (and not to any bank). We were also assured that the money we paid to Standard Chartered Bank (as reflected in our receipt) would be deducted from the amount we would pay to the cashier at the consulate. We were given a date to return, which was about a week later.

When we returned on the appointed date with more money, the Ghanaian man who was always our first point of contact inside the consulate, (he would take our papers, fees, and sort things before we would see the officer who would interview us) assured us again that yes, the money paid to Standard Chartered would be deducted. He wrote the balance we had to pay on our file, and then he sent us over to the cashier (which was located in the same room). The cashier, however, told us that it was incorrect procedure to pay anything to the Standard Chartered, and that we should have paid the entire amount to him, that is, the cashier within the consulate. He then tried to get us to pay the entire amount again. We protested, and then the initial Ghanaian man who sorted our papers and wrote down what we should pay walked in to the cashier's booth, and the cashier then stopped arguing with us and just charged us the balance, and stopped trying to get us to repay the entire amount.

I'm not sure if they've changed their procedures (and moved their accounts to Ecobank) in the last 6 months, maybe it's different. Honestly, I'm amazed that you've been able to actually talk to someone in that consulate on the phone- my lawyer and I both tried to call dozens of times and never got anyone in visa services to talk to us. My senator's office couldn't even get the consulate to reply to his email and had to go over their heads and contact the Dept. of State to get an answer to a question for us. I wish I had something more comforting to tell you, but in our experience, take no one's word for anything. For example, in that packet they sent home with you that has your interview date written in a little blank...

Well in our packet like that, the paperwork inside misinformed and mislead us many times:

- the paper work had us pay the wrong amount in fees (possibly in the wrong location, I never figured that part out)

- it also told us to bring the wrong number of passport photos (it said 2 when they actually required 3, if I were you I'd bring 4 along)

- inside they also included forms for us to fill out. our lawyer was absolutely shocked to see that these forms had expired over 6 years ago, and were technically not valid if submitted to a U.S. government agency. (Our lawyer downloaded and filled out the current forms from the internet, but one form they included in the packet has been changed so much in the last 6 years that it has a new name).

So essentially, in this struggle you are going through, I would advise you to do tons of research on the web to know what to expect (check out VJ's consular reviews page- great resource!), and be extra extra prepared. Bring extra money, passport photos, evidence, etc. to the consulate. Dress professionally, smile nicely, and hopefully you'll get through it as soon as possible. Good luck!

Hi JJ Moose, I thank God for the success of your process and where you guys are now...Praise God ! I have a question...I think it was last summer when they increased the K-1 Visa fee from $140 to $350. I'm wondering if this is why you had to pay additional fees??? Lord help us all is all that I can say. Again, thank you for all the information. I have not read anywhere on any of the sites that the fee for the K1 visa is $390. I just don't understand it all but I just thank God is that it is paid.

[J J Moose 3]

Hi JJ Moose, I thank God for the success of your process and where you guys are now...Praise God ! I have a question...I think it was last summer when they increased the K-1 Visa fee from $140 to $350. I'm wondering if this is why you had to pay additional fees??? Lord help us all is all that I can say. Again, thank you for all the information. I have not read anywhere on any of the sites that the fee for the K1 visa is $390. I just don't understand it all but I just thank God is that it is paid.

Thanks, Igarris. We are so thankful to be at this point, and it was worth all the frustrations and difficulties were worth it in in the end now that we are finally together. Hang in there- it will all be worth it in the end.

The fee increase did happen in summer, but the packet we received from the consulate had the old fee and procedure listed in it, which is what I took at face value. Furthermore, my lawyer let the fee increase (which was publicized on the web) slip through the cracks and she didn't notify me of it, which was a big blunder on her part. Part of the issue was that we were working on this process for a year and a half, so things changed while we were in the middle of it. My packet was indeed messed up, and who knows what kind of weird conglomeration of forms and papers they put in there, but the forms included were K-1 forms and info (albeit old and outdated ones). Who knows? Maybe they mixed non-immigrant and K-1 info in the same packet that they sent with us. At times they seemed to classify us as immigrant, at other times we were non-immigrant... Nothing was real clear. I guess that's all part of applying for a hybrid visa.