Hello, I hope you are well. I am Haitian. Two days ago, I received a student visa refusal for reason 5 « The information provided to justify the purpose and conditions of the intended stay is incomplete and/or unreliable. » I have made another appointment, but in fact, I do not know what the weakness of my application is. Could you please help me? My application was composed as follows:
Academic section: - Prior acceptance agreement from a university - my diploma and my baccalaureate transcript I am currently a first-year student, but I did not mention this in my visa application, although the officer asked me about it. I told him that I did not have time to request the supporting documents from my university.
Financial section: - AVI provided by Studely (blocked account with 8400 euros) - my contract with Studely - proof of transfer from my account in Haiti to my sister’s account in France and from her account to my blocked account - a bank statement covering the last 6 months of my account in Haiti
Accommodation section: - letter of accommodation from an acquaintance of my sister - her identity document - lease contract - rent receipts for the last 3 months - electricity bill - declaration of her income However, there was a downside, the journey from the accommodation to the university is nearly 2 hours.
Your file seems solid to me. A few questions to help us see clearly:
What is the name of your school in France? What is the address of your school? How much are your tuition fees? Are your school and accommodation in the same city? What is the exact distance by public transport between your accommodation and your school?
Hello, I am the older sister of @Diamil. To answer your questions: The school is the University of Bordeaux. The fees are 170 euros (Haiti is on the list of countries that benefit from the exemption). The faculty is in Talence and the house is in Fagues Saint Hilaire, but it is still in Bordeaux (33). The distance is less than 30 km but by public transport, it is long, about 2 hours, but by car, it is 23 minutes.
Upon reviewing the file, the only thing that could potentially be an issue is the accommodation. In principle, since the accommodation is about 25 km from the University of Bordeaux, it shouldn’t be a problem, as the general recommendation is to be within 40 km. However, I have seen applications refused when the public transport time exceeds two hours.
My advice: It won’t be very beneficial to reapply for the visa without making any changes… at the very least, you need to find a rental contract directly in the city of Talence or, in any case, accommodation closer to the University of Bordeaux.
Furthermore, does your friend’s accommodation, who provided this accommodation certificate, meet the material conditions?
@Diamil, can you confirm that you are indeed applying for your student visa in Port-au-Prince, Haiti?
We have thought about it, at the moment my sister is looking for another accommodation with the primary goal of a lease contract. But if in the worst case we don’t find one, we will have to make do with what we find. Tell me, does the accommodation letter need to be signed by the mayor?
Indeed, I am applying at the French embassy in Haiti, which is located in Port-au-Prince.
It depends on the country where the visa application is made. In Haiti, unfortunately, I don’t have recent experience regarding the necessity of legalising the accommodation certificate at the town hall.
However, in Togo for example, the accommodation certificate must be legally certified at the town hall, whereas this is not necessary in Cameroon, Morocco, Senegal, Congo, etc.
I am his older sister and I am already studying in France, I am in the final year of my Master’s. Do you think mentioning this detail could make us more reliable? Or could it make them think that my little sister is going to stay because I am in France? I only have a student visa which expires on 31/12.
I don’t think mentioning this detail will sway the decision one way or the other, especially since she is coming for her studies.
But generally speaking, it is always recommended to mention whether or not we have family in France. Contrary to what many think, having family is a plus for the long-stay student visa application as it shows that our integration will be facilitated, especially if the family in question is in a regular situation on French territory and is working there.
Hello, how are you? For my new application, here is how I am compiling my file: - Administrative section • visa application form • Preliminary enrolment agreement • High school diploma and transcript • Certificate of enrolment and transcript for the first year of university in Haiti. • Late arrival exemption letter • Recommendation letter from the headmaster of the school where I completed my classical studies. (The school is affiliated with the French secular mission)
Financial section • Irrevocable transfer certificate provided by Studely. • Bank statement from my father • Letter explaining the source of my financial resources • Work letter from my father • Financial support letter from my father.
Housing section (In the first file, we think the issue was with the housing, as the lease contract provided by my host had expired since 2019 and the travel time between the house and the university. So we changed to a lease contract) • Lease contract signed by me • Housing justification letter
[quote=« Diamil, post:9, topic:5814 »] contract of lease signed by me • letter of housing justification [/quote] Did you find the accommodation in the private sector? Why hasn’t the landlord signed the rental contract? How many kilometres is the room from your school? And by public transport? How much does your accommodation cost?
[quote=« Diamil, post:9, topic:5814 »] * Financial section • Irrevocable transfer certificate provided by Studely. • Bank statement from my father • Letter justifying the source of my financial resources • Work letter from my father • Financial support letter from my father. [/quote] I feel that the file is too overloaded, and an overloaded file also carries the risk of a reason 5.
Why are you adding a financial support letter from your father when you already have an AVI from Studely that covers all your expenses for the first year?
My advice: You need to lighten the file by removing anything superfluous. For example, there are four (4) letters that could be combined into a single explanatory letter.
I found a room in a main residence via an agency. The process is not yet complete, the contract will take effect on 15th August, so at the handover of the keys, the landlord and the guarantor will sign the contract. The accommodation costs 390 euros. The room is 1.5 km from my school, it takes me 10 minutes by public transport and 20 minutes on foot.
In fact, since I will only receive the first monthly payment from Studely after opening a bank account myself in France, we wanted to show that my father can cover the expenses in the meantime, such as the plane ticket and tuition fees at my administrative registration.
I think we will separate the accommodation and financial resources letter, and remove my father’s support letter if you think it’s unnecessary. My father’s employment letter and his bank statement are used to justify the source of funds as requested by the consulate.
Hello @Andrew, How are you? I’m doing great because I was able to obtain my visa at the end of September, so I wanted to sincerely thank you for your help with this process.
Hello @Andrew, how are you? Sorry for the very late reply. I suppose it was the accommodation because the lease contract of the person who had provided me with a housing certificate was no longer valid since 2021. Also, the travel time to my university was reaching 2 hours.
