Leaving my passport at the embassy to receive a visa but it is my only identification document
I am an Egyptian citizen working and living in France, and I am applying for a Canadian business visit visa (a temporary visit). I have received notification that my Canadian visa application has reached a decision and that I have to leave my passport at the Visa Application Center, or mail it to them, to get the results. I contacted the Visa Application Center and they said it is not possible to return the passport to me on the same day I give it to them; so I have to spend at least one day without my passport.
The problem is that my passport is my only identification document I have. It is also my first year here so I have no external "carte de sejour;" my French temporary residency visa is affixed to my passport. I also have my Egyptian national ID card but it is in Arabic.
My question is what should I do? Could I walk around for a few days carrying only a photocopy of my passport and my French visa?
Best Answer
I scanned my passport & visa, printed out very high quality images of them, put the two images back to back, then laminated them together. It works very well for day-to-day activities here in China. Very rarely does anyone ask to see the real thing.
I have no personal experience with this passport copy in other countries, but the person who told me this trick says they used it to cross from Germany to France and back while their non-EU passport was in an embassy for a visa application. He said he just explained it to the border guard, and was waved through. However, this was about 10 years ago.
While this may not be sufficient these days, just having a high quality image of your passport on your person will help if you do need to prove your identity to the authorities.
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Can visa be granted without passport?
PIC 4021 provides that a person must hold a valid passport in order to be granted a visa. This is a time of decision criterion for a visa application. There are exceptions to this rule and they include applicants for refugee and humanitarian visas.What does it mean when it says document delivery information?
What is the meaning of document delivery information? Often used with regard to electronic messages, it tells you when the message was delivered and to whom.Why would an Embassy be denied a visa?
An application may be denied because the consular officer does not have all of the information required to determine if the applicant is eligible to receive a visa, because the applicant does not qualify for the visa category for which he or she applied, or because the information reviewed indicates the applicant falls ...Does the consulate keep your passport?
Your passport will be returned to you by the Embassy approved courier service. To ensure that there are no delays with the delivery, you must register with courier at the time you schedule the appointment for the visa interview.Five Mistakes NOT to Make at your Immigration Interview
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