With eased COVID restrictions, student Visa applications increase in Nepal

Kathmandu, Jul 5: Visa applications to travel abroad from Nepal has increased significantly due to ease in travel restrictions as the pandemic continues to debilitate. As per the statistics from Visa Facilitation Services Global (VFS-Global), travel trends have increased by 600 pc by the end of May 2022, in comparison with data till the end of May the year 2021.

 

 

 

 

According to Elizabeth Samuel, the Deputy Regional Head North and East India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Israel at VFS, "If we compare the visa processing applications that of the year 2019 vs May 2022 it has increased by about 130 per cent. Volumes in 2021 were significantly less as many international borders were closed with pandemic-induced travel restrictions. However, riding on the high pent-up demand volumes in the first half of 2022 have more than doubled as compared to pre-pandemic levels."

 

 

 

 

 

As per the Visa Facilitation Services, students selected Australia, Canada, Japan and the UK as their major destinations to fly to. Samuel further added, "The upsurge in the student visa application also contributed significantly to the overall rise in visa application volumes in 2022."

 

Till mid of June, the positivity rate of Nepal stood at 0.68 pc with no records of critical cases. By mid June, the number of active cases in Nepal was recorded at 97, while it spiked by three times to 280 within 15 days' time duration.