STOISITS: VISA DENIED AFTER MISCALCULATION

For a positive completion of a visa application the sponsor is obliged to present a formal obligation which includes a listing of income. Mr. H. whose fiancée is a resident of the Philippines turned to the District Administration and presented a formal obligation necessary for applying for a visa for his fiancée. A mere formality as Mr. H. was convinced. Visiting Austria shouldn't be a problem.

However during the issue the employee at the District Administration forgot to list Mr. H.'s extra income. Hence the formal obligation was not completed correctly. Mr H.'s legal representative informed the District Administration about the miscalculation. However, it was too late: Ms. M., Mr. H.'s fiancée, was informed by the Austrian Embassy in Manila that her visa application had been rejected.

Afterwards Mr. H. was informed that in such cases the easiest way was to reapply. That's what Ms. M. did. This time the formal obligation was filled out correctly and the visa application was acceded to. Finally, Ms. M. was able to meet her fiancée in Austria.

Mr. H's complaint to the Ombudsman Board was justified and the responsible Ombudswoman Terezija Stoisits informed the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs that due to the incorrect conduct of the employee of the District Administration a new visa application had to be completed which led to a four month delay and to additional costs for the persons concerned.