abrodnik@watdragon.uwaterloo.ca (Andrej Brodnik (Andy)) (04/15/91)
Some time ago I already posted here a notification of a new fee for obtaining the entrance visa. Well it needs a slight correction in the price which is not 44 dollars, but rather 50. I completly agree with somebody who responded that this is the usual way when there exist visa requirement on the other side as well (in spite of that that I am pretty sure that the price to get Yugoslavian visa -- this is the country I am comming from -- is not as high). Today I made a phone call to the Immigration office in Kitchener to get an additional explanation. I was told, that the real cost is in fact 100 dollars and half of this price is paid by Canadian taxpayers (do you imagine how much work is needed for processing a visa application then if the average estimated cost is so high -- I don't see why!). But here I have two objections. Namely I am paying Canadian tax already and therefore I contribute to that half this way already and further I have to pay may usual half as well. This doesn't seem to me rational (of course the other side has a perfect reason for this -- get more money). And to push everything even further it happened that all what I have, I have here! That means if I would go to Yugoslavia to visit my sick mother (I hope she will not get sick), I can't return back without an expense of 50 dollars (for example, to get back my things at least) beside the fact that I have a valid student and working authorization. Is there really no way to help me, and I am sure not only me, but a number of international students who are currently trapped in Canada. Did anybody ever start to think about this? Is there any way how to start a procedure of reconsidering the above stupid law? Please, do not misunderstand me. I completly agree that if somebody comes here to travel arround that he should pay this money, but I strongly disagree that my position is the same as his. Isn't this true? Regards to everybody and please help us, international students that we will be able to visit our families! Andrej