You know you want to go somewhere and you have a place in mind.
The important question is: Can I go there?
First step to travelling abroad-or anywhere, really-is to see if you are able to go: legally, financially, etc.
Will I be able to come back to the US to continue my studies? Yes. Check.
Do I have enough money to support myself with some more? Yes. Check.
Do I have a place to stay(accommodation)? Yes. Check. (More on this later)
And so on...
All good to go for me. I continued on to check if my passport and other documents were valid. (Most countries require that you have more than 6 months of validity left on your documents at the time of entry)
I've travelled a lot with my green passport (ROK) but I never had to get a visa for any of the countries I visited because I usually stay for less than 30 days. With plans to stay there about 4 months, I had to get a visa.
I went to the South African Consulate General Office's official website (http://www.dirco.gov.za/losangeles/) to see what additional documents I would need to apply.
I already knew my purpose for the application: to conduct research at Eskom (http://www.eskom.co.za/).
If you're travelling for fun, you would go for tourism.
I went straight to the Visitor's Visa section (https://www.southafrica-newyork.net/homeaffairs/research.htm) and printed out the checklist.
Through the application process, I realised how difficult and expensive it was to get a visa for another country.
I had to prepare about 15 different documents.
Here are some key documents that I had to go out of my way to obtain:
* Completed application(DHA form): Just your usual visa application-how long you're staying, where, purpose, contact info, etc. I brought the completed DHA-84 form as indicated on the website but I had to fill out a different form when I showed up to the consulate in LA. The fee is accepted in money order only and is USD$36
* FBI Clearance Certificate and County Criminal Record (aka Clearance Letter): Online application. Had to get my fingerprint taken and received it by mail. This one took the longest of about 5 weeks. The website indicates that it could take up to 12 weeks. Start early! Application fee is USD$18
(https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/identity-history-summary-checks)
I lived in two different counties for more than 12 months after turning 18 so I had to get one from each. You can apply for this in person or by mail at your county sheriff's office.
Orange County: Took about 2 weeks to arrive by mail. Fee is USD$11
San Diego County: Took about 2 days to arrive by mail. With a notarised copy, the fee is USD$67.50
* Physical Examination Record: Ask your primary doctor for your physicals. Took about two days for him to sign and send me an email copy. He gave it to me free of charge.
* Radiological Record: I had to get a new x-ray done because my last image was to awhile ago. I rushed it and they signed the paper the day of. My insurance covered it, but cost will vary.
* Letter of Invitation: You probably wont need this for tourism, but since I am going as a researcher, I needed a letter of invitation from the company. Took about 5 days to contact the chief engineer and get the letter by email. Only took this long because of the time difference with ZA.
* Proof of Financial stability: This is your bank statement with balance information. You are proving that you can financially support yourself during your stay there. I did this in person; you can obtain this online, but the consulate required a stamp from the bank. Usually free of charge.
Although it took me about 7 weeks and USD$150 to obtain all the necessary files, I really suggest starting about 3-6 months prior to your departure. Really takes the stress away from you if you have enough time to sort things out. I was really lucky to not encounter any problems, but you never know when life will throw a curve ball at ya.
One interesting thing to note is that visas do NOT guarantee your entrance into a country-only acknowledges that their state or department has reviewed it. The immigration officers do have the ability to bar your entrance. However, a visa will almost always get you past the officers because it means that your purpose and objectives for coming into the country is clear and legitimate.
In my next article, I will go over how I organised my accommodation, phone plan, transportation, etc.
Thanks for reading!
2019.03.24