The Embassy of the Netherlands in Saudi Arabia has launched its visa application service in the kingdom, in collaboration with leading outsourcing and technology services specialist, VFS Global.

The new service at the Schengen visa application centre (VAC) is aimed at catering to the growing demands of travellers in the Eastern Province, offering new services, facilities and benefits to visa applicants while no longer requiring applicants to travel to Riyadh.

VFS Global commenced service for the government of the Netherlands in 2006 with its first operation in India.  Today the company offers visa application processing for this government across 13 countries with 49 application centres.

The service was inaugurated at Al Khobar by Laurens Westhoff, Ambassador of the Netherlands to the Saudi Arabia.

Westhoff said: “The cooperation with VFS Global in the Eastern Province will save time for Saudi travellers to the Netherlands, and will be a big boost for the KLM/Air France direct flight from Dammam to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. With Saudi Aramco and Sabic having important facilities in the Netherlands, and Dutch business ties with the Eastern Province steadily increasing, the Dutch visa desk at the VFS Global Schengen Visa Application Centre meets the growing demands for a more efficient visa-application procedure.” 

The key features of this Schengen visa application centre are:

• A conveniently located and easily accessible state-of-the art Visa Application Centre;
• Professional and responsive staff dedicated to handle visa queries and applications;
• Automated queue governance for smooth flow of applicants, providing better crowd management ;
• Dedicated website for easy access to information including visa categories, requirements and check-list, applicable fees and application status;
• Dedicated call centre and email support to answer queries and status of application;
• 100 per cent secure handling of passports, documents and personal information;
• In-VAC feedback kiosks and forms, and online feedback services  for applicants to share their recommendations and feedback about the services;
• Tracking of application status and SMS alerts for visa status update on mobile phones;
• Prime time appointment service allows applicants to lodge their applications beyond the normal processing hours;
• Premium Lounge Service;
• Cloaking Facility;
• Door-step delivery of passports. – TradeArabia News Service