Further to our previous update on 22nd February regarding the issues affecting the electronic payment system used by the Saudi Arabian Embassy, we are delighted to confirm that we are now able to continue to lodge Corporate Legal documents to the Embassy for legalisation. Some minor delays may still occur while the backlog is cleared.

We have been informed that with immediate effect, the Embassy of Saudi Arabia will no longer be legalising Certificates of Origin or Commercial Invoices. The Arab-British Chamber of Commerce is in discussion with the Embassy about future arrangements, as legalised Certificates of Origin and Commercial Invoices are often a crucial requirement for importers into Saudi Arabia. As a result of this, all Arab-British Certificates of Origin currently being processed by Blair, and any future requests, will be certified only by the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce.

If you require any guidance or additional information, please contact our Export Shipping Documentation Department on +44 (0) 1784 254123 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

The Embassy of Saudi Arabia is experiencing difficulties with their electronic payment system, resulting in severe delays to the processing of document legalisation requests.

A resolution date is not yet available. We are anticipating considerable delays, once service has resumed there will be a substantial backlog to clear within the Embassy.

Please accept our apologies for the delay, we will endeavour to have all requests legalised as quickly as possible.

Please contact our Corporate Legal Department on +44 (0) 1784 427750 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for further information.

To support our growing client base, Blair Consular Services Ltd. is delighted to announce the opening of a new office, located in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, providing certification and legalisation assistance to current and prospective clients.

Located in the strategic location of Rotterdam, with close proximity to The Hague, Blair will be able to provide an unrivalled level of expertise and support to exporters. In addition to assisting our current clients in mainland Europe, new requirements and procedures for U.K exporters will be in place as a result of the European Medicines Agency’s decision to relocate to The Netherlands by the end of March 2019, and Blair is able to offer a dedicated service for the application, submission and legalisation of EMA certificates.

Please contact our Sales team at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for more information on the services available from the Rotterdam office.

With immediate effect, all Nigerian Visa applicants must appear at the OIS Services Processing Centre in person to provide their biometric information. In order to facilitate this change, we are pleased to offer our clients’ a Meet and Greet service, where one of our specialist Visa Couriers will meet the applicant at the Processing Centre to guide them through the process. Please contact our Passport & Visa Department on .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 01784 262620/262621 for further information.

We have been advised that the Nigerian High Commission is not currently accepting any applications on the express service. All applications must be submitted using the standard seven day service. Please take this into consideration prior to booking any non-refundable travel or accommodation. If you would like to discuss this any further, please contact our Passport & Visa Department on +44 (0) 1784 262 620 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Algeria 26th June
Bahrain 26th – 28th June
Egyptian Chamber of Commerce 26th – 27th June
Indonesia 26th – 30th June
Iran 26th June
Jordan 26th – 28th June
Kuwait 26th – 28th June
Lebanon 26th – 27th June
Philippines 26th June
Pakistan 26th – 27th June
Qatar 26th – 30th June
Saudi 26th – 30th June
Yemen 26th – 28th June

Further closures may still be announced. Please contact our export shipping department on +44 (0) 1784 254123 for further information.

Due to a recent policy introduced by the Pakistani Interior Ministry, all business visa applicants will need to be referred for security clearance prior to a visa being issued. As a result of this, applications will now take up to six or seven weeks to process. It is not currently possible to expedite this process. We strongly recommend that applicants book flexible flights and accommodation in Pakistan to allow trips to be rescheduled to avoid any additional financial costs, For further information, please contact our visa department on 01784 262620 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Arab Chamber 23rd December – 3rd January
Algeria 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Angola 17th December – 2nd January
China 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Congo (Democratic) 23rd December – 4th January
Egypt 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Ethiopia 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Indonesia 23rd December – 2nd January
Iraq 26th December – 2nd January
Japan 29th – 30th December
Liberia 23rd December – 2nd January
Myanmar 29th December
Oman 26th December – 2nd January
Philippines 26th – 27th December, 30th December, 2nd January
Qatar 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Russia 31st December – 8th January
Saudi Arabia 22nd December – 2nd January
Senegal 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Tanzania 23rd December – 3rd January
Turkmenistan 12th December
UAE 26th – 27th December, 2nd January
Uganda 16th December – 2nd January
Zimbabwe 22nd December

With effect from Sunday 2nd October, the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in London will be introducing one and two year multiple entry visas. In addition to this, they will be changing the fee structure for their visit visas, which will result in an increase in cost for all applicants. For further information, or to discuss how this will impact your future applications, please contact our Passport & Visa Department on 01784 262620 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).