What was supposed to be just a formality, has transformed and become a dead end for a family from Morocco who is visiting Montreal.
The father, mother and their eldest son can travel to Mexico with the exception of their 4-year-old son who is refused an entry visa by the Mexican consulate in Montreal.
Their family trip is in jeopardy a few days before departure on August 1 unless there is a last-minute turnaround.
*As the article involves a minor child, we cannot disclose the parents’ names in accordance with the law).
A look back at this situation which illustrates a cruel administrative labyrinth designed to break the patience of users.
The context
During the summer vacation, a family from Morocco traveled to Canada for the summer period. The members of this family are tourists in Canada.
They planned to spend ten days in Mexico starting August 1 before returning to Montreal and returning to Morocco afterwards.
The family had already booked their flight to Montreal on July 8. His trip to Mexico is scheduled for August 1.
The father is of Algerian origin, his wife is Moroccan and their two children (15 years old and 4 years old) have entry visas to Canada.
The father, his wife and their 15-year-old son have Canadian visas stamped on their passports.
The 4-year-old has a Canadian electronic visa (EV) which allows him to travel to Canada, but he did not receive his printed Canadian visa on time.
The trip to Canada
Due to the waiting times for the Canadian visa for the youngest, the family made the decision to come to Canada in order to enjoy their vacation on Canadian soil.
The trip to Mexico and its conditions
For holders of a Canadian visa affixed to their passport, travel to Mexico is a formality as we can read on the consulate website.
However, given that the 4-year-old child does not have a printed Canadian visa, it is essential for him to obtain a Mexican visa to travel.
Steps before traveling
As we were able to see in the email exchanges, the father had contacted the Mexican consular representation in Morocco which provided him with the information and suggested that he apply for a Mexican visa from Canada.
The father’s steps with the Mexican consulate in Montreal
Arriving in Canada, the father contacted the Mexican Consulate in Montreal. He sent copies of the documents in his possession. Having received no response, he managed to have an appointment after traveling himself and his family in person on July 9 to the Consulate.
He was scheduled to meet by email and asked to provide a birth certificate for the 4-year-old child.
He contacted the Moroccan consulate in Montreal which easily issued him the certified document.
He went to the Mexican consulate.
However this time, the document that had been requested was refused and he was asked to provide an apostilled birth certificate. He was assured that this would be the only document to provide.
The father sent the copy of the document by email to the consulate who arranged a new appointment for him.
The father of the family brought the birth document from Morocco by express.
He went to the consulate with his wife and his 4-year-old son to submit the document this Tuesday, July 28.
Unfortunately, the person in charge of visas requested other documents from the father (pay slips, proof of support, all apostilled from Morocco) and categorically refused to issue a visa to their 4-year-old child even though both parents are authorized to travel.
Trip to Mexico compromised?
At the time of publishing this article, the father has not obtained a visa for his child.
He says he is disappointed by the turn of events, but he maintains a slight hope of a turnaround in the situation two days before leaving on vacation on August 1st.