CONTINUED FROM PART 2
13. Proof of medical Insurance for the duration of your Spanish stay: My University had included medical insurance in its tuition and included written proof of the same in my acceptance letter. So I gave that in as proof.
However, this wasn?t good enough for the embassy, because they wanted a repatriation clause included in the insurance. This basically means that if you DIE in Spain, your insurance will cover sending you back to India (since clearly, if this wasn?t being paid for, your friends and relatives would be more than happy to let you float around in the European Union). How cheerful.
So Either write to your university well in advance asking them if they?ll cover this clause for an extra payment and send you proof of the same, OR purchase local insurance that clearly states that they cover repatriation of remains. Also, your minimum medical coverage has to be 30,000 Euros/ 44,000 Dollars/ 19,50,000 Rupees. It sounds like a lot, but I got 50,000 dollars worth of coverage, plus the very merry repatriation clause and a host of other benefits, in less than 8,000 Rupees, so it?s really worth it to just buy it.
14. A Medical certificate from a practicing doctor. I went for a general checkup and got the letter, signed by the doctor who wrote it and stamped by the hospital. There are only certain hospitals from which a medical certificate will be accepted (e.g. - Max, Gangaram, etc), so call the embassy beforehand and ask them what they?ll accept. Also, this certificate has to be less than a month old at the time of visa submission.
The certificate has to state that you?re physically and mentally fit, have no drug addictions, no communicable illnesses, have been vaccinated against possible diseases, and most importantly, are ?not suffering from any disease that can have repercussions any on the public health in accordance with the International Sanitary Act 2005.? THOSE VERY WORDS. Don?t mess around WITH THE ORDER OF THE WORDS, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY. SOMEONE thought she could say the SAME thing, rephrased, and that SOMEONE was sent back by the embassy, and had to go to the same doctor to get another certificate, which was not fun for SOMEONE. I won?t say who. Ok it was me.
15. A photocopy of the above, VERY SPECIFIC, medical certificate.
16. A legalized criminal record, more clearly, an Apostilled Police Clearance Certificate. This is probably the most long drawn out of all documents to acquire. Unless you actually do have a criminal record against yourself, in which case I?m sure you?ll employ familiar tactics to acquire a clean record in the blink of an eye/ shot of a gun. Two steps for those of you less fortunate:
I. The PCC itself: You can get a PCC from a police station in other situations, but for the Visa process you?ll have to get it from the regional passport office of where you?ve been living for the past 5 years/ where your passport is issued from. You need:
? Your passport
? A filled out ?application for miscellaneous services on Indian Passports? form with a photo stuck on it (http://passport.gov.in/cpv/miscell.pdf / OR Form No. 2 from http://passport.gov.in/cpv/Forms.htm)
? Proof of current address (in case the address on your passport is NOT your current address)
? 300 Rupees
1. Now go to the passport office. Stand in the requisite line for hours. Years maybe.
2. Hand in all the documents to the appropriate counters (if you?re confused just ask someone. There?s always someone who magically knows exactly what to do when, with clockwork precision).
After all that?s done, they?ll probably tell you to return either the same day after a few hours, or the next day. So walk around, enjoy the beautiful day. Unless its Delhi summer.
1. Return to the passport office. Stand in the requisite line for hours. Years maybe.
2. Get your PCC.
3. Verify all the details on it, and get out of there.
II. The Apostille on the PCC:
1. Go to the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi with your PCC, between 9:00 AM? 12:00 PM.
2. Get a postal slip from the requisite counter for Rs. 50.
3. Hand in the PCC along with the postal slip.
They?ll tell you to return in a few hours/ the next day to pick up the apostilled PCC.
17. A Photocopy of both sides of the PCC
Apart from these, there may be a few random, documents which the embassy requires. A week after I submitted what I thought was the world?s most comprehensive application, the embassy decided it wanted more, previously unmentioned papers, and they wanted them within the next week or theyd ?consider my application scrapped?. Luckily I managed to get them together within that time and hand them in. The documents they wanted in my case were:
1. Proof of payment of the tuition fee for my course (If you?ve paid only part of it and the rest can be paid at a later date, hand in the proof of the partial payment along with a letter stating that you?ve paid what was required and you?ll pay the remainder later)
2. Income Tax returns for the last 3 years (filed by whoever is funding your stay)
They may decide to come up with more documents they require, like drawings of flowers you made in Class II, or proof that your dog is healthy, or top secret plans of an underground city financed by Ukraine, and if you can?t obtain THAT, then ask yourself, my friend?? Do you have what it takes to live in Spain?
I really hope all this information makes the visa process simpler, faster and more efficient for you. If you have any questions, ask away in the comments and I?ll answer the best I can. Best of luck!
