US EUROPE AFRICA ASIA 中文
    China / Society

    Glitch delays visas for US-bound students

    By Zhao Xinying Updated: 2014-07-28 20:37

    Computer problems blamed for breakdown of issuance system

    Some Chinese students who plan to start their studies in the United States next month might miss the beginning of the semester as the US visa issuance system has broken down, an overseas study insider said on Sunday.

    "The number of student visa applications usually peaks in June and July, because the semester starts in late August in many US universities, and students who recently made appointments for visa application interviews will be delayed by the breakdown," said Wang Jing, director of US consultants of Chivast Education International, an overseas studying consultancy in Beijing.

    "They may have to postpone their schedules, including the visa application and flight to the US," he said, adding that the number of Chinese students affected is unknown.

    The US State Department's passport and visa issuance system has broken down because of a computer problem, delaying visa and passport processing since Thursday.

    The system is still experiencing technical problems, according to a bulletin posted on the State Department website on Saturday.

    "As of July 26, we are operating at a significantly reduced capacity and will be until we clear the document backlog. This issue is worldwide and is not specific to any particular country or visa category," the bulletin said.

    "We are working urgently to correct the problem and expect the system to be fully operational again soon. We will continue to post updates to travel.state.gov as more information becomes available," it said.

    "Now, little information about the breakdown has been disclosed, and nobody knows when the system will resume work. All we can do for now is wait," Wang said.

    The US embassy suggests that international students start their visa applications four months before their semester begins, Wang said.

    "People who applied for their visa in April, May and June have received their visas, and the incident didn't affect them," he said.

    Liu Yang, a Shandong province student who will begin undergraduate studies at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts in late August, said he submitted his visa application materials on Jun 27 and received his visa two weeks later.

    Liu graduated from Beijing National Day School's international department, where all the students later study abroad in foreign universities, and so do not take the gaokao, the national college entrance exam.

    "We were told that the earlier we applied, the better. So most of my classmates who were going to study in the US handed in their visa materials in May, and very few in June, and we haven't been affected," he said.

    For students who are delayed by the incident, Wang said he thinks their US schools will take measures, such as postponing the enrollment date.

    The breakdown also affects tourists to the US. Gao Bei, director of tourism website lvmama.com's public relations department, said, "We tell people who are going to schedule an appointment to wait until the system functions normally."

    It's not the first time the US visa system stopped working. It also broke down in September 2003 because of a computer virus attack, the Associated Press reported at the time.

    "But I think fewer international students were affected that time than now, considering the quickly growing number of people going to study in the US in recent years," said Wang, who has been in the overseas study consulting business for more than 10 years.

    Su Zhou and Xinhua contributed to this story.

    zhaoxinying@chinadaily.com.cn

    Highlights
    Hot Topics
    ...
    亚洲综合无码AV一区二区 | 久久精品无码专区免费青青| 久久综合中文字幕| 久久久久亚洲AV无码麻豆| 最近免费中文字幕大全免费| 无码高清不卡| 日韩乱码人妻无码中文字幕久久| 中文字幕无码久久人妻| 中文无码伦av中文字幕| 久久AV高清无码| 亚洲中文字幕不卡无码| 亚洲欧美中文字幕| 在线观看无码AV网站永久免费| 免费人妻无码不卡中文字幕系| 亚洲欧洲日产国码无码网站| 开心久久婷婷综合中文字幕| 中文国产成人精品久久不卡| 亚洲AV无码一区二三区| AV无码精品一区二区三区| 无码无套少妇毛多18p| 最近免费字幕中文大全| 亚洲欧美日韩国产中文| 日本中文字幕在线| 亚洲高清中文字幕免费| 日韩一本之道一区中文字幕| 欧美日本道中文高清| 中文字幕极速在线观看| 青春草无码精品视频在线观| 久久国产三级无码一区二区| 精品无码人妻一区二区三区不卡| 少妇人妻无码精品视频app| 亚洲AV无码1区2区久久| 无码中文字幕日韩专区视频| 性无码一区二区三区在线观看| 曰批全过程免费视频在线观看无码 | 在线精品无码字幕无码AV| 国产在线无码精品电影网| 十八禁视频在线观看免费无码无遮挡骂过 | 2021国产毛片无码视频| 国产成人无码精品久久久久免费| 国产高清无码毛片|