₦airaland Forum

esdajo:
It's soothing to know you have hired a legal representative. However, I doubt if they will release the document until they get an official message from your almer mater. I think they suspected the document was doctored, hence, the seizure. However, if they later find out that same was not, they will release it to you or just send it back to your almer mater as that is their modus operandi.

On a side note, I know how frustrating this could be, but I would suggest you don't put all your eggs in one basket. You don't have to put your life on hold because of a visa, however desirous that may seem. Have a backup plan and focus more on clearing your name so you won't be blacklisted on the SIS. Once that is achieved, even if you move elsewhere, you can always reapply for a schengen visa to any of the schengen states and you won't have any problems bothering on fraudulent misrepresentation from the past. All the best!

Thanks, the school has sent the verification to them.

esdajo:
Hi poster. Sorry about your experience but all hope is not lost as I have been in a similar situation over a decade ago and it all ended in praise. I would suggest you appeal the decision, but just before that, kindly sort out the issue of your certificate from ABU.

The first step should be to write the relevant department of your alma mater about this development and if possible, provide them with a printout of the original copy with the embassy so they can write an official letter, confirming the document is, for all intent and purposes, genuine. Once you have the document from the institution on their letter head, bearing the email and phone number of the relevant department (exams and records), you can then write a letter, quoting your name, D.O.B, reference number, and if possible, a copy of the rejection letter. Take this letter to the embassy or send it in by courier. The embassy will, most likely send the document withheld back to the institution for confirmation. Once that is sorted out, you can then appeal the decision. However, be ready for back-and-forth letter exchanges with the embassy by courier until all issues have been trashed. In my case, I appealed alongside my defence and it went on for 2 months until I was cleared and asked to re-apply. However, this was in 2014, and I don't know if the process is still the same.

After all issues must have been sorted out, you can always re-apply. If you don't trash this now, your records would be on the Schengen Information System and believe me, you don't want your name blacklisted. Delay is not necessarily denial, but it would be in your best interest to follow due process and sort this out. Your visa is sure waiting for you, just a few glitches here and there. I wish you Goodluck!

Thank you so much for your kind words and for taking the time to share your experience. I really appreciate it.

I’ve already hired an immigration lawyer in Germany, and we’re currently appealing the decision. I’ve also formally informed ABU about the situation and shared with them the exact document that was submitted to the embassy. The school is aware and has agreed to send an official verification letter as well.

To be honest, I’m quite upset about the whole process. This has already cost me a lot of money and emotional energy, and it’s frustrating that the embassy did not simply reach out to the university directly for verification before taking this step. That said, my hands are clean, and I’m confident in the authenticity of my documents.

At this point, my main concern is getting my MBA certificate back while the verification and appeal process runs its course. I’m following due process carefully and documenting everything.

Your message was encouraging, especially hearing that things eventually worked out for you. Thank you again for sharing your experience and the reassurance.

Update:

The embassy called me this morning.

According to them, my document is suspected of being manipulated. They would not explain how they arrived at that conclusion, said the case is closed, and informed me that I have one month to appeal.

They also stated that when a document is suspected of this nature, it is not returned. I am sincerely hoping the document has not been destroyed, as that would be extremely detrimental.

Honestly, this all feels surreal. Like I’m watching it happen from outside my body.

In the meantime, I’ve contacted an immigration firm in Germany, and I’ve asked my university to issue a formal verification letter on my behalf to include in the appeal.

If anyone has been through something similar or understands how this appeal process works, I would really appreciate any insight or guidance.

foonshur:
Now, how they arrived at the conclusion that the certificate isn't genuine is the big question.
And might I ask, why did you include your MBA in the application, was your undergraduate degree different entirely?
Are you looking to appeal the decision or you just want your MBA certificate back?

I honestly wish they had explained how they arrived at that conclusion. I am completely confident in the authenticity of my certificate, which is why I asked them to contact the school directly and why I was comfortable reaching out to the university myself. This is Ahmadu Bello University, after all.

I included my MBA because my professional background and intended work are in marketing, which has been my field for many years. My MBA is also in marketing, so it is directly relevant to my career path and application.

What remains unclear is how they concluded that the certificate is not genuine without first verifying it with the issuing institution. That is the part that raises the most questions for me.

At this point, my immediate priority is the return of my original MBA certificate. Depending on how they respond and whether the verification is properly handled, I will then decide on the next steps regarding an appeal.

Singlefile:
Hardly visa are rejected at German embassy, I am really to hear this, it's very painful and not easy after waiting for this long, went for an interview with expenses and end up rejected.

Please, I will advise you also contact your school for the originality of your MBA certificate while you find away to obtain the certificate from the German embassy.

The offense placed on you is a criminal offense which may affect you in all Schengen countries. Please do well to clarify things before looking for alternative.

My worry is the more money you're going to put into to clarify your name

I have already reached out directly to the school, and they have confirmed that there is nothing wrong with my certificate. They also advised that the embassy contact them directly for verification. In my response, I included the official email addresses of the school to facilitate this process. I am unsure why this verification was not done initially by the embassy.

I sincerely hope that my original certificate is returned and that it has not been misplaced.

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share an update regarding my application, which was rejected for two main reasons.

First, there is a discrepancy between the date of birth on my WAEC certificate and my other documents. I had submitted both an affidavit and a sworn declaration of age to address this. Their position is that I started school too early. I have already sent an email explaining that I come from a teaching household and that I did, in fact, start and complete school quite early. Unfortunately, WAEC no longer corrects dates of birth, so there is nothing further I can do on that end.

Second, they stated that my original MBA certificate was manipulated. I have responded to this and provided them with the official email contact of Ahmadu Bello University so they can verify the certificate directly with the school. I believe this verification should have been done before making such an allegation.

My biggest concern right now is that my original MBA certificate was not returned. It is the only document that was not given back to me. I have written to ask why this was withheld and whether it was intentional. I am really hoping it has not been misplaced.

Tomkito:
Thank you very much for your response. I've gone through the thread to see your response but can't find it.
So, I have a scanned copy of my BECE certificate but the original is missing. I'd like to know the next course of action to take since I have the original copy scanned already and how you went about getting the certified true copy.
Thank you very much

I have a scanned testimonial, i went to the school for a letter to prove the document is real {i got this recently, it wasn't submitted with my other documents, I had no idea it was missing} I also did an affidavit to back it up.

My interview is tomorrow, hopefully, it doesn't raise any issues.

Jollyana:
Hi Bella, I wanted to ask how you went about your reference while doing your preliminary stage. I saw earlier that you had issues with using the hotel you booked as a reference. How did you overcome the issue? What did you end up using as a reference? Individual or organization?

OMG!!!

that was such a hassle, apparently those youtube videos who tell you to write receptionist or hotel manager as a substitute for names, damn! lol

Just find an apartment or hotel where the owner is willing to provide their name and surname and that should fix it.

IamDejman:
Expect to stand for more than 60 minutes. Lol. You should take all your original copies and have them arranged together. Questions around Why Germany and not an English speaking country, Can you speak German?, Do you have or know anyone in Germany, Future plan in Germany, and a test tailored to your course of study.

I used DR-WALTER EDUCARE24 insurance

Best wishes!

this is quite helpful, I just did the dr walter's insurance and will have dhl send the return envelop to my address this week.

gonna be interesting to see what marketing questions they whip out, lol.

thanks.

StoneColdxx:
https://www.dr-walter-secure.de/93bb3f105b75779408324a596b345af0/educare24_en/daten.html

I selected the (M) package… and selected the Debit from my future account.

thank you

Can someone pls help me with the insurance package they bought from dr walters, a direct link would be greatly appreciated.

Aderonke2025car:
Hello,
When did you join waiting list?

For the Insurance, you can get it done just few minutes using Dr. WALTER.

Some of the popular questions are:
Why Germany?
What is your future plan?
What will you do if you don’t get Job within 1 year in Germany?
Why not English speaking countries ?

honestly not sure, I think I joined in January.

do you mind sharing templates on answering these?

cc150615:
DHL: they are going to collect all your originals including passport, so you will also submit a DHL/FedEx return envelope with your address on it (you can buy at any FedEx/DHL outlet), the embassy will use that to send your stuff back to you when a decision has been made.
Test: In addition to the why do you want to go to Germany and similar questions, if you are given an aptitude test, it will likely be based on your course of study. I have about 10 years experience in a field far away from my course of study and I was still tested based on that course, I tried to make them change it (because I saw one guy here say he did that) but they said it was okay, I should do it like that.

thanks.

I have a BA in politics and an MBA in marketing, i used the mba in marketing as my main education, so i guess that's where the questions will come from.

I'll try and see about the dhl return envelop this weeks.

Hey everyone, good news 🎉
I finally got my appointment and it’s scheduled for January 20th.

I have a few questions and would really appreciate some guidance from anyone who’s been through this:

• What should I generally expect on the day?
• How does the DHL process work for submitting original documents?
• How long does it take to get insurance, and which providers do you recommend?
• I’m in marketing, so I’m guessing the aptitude test (if any) will be related to that?

I’m especially confused about the DHL part and insurance plans, so any tips, timelines, or recommendations would help a lot 🙏

Thank you in advance 💛

Msquare220:
Thank you for your response.

I thought one can initiate and enter the waiting list before full submission. I started the process since March but I was not able to submit due to invitation/POF.

When I start the process, it was showing the waiting period betweeen 2 to 6 motnhs. Then after couple of months, it started showing 6 to 12 months. But Now, I cant even see it anymore.

Attched is the screenshort of the page.

Do you have any idea?

you have to finish uploading both document and videx sections, then submit, before you can join the waiting list.

Diceman8:
just to let you know i had the same issue as @talk2bella

I first used "reference person" as my reference and then they asked for me to provide first his residence permit but he wasnt a german citizen, he is a european citizen, so i told them and then they asked for me to submit both his passport and Meldebestätigung (proof of residence)
My reference was my former boss in germany so i didnt want to ask him for something so private and sensitive. So i changed my reference to Educational establishment/company/organisation and i booked a hotel, inserted the details etc, they then called me and said i needed to submit his passport and Meldebestätigung and they didnt accept my hotel booking.
So i had to get his passport and Meldebestätigung to get to the interview stage. i hope theres a way to get over this because people that know no one in germany will have no way for this route to work.

OMG... when I was asked to upload the PR document and i updated the reference type, the person reviewing my case kept asking me to change it to "Hotel" which was impossible as I had no backend access, when I mentioned it was impossible to do so, they realised this and deleted it themselves then asked me to update videx to hotel, which was/is another impossible task as the OPC videx doesn't have "Hotel" as a reference type.

Singlefile:
No sir, I doubt if it is a system glitch. They only send that email once a month on a very particular date you made your application to inform you of the reactivation of your application or to know if you are still interested in the application, counting until your preliminary review.
All you need to do is log in anytime you receive the email in that particular month to show that you are still interested in joining the preliminary review stage

it's a glitch, I got it again today, after signing in yesterday. I also sign in frequently so not sure why i got it multiple times yesterday.

Onuchijioke:
Pls what's the meaning of this?

might be a system glitch, I got this twice yesterday....just sign in.

Tifay:
So I did some digging online and looks like you should just book a hotel for this purpose and use the address. It worked for someone on the link below.

https://www.reddit.com/r/germany/comments/1e1fz4y/chancenkarte_videx_application_reference_section/

Thanks...... but I did this already, hence the reference option I chose.

charlesklaus:
My apologies. Send a new follow-up and clarify that they are referring to the short-stay Schengen VIDEX form, not the opportunity card VIDEX form.

In the Schengen one, you can select a hotel as a reference.

https://videx.diplo.de/videx/visum-erfassung/videx-kurzfristiger-aufenthalt

Hopefully this helps

Thanks for your help, but this person knows, I am sure they do, I have submitted my response and the deadline they gave me was 28th which is a sunday, I guess after then they can make whatever decision they want to.

I have never applied for a German short stay visa, so I had no idea this was even possible, for the longest time, I thought I was blind, but now I see what she's referring to. I sincerely hope they make the right decision as this is embarrasing.

charlesklaus:
Sorry this is coming late. How did you resolve the issue?

The following video explains how to use a hotel as a reference.
https://youtu.be/AGs3BeskQ4E?si=V3_sb7daOPs2pCOa

thanks for responding, this is exactly what I did, but the visa officer is asking me to change or chose hotel as a type of reference which is impossible as I only have 3 options, I have explained severally to them, but they keep insisting i change it which is so weird. See the last message I was sent...

"Dear Applicant, please be informed that without providing the right information, an application CANNOT be processed SUCCESSFULLY. In your own case, you intend to stay in a hotel and thus, you HAVE TO choose HOTEL as the type of reference and then fill in the details accordingly. In the case where YOU cannot find hotel, which is an available option, we cannot provide any further guidiance. We can only implore you to choose the right ref. type & fill in the right information."

How is "Hotel" an available option? I have repeatedly messaged back to say this isn't even an option for me, but this person keeps insisting it is and it's available for me to choose but it's not, I am just tired. Issue hasn't been resolved, they extended the date and asked me to change the reference type to "Hotel" I replied back it's beyond my powers to do so, no custom field to manually input it, nothing and I cannot even send a screenshot for them to see.

Missmarola:
Please I was told to make some corrections.

1. The name on my Neco result does not tally with the name on my passport. I was request to submit an affidavit. How do I get that please?

2. I don't have my original birth certificate but I submitted my affidavit done by my mother and attestation letter from NPC. Now the embassy is requesting for my mother's means of identification instead of attestation letter but the ID she has are not signed.

Please, I need your assistance urgently🙏

I was asked the same thing, does she have a passport? that was what worked for me

I'm in a frustrating situation and need help urgently. My application will be deleted today at 12 noon if I don't resolve this.
The visa officer keeps asking me to change the "Type of Reference" to "Hotel" for my accommodation. The problem is there is NO hotel option in the dropdown.
The only options available are:

Reference person
Educational establishment/company/organisation
Accredited Diplomat

I initially selected "Reference person" but they asked for PR/residence documents of someone in Germany - which I don't have.
So I changed it to "Educational establishment/company/organisation" since a hotel is technically a registered business. Now they're telling me to change it to "Hotel" - an option that doesn't exist.

I've tried explaining this to the visa officer but they keep insisting I change it to Hotel without acknowledging that the option isn't there.
Has anyone faced this issue? What did you select for Type of Reference when staying at a hotel?

Any help appreciated - I'm running out of time.

"Kindly change that Art der referenz from what is there to Hotel and then fill the information correctly. This application will be deleted today by 12 noon."

Diceman8:
And have you gotten a reply or interview date?

not yet.

Diceman8:
They asked me for " residence permit of reference in germany" but my reference is a european citizen so they dont have a residence permit. What should i do here lol

same problem I faced, I had to change the reference type from a person to org/est/sch

charlesklaus:
As long as your visa hasn’t been rejected yet, that’s a plus. But I’ll suggest sending a follow-up email.

Did you select “Reference person” as the type of reference?

seems like he did, that's the only reason they'd be asking for that document

Hi everyone, so I updated the reference to an org/school yesterday and got this feedback today "This is a hotel reservation and not copy of residence permit for the reference person. Change the caption you have here since you would be staying in a hotel. " how do I change a platform caption? I didn't add the residence permit caption, I am seriously confused, who else has experienced this or can provide any sort of insight.

Diceman8:
Can you be more clear?

Instead of choosing org/education, I chose reference. I guess this was the reason they asked for the PR document, I have updated it to the later and now attached proof of residence.

Singlefile:
I guess they have stopped receiving new applications from what I noticed on my dashboard

what did you notice?

Diceman8:
as @ZiggyZiggy said i can confirm, they ask for additional document which is the "residence permit of your reference" so yes if you dont know any permanent residence that lives in germany, this route has now become impossible for you, not everyone will hand out a sensitive document like this.

this isn't true, if you chose reference instead or org/education, you'd have to provide PR of the said reference in germany. If you chose the later, your chosen residence info should suffice.

ZiggyZiggy:
You need a reference who is a legal resident or a citizen of Germany, there's really no way around it (at least so far).

If the feedback appeared in the Documents section, they should also give the same feedback in the Reference Form section. That way, you can update your original reference to someone in Germany and also upload their document.

But if that's not your situation and they only requested an upload in the Documents section, the safest thing to do is create one file that includes all the reference details normally asked for in the reference form. Fill it with the new German reference’s information, attach their document, and upload everything together as a single file. In that same file, explain that you cannot access the reference form section to update the reference you submitted earlier.

PS: This is just how I'd approach it if I were you, so ultimately do your own research and decide what's best to do. If you keep waiting for an email response from them, the time they gave you for the preliminary feedback correction might elapse, and they'll delete your application.

Thanks for the feedback, I can still access the reference form section. I'd just change the reference section to org/education {apartment address}, that way I can fill out some of the info requested. I don't know anyone in germany, not even sure someone would give me their PR document just like that to upload.

They didn't give me the feedback in the document section, it was clearly stated there who the reference was and where they are based.

Laryfrosh:
LoL... I believe people who joined the queue a year ago have already completed all stages, and are either in Germany or somewhere else (based on rejection).
I'm confused. How come you are still at this stage?

not sure I understand what you're trying to insinuate.

I still need help with my inquiry pls, I have sent emails to the consulate and no response yet. I am being required to submit the PR document of someone in Germany, I didn't add anyone from germany as a reference.