HC Deb 04 December 1995 vol 268 c82W
Mrs. Ann Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the average waiting time between the receipt of a decision to grant a visitor's visa to a visitor from Turkey and the visa being obtained by a visitor. [3694]

Mr. Hanley

In Istanbul, once a decision has been made to issue a visitor's visa the visa may be collected the same afternoon, provided the application was received before 11 am. Those received after 11 am may be collected the following working day.

In Ankara, once a decision has been made to issue a visitor's visa, the visa may be collected within 24 hours.

Mrs. Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the average waiting time for an interview for a visitor's visa for a visitor from Turkey. [3693]

Mr. Hanley

The longest waiting time for an interview in Istanbul in 1994 was 20 working days and in Ankara in 1994 was two working days.

Records for average waiting times are not kept.