prince2008

Hello everyone,

I lost my Australian passport today while travelling in a train from chicago downtown to rosemont station.It had my e3 visa stamp.I can apply for a new passport , but my concern is e3 visa.

Do i need leave US and reapply for the visa and go through the whole process again from the beginning like a fresh e3 visa applicant?

If i have to leave US, do i need to travel back to Australia?

I am trying my best and hope someone finds my passport and returns it to the consular office in chicago or to the nearest railway authority or police station.

Any help and advice regarding the process to obtain the visa would be appreciated.

Thanks a lot....

ian-mstm

The first thing you should do is notify the Australian Embassy in DC.


As long as you remain in the US, you are in status.


Not sure about this... but you can not apply for a visa from within the US. You may be able to travel to Canada to do this. Contact your local Australian Consulate and see what they have to say about it. Good luck.

Ian

prince2008

Informed chicago police and australian consulate about the loss of passport.Spoke to USCIS and department of homeland security and they advised i need to reapply for the visa outside US. In other words, i will be a fresh e3 applicant.

The options i have is to apply either in canada or mexico instead of going all the way to australia. Any idea which one is better?i was told that its hard to get appointment in canada for 2 months and they need 5 business days to process it. Its processed on the same day in mexico but not sure how long it takes to get the appoinment. Also, which one is better in terms of visa interview?

Its very dissapointing that i lost my passport and visa which was issued just 6 months ago and i have to go through the entire process again.

ian-mstm

Sorry... I have no experience with Mexico, and I know Canada is often quite busy. Perhaps someone else will have a suggestion.

Ian

meauxna

Won't you need to replace your passport first?

You'll need it to cross the border into another country as well as for them to put the visa in (and your return to the US).

prince2008

Ian...Well..they actually dont process E3 in mexico..its mentioned on mexican consulate website.the only option now is either canada or back in australia.I have checked a list of various consulate websites around US and none of them process e3 and toronto consulate looks like an extremely busy consulate.

Meauxna..i do know i have to get a new passport first, but iam still hoping someone finds my passport and returns it to the police or consulate.Also, if i apply for the new passport , my old passport would get cancelled and if someone finds it then, its no of use.Hence, i have decided to wait for a couple of weeks before i apply for a new passport.

Bootle

Actually even if your passport is cancelled you would still have valid visa when your passport is returned to you. You just need to have both passports with you.

prince2008

Does anyone know whether E3 visa is processed in mexico?
Iam getting conflicting information. I did not get any reply from the consulate in mexico.Please help....

Thanks a ton..

dh010447

Maybe you might be able to get it done at Nassau? Do they have an Australian embassy/consulate there?

JAJ

Didn't you answer your own question in post #6?

Even if they do E3 visas in Mexico, the problem will be that they do very few of them, so consular officers (and more especially, the local employees) are a lot more likely to get confused, want to check things with Washington etc.

You also need to check whether they accept applications from someone who is not a Mexican citizen or permanent resident.

Unfortunately, your case highlights one of the problems in being on non-immigrant status in the United States - loss of passport and visa is a serious problem.

Vimto

It would appear tha Nassau in the Bahamas issues E visas see their website http://nassau.usembassy.gov/treaty_visa.html. A collegue went there recently for renewal of his L1A visa and it was only a 2 day turnaround. Have you tried to enquire there? It would appear that it costs $14 for an appointment http://nassau.usembassy.gov/visa_services.html.

CK78

Hey Prince,

Here is what I found: "None of the border posts will accept applications for "E" visas from from third country national applicants who are not resident in their consular districts. " http://tijuana.usconsulate.gov/niv.html

However, the consulates in Canada do process E3 visas and having applied in Vancouver multiple times, this was definitely the easiest & quickest way forward. Good luck with your existing passport, hopefully, someone turns it in.

prince2008

Thanks for all the information guys...my lost passport was returned to chicago internationnal airport by some anonymous person who was travelling to the airport. I got it back from the airport railway station. But i applied for a new passport and it was issued by the australian consulate. I was advised by USCIS and department of homeland security that the visa will still be valid in the old cancelled passport and i can carry it with the new passport when travelling. Its a big relief from all the hassles that i was getting ready for...Thanks heaps to everyone.

E3only

Glad things worked out for you...

dh010447

Thats good news... Must be a relief...