VFS Global Faces Scrutiny Over Visa Processing Irregularities, Forcing Applicants To Pay For 'Premium' Services

(MENAFN- Live Mint) VFS Global, the world's largest visa processing outsourcing company, is being accused of malpractices including aggressive upselling of premium services, severe data privacy vulnerabilities, and the systemic exploitation of visa applicants. A year-long investigation by the investigative journalism organization Lighthouse Reports has found that the Dubai-based company built an adjacent business around selling add-ons such as SMS updates, courier return services, and access to premium lounges.

VFS upselling value-added services

VFS, which was founded in 2001 by Zubin Karkaria, is now a multi-billion-dollar company that holds visa outsourcing contracts with 71 governments worldwide. The company is accused of exploiting its near-monopoly in EU visa processing to sell 'value-added services'.

“Staff are typically paid low base salaries and awarded bonuses contingent on meeting monthly sales targets for value-added services, creating perverse incentives to sell,” the investigation found.

Allegations of bribery

It also found that customers are exposed to bribery at the hands of both external agents and even VFS staff for processing and visa interview slots. One such instance involved Vrinda, a 71-year-old woman from Pune, who was applying for a visa to visit her son in Belgium and meet her new granddaughter.

But due to torrential rain, she was late by 15 minutes for her appointment. But the VFS officer told her she had two choices: Go home and book another appointment, or pay around ₹40,000 for the company's premium service.

“They said no, you can come back another day or pay. I was quite shocked,” Vrinda was quoted as saying in the report.“But whatever they told me, I had to follow.”

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Such practices are not limited to VFS in India. Former staff in several countries revealed that they put such added-value services onto customers' bills without their consent.“Most customers would just accept this,” an ex-employee of VFS in Kenya said.

A visa officer currently working at VFS in Nigeria said the bonuses for selling value-added services could amount to almost twice the base salaries of contractors.

Data privacy concerns

Beyond the unethical upselling of premium services, the investigation also unearthed more concerning practices by VFS Global, including weak handling of personal and biometric data to fake visa appointment and visa-shopping practices.

Lighthouse Reports also claimed that it obtained leaked reports from the European Commission 's own diplomatic service which revealed EU governments are aware of consistent deficiencies in VFS's service.

What VFS Global said

Responding to the report, VFS in a statement said it operated a“zero tolerance approach to any coercion or misrepresentation” by its staff, and that applicants are“clearly informed... that these [supplemental] services are optional, do not influence visa decisions or processing times, and are priced transparently.”

The company added it was a“world leading, trusted technology and services provider, empowering secure mobility for governments and citizens,” and that its“operations are subject to rigorous and continuous government oversight,” and“undergoes more than 10,000 audits and assessments annually, conducted by internal and external auditors, including those assigned by client governments.”

Key Takeaways

VFS Global's practices highlight the ethical dilemmas in the outsourcing of visa processing services. Investigations reveal systemic exploitation of vulnerable visa applicants through aggressive upselling. The case underscores the need for greater transparency and regulatory oversight in the visa processing industry.

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