The German Embassy in Islamabad has announced that the number of student visa applications for the winter semester has significantly exceeded their processing capacity. As a result, they will likely only be able to process applications from the “most deserving” candidates.
This statement was made on Monday in response to an inquiry regarding the issue.
Over the past few weeks, numerous students emailed, expressing frustration over delays in securing visa interview appointments at the German Embassy in Islamabad, despite having been accepted into universities. The emails claimed that while the appointment system for study visas was opened on May 21 for students admitted for the winter semester, no appointments had been scheduled through the “normal track,” and only “fast-track applicants” were being accommodated.
Two students shared the costly and challenging process, highlighting their difficulties.
“Regrettably, this academic year, we will likely only be able to process visa applications from the most deserving students, typically those who have been awarded public scholarships or have the best academic records,” the embassy’s communications section stated on Monday.
The embassy acknowledged the “huge interest” among Pakistani students in studying in Germany and noted that the volume of visa applications “currently greatly exceeds the embassy’s resources.”
Despite the growing number of visas processed at the German Embassy in Islamabad, the embassy is exploring ways to improve the situation. “We hope to improve the situation further in the upcoming academic years,” the embassy assured.
Hamza Amjad, a former student of the National University of Sciences and Technology (Nust), shared that he had invested a substantial amount of money in the visa application process, including nearly €500 (approximately Rs150,000) for the summer intake of 2024.
Amjad added that his blocked account in Germany contained €11,208 (approximately Rs3.4 million), which remains frozen and can only be accessed upon his arrival in the country.
“Expenses for accommodation booking and a semester ticket were also wasted as I could not join the university due to these appointment issues,” Amjad said.
Abdullah Yasin, a former student of Bahria University Islamabad, told that he applied to multiple German universities after his graduation in 2022 and was admitted. However, his admissions were repeatedly canceled due to visa appointment issues.
Yasin, who has now received an admission letter from the Technical University in Ilmenau, may have to wait another semester. He further mentioned that he spent approximately Rs300,000 on the process and that his International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test would expire, given its two-year validity.
The issue of limited visa appointments at the German Embassy in Pakistan is not new.
In a statement issued in May, the embassy acknowledged that it had not fulfilled all appointment requests for the summer semester due to the “enormous interest of potential students,” which “far exceeded the embassy’s capacities.”
The embassy also indicated that due to the high demand for student visas, applicants for Bachelor’s and Master’s programs with unconditional direct admission letters from German universities should expect longer wait times for appointments. It emphasized that scholarship holders and PhD students would be prioritized. Additionally, students with a cumulative grade point average of 3.7 or above would also receive priority under a separate online registration category.
