As educational trips gain popularity, universities embrace the Visa at Your Doorstep service for efficiency

With travel restrictions around the globe easing in the post-pandemic age, universities have seen an increase in the number of overseas trips for students.

In the past year, British universities re-started their overseas trips for sports, culture, education or exchange programmes and have noted increased demand. According to the latest reports, the educational tourism market is expected to exhibit a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.2% between 2021-2031. By 2031 its value is projected to reach $1,947 billion. 

Further, the total number of global educational tourists stood at 6 million in 2022. In the UK, the world’s largest outsourcing and technology services specialists for governments and diplomatic missions facilitating visa, passport and consular services VFS Global has seen an increase in interest from universities for its optional Visa At Your Doorstep (VAYD) service.

VFS Global has noted a sharp increase in educational institutions offering cultural and student exchange programmes over the year and found sports, culture, education, and skiing types of activities as being popular. It has also been noted that European destinations are popular for UK students and educational programmes.  

As many students, especially those from third countries in the UK, require a visa to join overseas education tours, VFS Global offers an optional Visa At Your Doorstep (VAYD) service which makes it easier for universities and students to enjoy a seamless travel experience. 

The doorstep service enables universities to opt for the optional service whereby students don’t have to visit the visa centre or wait in queues anymore. If a university chooses to use this service, VFS Global’s team visits the location at a scheduled time and date and helps process multiple applications on the same day. The VFS Global team assists students through their application submission process and biometrics, providing all necessary clarifications and helping them with the end-to-end application process.

Yummi Talwar, COO of Europe and CIS region at VFS Global said,

“The Optional Visa at Your Doorstep (VAYD) service has experienced a significant surge in demand recently. During the last two years, over 20 colleges and universities have embraced the VAYD service for various international trips, including sports, culture, education, and exchange programs. Particularly in the UK, where universities represent a large market, using this service instead of scheduling multiple in-person appointments proves more advantageous and convenient for large groups. Our staff members are equipped with mobile kits to capture biometrics, enabling us to visit university campuses and provide visa processing services in the UK. This seamless and convenient approach significantly enhances the travel experience for students”.

In the UK, VFS Global offers VAYD services to countries including Italy, Denmark, Czech Republic, Malta, Croatia, Ireland, Cyprus and South Africa.