The Swedish Ministry of Justice has awarded VFS Global the global tender to provide visa services in 37 countries across the globe including Bangladesh.

Under this new agreement, VFS Global will continue to operate on behalf of the Government of Sweden in 8 regions worldwide – South Asia, the Americas, Southeast Asia, China, the Middle East and North Africa, Africa, Europe, and Russia.

Also read: Indian Visa Application Centre at JFP launches Visa Application Facilitation Centre

In Bangladesh, Sweden visa applications are accepted at the VFS Global visa application centre in Dhaka from Sunday to Thursday, between 9 am and 2 pm.

VFS Global has worked with the Government of Sweden since 2014 and under the new contract will provide Schengen visa services (short term C visas) including biometric enrolment in the following 37 countries: Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China. Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Kosovo, Lebanon, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, USA, Vietnam, Zambia and Zimbabwe, VFS Global said on Thursday.

Also read: Bangladeshi applicants for UK visa need to pay online from Nov 28

Since 2019, VFS Global has handled nearly 500,000 visa applications on behalf of the Government of Sweden.

The Swedish Ministry of Justice and the Swedish Migration Agency, said: “We are looking forward to a continued, smooth and professional Schengen visa cooperation with VFS Global, for many years to come. Quality promotion measures, regionalization and technical development are some areas where we are working on jointly. We continue our fruitful coordination and cooperation with VFS Global and strive to improve the process even further.”

Chris Dix, Head of Business Development, VFS Global, said: “VFS Global is delighted that we will continue to serve the Government of Sweden as their sole service provider. We have enjoyed a strong partnership with the Swedish Migration Agency and the Ministry of Justice for nearly a decade and welcome the opportunity to renew our services in the existing locations where we operate. We look forward to offering Swedish visa applicants best-in-class visa solutions, and a seamless application process across 8 regions globally.”

Also read: VFS Global asked to remain functional following health guidelines