Upto 15% Indian student visa applications have fake documents: German Ambassador

Around 15% of Indian student visa applications consist of fake documents, said German Ambassador Philipp Ackerman, adding that currently, there are 30,000 Indian students in Germany. He revealed that some of them from India obtained a German student visa through agents who fabricated documents.

Taking such activities into consideration, the Ambassador informed that the German authorities are now looking more closely into all Indian student visa applications, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com reports. 

He also assured that Indian students who obtained a German student visa with legal procedure, would not get affected. "Only those who should go will go," Ackerman said.

The Ambassador had earlier also stated that Indian students who are to attend German universities are unlikely to join classes on time owing to visa delays. However, the situation will probably improve later this year. 

Notably, this is not the first time that the German authorities have noticed and complained about Indian students submitting fake documents. A total of 35 Indians were accused of submitting falsified documents to the German Consulate for visa applications in August this year, according to SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

These applications with fake documents were submitted between 2017 and 2019. A police officer disclosed that the immigration personnel found that the income tax returns of some applicants were fake. An applicant who claimed to be attending an exhibition in Germany even submitted a fake invitation letter.

On August 30 this year, the Ambassador had advised that students should directly contact the universities in case of visa delays. “This is heartbreaking. It is very difficult for students but my advice to them is – go to the universities in Germany and say you will not make it in time and it is not your fault. It is the fault of the German embassy."

German authorities are also contacting universities to alert them about visa problems faced by foreign students. “This is a deficiency we are very well aware of and we want to heal that process as quickly as we can," he added.