CHITTAGONG: Visas for the United States of America (USA) are available in Chittagong from Sunday.

Applicants can submit their papers and collect the visas from the port city in place of Dhaka from now on.

The American embassy, in this regard, opened a visa centre in Chittagong on Sunday morning.

Embassy's vice-consul Will Romine inaugurated the visa centre at Ayub Trade Center in city’s Agrabad area.

However, all the necessary works for processing US visas from the port city will be complete by Saimon Overseas Ltd.

Sources said that after taking this initiative, applicants might go to Dhaka only for interviews.

But, the applicants can set the interview date on their own choice and convenient time by themselves through online.

At the inaugural ceremony, Romine said that the initiative to open a visa centre in Chittagong has been taken to ease the services of the American embassy.

“Now, the applicants can directly submit and collect their passports from the office in Chittagong,” he added.

Saimon Group chief executive officer Wajir Alam said that people, whose multiple visas have expired after 2008, can apply for visa just by submitting their passports in the drop-box.

“The centre will also provide American City Service in future,” he added.

Oman Air country manager Khandaker Ashraful Kabir and the owner of the Ayub Trade Center Mohammad Ayub, among others, were also present at the ceremony.

Nevertheless, American embassy's vice-consul Will Romine handed over a visa to an applicant Ekramul Azim after the program.

BDST: 1700 HRS, Oct 12, 2014