All About Visas | Passport Index

Work visas are required for individuals who wish to take on employment or engage in business activities in the host country. There are several types of work visas that depend on the nature of the work and the length of stay. 

For example, working holiday visas allow individuals to temporarily take on employment while traveling through the country.

A student visa is a type of nonimmigrant visa that allows the bearer to enroll at a postsecondary educational institution in the host country.

High school foreign exchange students must typically obtain a visa for temporary residence.

Working holiday visas allow the bearer to undertake temporary employment in a country through which they are traveling.

Not every country offers a working holiday program. Australia has the most popular such program.

Refugee visas and asylum visas can be granted to individuals fleeing persecution, war, natural disasters and other situations in which their life is at risk.

Spousal visas allow partners to visit each other when the couple does not hail from the same country.

Travelers may sometimes require transit visas in order to pass through a country that is not their destination country.

Transit visas are typically required if you have a layover in a country of more than a few hours.

Travel visas can be separated into two categories: immigrant and nonimmigrant. 

Immigrant visas allow the bearer to reside permanently in the host country, whereas nonimmigrant visas allow the bearer entry into the host country on a temporary basis.

• Visas are necessary if you’d like to travel to a country that does not have a visa policy in place with your home country.
• Many countries have visa policies and agreements that allow their citizens to travel freely between them without the need for a visa.
• A country’s visa policy is a rule that states who may or may not enter the country. The policy may allow passport holders of one country to enter visa-free but not the passport holders of another country. Most visa policies are bilateral (two countries will allow visa-free travel to each other’s citizens).

Countries have visa restrictions in order to check and control the flow of visitors in and out of the country and to prevent illegal immigration and other criminal activities. Forcing travelers to apply for a visa allows the authorities to vet potential visitors. 

For example, individuals may attempt to travel to a country with better economic opportunities in order to work illegally there.