The Visa Office of the CONSULATE GENERAL OF ITALY is open to the public on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9:00 am to 12:30 pm
CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC ON WEDNESDAYS
The office accepts Applications from residents of the following States: Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas. Students studying full-time at a University located in our jurisdiction are also allowed to apply to the Houston Consulate.
Check if you need a VISA here: https://vistoperitalia.esteri.it/home.aspx
If you do not reside in the aforementioned States of our jurisdiction, you can find your Consulate at this link: https://serviziconsolarionline.esteri.it/ScoFE/services/consulate/find-consulate.sco
Applications can be submitted up to 6 months before the date of entry in the Schengen territory.
Please be aware of the Schengen regulation, under which the Member State competent for examining and deciding on an application for a visa shall be:
(a) the Member State whose territory constitutes the sole destination of the visit(s);
(b) if the visit includes more than one destination, the Member State whose territory constitutes the main destination of the visit(s) in terms of the length or purpose of stay; or
(c) if no main destination can be determined, the Member State whose external border the applicant intends to cross in order to enter the territory of the Member States.
To find information regarding your specific travel purposes, please check the appropriate website section.
To request information not available on the website, please send an email to visas.houston@esteri.it
VISA FEE:
We accept ONLY CASH or USPS MONEY ORDER. Please provide the exact change if paying in cash. We do not accept cards.
As VISA fees change quarterly, new VISA Fee for the quarter 07.01.2024– 09.30.2024 are as follows:
• • Schengen VISA (stay under 90 days): $ 97.00 – Minors (ages 6 -12 years old): $ 48.50
• Long term VISA (stay over 90 days): $ 125.00
• Long term Study VISA (special fee): $ 53.90
The VISA fee is NON-refundable.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:
Passport/Travel Document
Passports should be issued no more than 10 years ago and should contain at least two empty pages. The passport’s date of expiration has to be at least 3 months later than the end date of the VISA.
Us Legal Status
This Office can process visa requests ONLY from legal residents of the US. Holders of one of the following documents are eligible to apply for a visa: U.S. Passport; U.S. Permanent Resident Card (formerly Green Card); Foreign students holding valid visas and valid I-20; Exchange visitors holding valid visas and I-66; Long term US visas (Ex. L1, L2, H1, H2, R1 etc…); US Permit to reenter; US Refugee Travel Document (Document de Voyage de refugee’).
INFO FOR THE APPLICANTS:
Each application is independent, therefore the Applicants are required to bring a complete set of documents (ex. a family of 4 people = 4 sets of documents). Multiple Applications with only one set of documents will not be accepted.
Please DO NOT USE FEDEX as mail service.
Affidavit of financial support form available here: AFFIDAVIT
INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS: HEALTH INSURANCE POLICY
Minor Applicants
in addition to the required visa documents Minors must provide the following:
Minors under 18 years of age —> Authorization to travel signed by both parents. Parents can either appear before the VISA Attaché’ or send a notarized consent. AFFIDAVIT FOR MINORS [custody]
Birth certificate, original or a notarized copy; (All foreign documents MUST be translated into English and the translations legalized by the competent Consulate); Notarized copies of a picture I.D. from both the parents.
Minors under 14 years of age —> In addition to the above mentioned letters, the applicant must travel with at least one parent.
PICK UP HOURS:
Passports and VISAS can be collected during regular opening hours. No appointment is required.
PROCESSING TIME:
SCHENGEN VISA Applications are typically processed within 15 days, which may be extended up to 45 days. Incomplete or incorrect packages will be returned unprocessed.