Odd question for DI but I know we have some members here that have contracted in Afghanistan and given the urgency of the situation I am throwing sh*t at every wall I come across to see if anything will stick. If anyone has dealt with an Afghan lawyer (preferably one that deals with immigration issues) working IN Afghanistan that contact information would be greatly appreciated. Alternatively a contact in the ABP/ABF (Afghan Border Police/Force) could be helpful. I have a few people here, including myself, that are in need of an exit visa and/or exit stamp. Obviously, walking off base to go to the appropriate office is not an option.
Not a direct answer, but may be of value (bold by me). Are you looking to ghost your employer? https://af.usembassy.gov/u-s-citize...s/information-afghan-visas-american-citizens/ Exit Visas – Those who arrived in Afghanistan without a visa via military air but intend to leave by land or by commercial air, or those who arrived with a valid visa but allowed it to expire, will require an exit visa in order to leave the country. Exit visas are valid for six days. The fee depends on the length of time since the visa expired ($2 per day for the first month, $5 per day for the second month). Please follow the steps below to obtain an exit visa: Your employer should write a letter explaining your situation and why you came to Afghanistan without a visa (or allowed it to expire). You will need to take the letter to the Consular Section at the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). The MFA will draft a letter to the General Passport Office, Foreigners’ Visa Section. You will need to take this letter personally to the General Passport Office. When at the Passport Office, Foreigners’ Visa Section, you should show your military ID if you have one and explain why you are in the country without a visa. If you do not have a military ID, you should expect to pay a fine of $100 plus $2 per day for each day under a month you have been in the country without a visa or with an expired visa; if you have been without a visa for more than a month, then you must pay $5 per day for each day since you entered the country. If you have a valid military ID, the Foreigners’ Visa Section may choose to waive part of or the entire fine. The Foreigners’ Visa Section will give you a fine letter. You need to pay this fine at the D’ Afghanistan Bank (the Afghanistan Central Bank). The bank will then give you a receipt that you must bring back to the Foreigners’ Visa Section of the Passport Office. The Foreigners’ Visa Section will issue you an exit visa within one or two business days of receiving your receipt. For further information, please contact the consular section of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kabul at 0700-104-336 or 0701-104-332. Here is a list of lawyers prepared by the British Embassy last updated on March of 2016. It has about 14 law firms. Example:
Not at all. I'm looking to protect myself and other employees from the legal ramifications from overstaying an expired work visa and create an exit plan. The emergency does not involve me at the moment, I believe I have some time to spare (a week or two anyways), a co-worker was denied boarding a plane for R&R yesterday due to this issue and she needs to get out of country ASAP. Others will face this same problem in the near future and I have taken finding a workable plan of action into my own hands. I won't get into why the visas are expired/expiring, I will just say that it has to do with standard 3rd world governmental "practices" that are out of the control of the USG/military/my company. I am just fighting the symptoms of the problem. Thanks. I am aware of this. Obviously, going in person is not an option and the lawyers and MoFA/MoI know this. I have received an initial reply from an attorney, hopefully I will have a plan of action by COB today.
Actually, we have a stubborn one that is planning on doing just that. I am very interested to see how that plays out. There is no "stopping by" these offices. There are three options for leaving Afghanistan: You fly military air from the military side of the airport to Kuwait/Qatar/Dubai/etc to another military airfield. Very few do this unless required by their company...and I believe those countries "should" be on your LOA (civilian version of "orders"). Our LOA does not authorize us to operate in those countries. I'm not sure if they check your visa status as I haven't done this since around 2009-2010, which was pre-work visa requirement days. You fly a charter flight (DFS) from the military side of the airport. With this the military brings on Afghan ABP/immigration officers to stamp passports (in Bagram someone from the US is generally sitting right next to them as well). They are very strict and there are signs saying that offering/paying a bribe will land you in some serious heat. They just refused to stamp a passport yesterday with an expired visa (no "fee" was requested or offered, though we did ask if an exit visa could be obtained from them). You fly civilian airlines. We get a shuttle bus to the other side of the airport, walk out of the airport employee security checkpoint form the flight line and proceed to the international terminal like at any other civilian passenger: Ticket counter>passport control>security>gate. It is common to be asked for a bribe in Kabul. Best odds of getting out with an expired visa...also best odds of getting the sh*t beat out of you by the local police and locked up in an Afghan jail. (I haven't seen one, I can only imagine it isn't a place you would want to be.) You would have to be a complete fool to leave the airport facility and go out in town to look for the required police stations and government offices to get a legitimate exit visa without being surrounded by a heavily armored convoy.
On topic update: I did get in contact with a Afghan Lawyer and they are processing the exit visas now. Waiting on approval and overstay fine calculation from MoFA. I think the fine will be around $1,200 for a two month overstay.
Update: I was issued an Exit Visa and given 6 days to leave country. I left the day after the visa was issued and I'm currently in the US (at the Centurion Lounge in DFW trying to fight off a bad case of the sobers). The lawyer said this was a one time deal for the 3 people I worked in with my passport/visa. The attorney has refused to even attempt to do it for anyone else with the company with an expired visa. I have put together a word document with all the required documentation, procedures and other attorney POCs. If anyone on the Googles comes across this just send me a message and I'll share what I've learned.
