Tourist visa and extension for EU citizens

Hi Auca and welcome to Expat.com!

Hope that you'll soon be enlightened.

Harmonie.

Some people on the forum had successful visa extensions. PIO website has more information.

In the worst-case scenario, you can fly to Reunion Island which is part of the EU (45min / ≈Rs 8000) and get back, or even spend a few days there (even if they don't speak English)

Thanks for the welcome Harmonie!

Julien, thank you very much for the link and I also hope to get some impressions from people who have successfully applied for a visa extension.
The tip with Reunion could also be very useful in an extreme case .
Does this really work with the authorities?

You'll find a similar topic here.

As for the Reunion return flight, it does work. Should be denied an extension, you need to exit the country, and then you can re-enter it.

Auca wrote:

Thanks for the welcome Harmonie!

Julien, thank you very much for the link and I also hope to get some impressions from people who have successfully applied for a visa extension.
The tip with Reunion could also be very useful in an extreme case .
Does this really work with the authorities?

I know a few people who have done exactly this and it worked for them

Auca, a word of caution from a pair of eejits who didn't bother to make our passports Required Reading. In other words, "safe" in the knowledge that we'd get three months before extending our visa, we never actually looked at the stamp. the bit we didn't know is that it is "up to" three months - and they had given us two! So when we arrived at the visa extension section, fully confident of a stamp in a few moments, we discovered we are now illegal and have to leave!!! But all is not lost - we are off to La Reunion for a couple of days (mega bucks with three kids) and we hope to have no problems on our re-entry on Sunday, although my husband is worried...

Hope this helps!

Provided you leave the country on your own, without having to authorities to find you and to deport you, you should be fine

iJulien is right, my friend was unable to get a visa extension so he went to Reunion island for 2 days and on returning, had no problems obtaining a visa at the airport. however, of late, i've noticed that they've only been stamping visas in for 2 months.

If you are from EU, you can stay 3 months, after that you will need to show them a sponsor letter from someone in here that you stay with, his mu ID (copy), and utility bill, then you need your bank statements to show them that you can affort to stay here, good if you can have around RS300-500.000,( they ask me just for my mum 270.000), copy of your passports, birth certificate (translate in english or french)your return tickets that are done for another 3 months. If you will have all those documents and you will be very nice and polite you should not have a problem. Its a lot of paper work but this is Mauritius.Good luck!

I stayed a month longer than I was supposed to, not having noticed that I had been given 2 months and not 3. I was shocked to be told by the (smiling) sergeant that I had to leave the country. That was last Tuesday. On Friday I went to La Reunion with my husband and kids for two nights - total cost about 70,000 rupees. Ouch! But we had a wonderful time in the stunning mountains - didn't bother with the coast at all - and we're so glad we were forced to do it, if a lot poorer for it. No problems whatsoever on our return - nice fresh 2-month stamp.

So how to get stamped for 3 months instead of 2?

It is not a question of how to get it stamped for three months instead of two ...this is entirely up to the immigration officer on your arrival and regardless of you telling him you are staying for two months he will inevitably give you two months--certainly this has been the experiene of our friends and family members. Check the passport clearly to avoid exceeding your visa date and get your self to Stirling House in Port Louis before the visa expires and apply for a tourist visa extension-- details on how to apply are on the Government of Mauritius website. It is imperative you have a sponsors letter supporting your extension and if you do not carry your bank statement with you(most people wouldn't I guess) then your sponsor will have to provide his/hers. ALSO remember to take a passport sized photo with your completed application frms and supporting documents--it is a tedious but relatively easy affair.

The "six" months is then actually a maximum of five and would that be in a calendar year?

I'm sorry, not a calendar year but over a period of twelve months.

You get up to 2 months at a time if you are not in a Shengen country, up to 3 at a time if you are, but it's discretionary. As already mentioned, up to a total of 6 months.
This is what you need for the immigration office when you are extending your visa:
- bank statement stating that you have $100 per day for each passenger
- letter from sponsor with photocopy of their ID card and utility bill
- photocopy of your passport, photo page
- photocopy of your passport, visa page
- photocopy of your return ticket
- passport photograph (although that was not mentioned to us on the phone)
Now that we have a fresh stamp on our passports, we have avoided the second trip to the visa office...but, even with all the hassle of gong to Stirling House, it would have been easier, and a lot cheaper, than going to La Reunion! We had a great time, though!
By the way, I recommend Tafa's dholl puris - he's just across from the building and a very friendly man!