Canadians studying in greece-student visa question?

Question

I am a Canadian citizen currently studying in Turkey. Some time ago I was invited by a Greek university by the Erasmus programme of the European Community. I am to stay in Greece for 6 months continuously. I wen to the Greek Consulate here in Turkey to get a student visa. However the Greek authorities told me that they could not issue me such a visa. I can only stayin in Greece for three months only with an entrance stamp. And I cannot exit and re-enter Greece unless I spend an other 3 months in some other country. If I were in Canada then I could go to the Greek Consulate in Toronto and apply for a student visa.. Since I'm in Turkey, can I send my passport by mail and get a student visa or can I ask the Canadian consulate here in Turkey to do all this for me?

Answer 1

I suggest you do the following three steps in parallel:

1. Contact the University that invited you, explain your situation, and ask for their recommendation.  Ask them also to issue a specific letter of invitation for you, to use at the Greek Consulate/Embassy in Istanbul.  This is your best road.  [Ask if this can be arranged in Greece, but not likely, as Visas typically have to be arranged in advance.]

2. Sure, go ahead and ask the Canadian Consulate for assistance.  However, this is not really their job, so understand that they may not really be able to help.

3. Call up Greek Embassies in other countries nearby, e.g Italy, and ask if they can do it, and if so, what would it take.  Cite that you have A LETTER OF INVITATION from the Greek University.  Once it's explained over the phone, go visit the embassy in person, bringing with you all the necessary documents.

Good luck!