The Board of Deputies of British Jews heard a report here today about procedures regarding efforts by Jews in Britain to bring Soviet relatives to this country for a visit or for joining their families here. The report, given by Julius Jung, chairman of the Board’s Aliens Committee, spelled out the procedures as follows:
“The Soviet authorities are normally unwilling to consider issuing a passport and exit permit until they are shown that there is a probability that a visa will subsequently be forthcoming. In these circumstances, an application for a visa for a Soviet citizen to visit or to join relatives in this country is usually initiated by the relatives here.
“If such inquiries as the Home Office is able to make indicate that a visa may properly be granted, the British visa officer in Moscow will be asked to send a letter to the applicant in the Soviet Union, advising him that, if he will arrange for a formal visa application to be submitted, it will be considered. Provided that the information received from the relatives in the United Kingdom is confirmed when his application is received, a visa will be granted.
“If, in due course, the Soviet authorities decide to issue a passport and exit permit, they send the applicant’s passport together with the visa application to the British visa officer in Moscow for the British visa to be added.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.