Letter of No Objection?
Usually, a dreaded stage for most people in the process of applying for a visa is the point where they are required to submit specific documents to support their application. It is normal to worry about these things and it is largely beneficial if applicants know what is required and not have to go back and forth for being unable to provide the needed documents in the proper format when required. A letter of No Objection, also referred to as No Objection Certificate or NOC for short, is one of the many documents that may be required for a visa. Throughout the period in which the letter will be valid, the bearer will not face any form of objection.
What is a No Objection Certificate?
A no objection certificate is a letter written by an employer or a school on behalf of an employee or a student planning to obtain a visa to travel to another country. The letter will state that the employee or student has obligations in their country to fulfill after the trip, thus, such a person will be returning as soon as the purpose of the visit has been accomplished.
Following this definition above, there are two types of no objection letters. There are those given by an employer to an employee, and those given to a student by an institution.
NOC for Students
The letter of no objection for a student has to be issued by a qualified person at the institution. Such a person may be a recognized member of either the academic or administrative staff. This means it can be issued by an advisor, a head of department or the dean at a university.
NOC from Employer
In this case the no objection letter can be issued for two different purposes of visit; business or tourism. A person who intends to visit tourist attractions or family and friends will have to specify this purpose, so that the content will be different from the letter issued to a person who is traveling mainly for business.
Depending on the type and size of an organization, an employee can obtain this letter from various members of the organization. A person working in an organization may simply meet the boss to draft such a letter. For those working in large organizations, where access to top members of staff may not be practical, the Human Resources department will be the best option.
Why are Letters of No Objection required?
One may wonder why countries require these letters after already requesting many other documents. However, precedents set by former travelers to these countries is the reason these countries always want to establish that anyone traveling to their country has reasons to leave as soon as the stated purpose is accomplished.
There have been many cases of those who were granted visas to travel to foreign countries for a particular reason like education, business or tourism, who refused to leave these countries after the tenure of their stay elapses.
For this reason, many countries are wary of giving a visa to a person who might refuse to leave the country after the approved time, thereby causing problems for immigration officials in the country. People are usually more likely to stay in a foreign if they have nothing of note to return to in their own country. Thus, the need for the foreign country to see a letter from a reliable source confirming that the individual is obligated to return to their own country as soon as they have accomplished their purpose for traveling.
What information should be included in a Letter ?
The letter should contain information about the institution or organization issuing the letter to a student or an employee. The name of the individual representing the institution or the organization must be included, along with such person’s position at the institution or organization. Contact information such as email address and phone number(s) of the person issuing such letter should be included in the letter. The letter should also carry the address of the institution or organization, and it has to be signed by the issuer.
Also, information about the employee or student requesting such a letter must be included. For an employee, the name of the employee, the position of the employee at the organization, the identification card number of the employee on the identification card issued by the organization, how long the employee has worked for the organization, time span of the leave approved for the employee and the employee’s annual salary are all to be provided in the letter.
For a student, the name of the student, the student’s field of study, the student’s department, the date the student was admitted to the institution, the identification card number on the identity card issued by the institution and the dates the institution has approved as leave dates for the student are required to be included in the letter.
Sample of No Objection Certificate for a Student
[Date the letter was written]
[Name by which the foreign embassy is officially recognized]
[Address of the foreign embassy]
Re: No Objection Letter
Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing you this letter on behalf of [name of the student], with ID number [identification card number], who is a student [name of institution], in [address of the institution]. [Name of student] has been a student of this institution since [admission date], when he enrolled at our university to study [field of study]. He is currently halfway through his studies here.
[Name of student] has been granted a leave by the university, with a leave permit starting [beginning and end dates of the leave]. Therefore, as the [position of the issuer at the university] at the university, I wish to inform you that the university has no objection to [name of student] being granted a visa to [foreign country the student intends to visit].
If there are other things you will like to inquire, please do not hesitate to reach me via my email or phone number given below.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
[Name of the person writing the letter]
[Position in the institution]
[Name of the institution]
[Address of the institution]
[Phone number of the person writing the letter]
[Email address of the person writing the letter]
Sample of No Objection Letter for Business Visa
[Date the letter was written]
[Official name of the foreign embassy]
[Address of the foreign embassy]
Re: No Objection Letter
Dear Sir/Madam
This letter is written in reference to [name of employee], who has been a staff of at [name and address of the organization] since [employee’s appointment date]. [Name of employee] is regarded in this organization as an efficient and trusted [position of employee in the organization]. She is currently on a salary package of [employee’s annual salary] per annum.
I am writing this letter to confirm that [name of employee] will represent our organization at the [business event for which the employee is traveling], in [month of the event]. As the [position of the individual writing the letter] of this organization, I am writing to inform you that she will be at the [business event] to engage in business meetings on behalf of the organization with other [area of focus or industry of the organization], to [goal of the employee].
As an employee of the organization, [name of employee]’s expenses will be covered by the organization, throughout her stay in [country of visit]. Official documents that confirm this are attached to this letter.
For further enquiries, please feel free to contact me via my email or phone number given below.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
[Name of individual writing the letter]
[Position at the organization]
[Phone number]
[Email address]
Sample of No Objection Letter for Tourism Visa
[Date the letter was written]
[Official name of the foreign embassy]
[Address of the foreign embassy]
Re: No Objection Letter
Dear Sir/Madam
This letter is in reference to [name of the employee], with ID number [identification card number], who has been working at [name of organization] as a [position of the employee] since [appointment date of the employee]. [Name of employee] is efficient and impeccable at his work, with a salary package of [employee’s annual salary] per annum
As [name of employee]’s supervisor, I am writing this letter on behalf of the organization to inform you that we have no objection to [employee’s name] getting a visa to [country of visit] to travel during the period of his approved leave, for summer vacations. The period of [employee’s name]’s approved leave is two weeks, starting from [beginning and end dates of the leave].
We will also like to confirm that [employee’s name] is financially capable of support himself during the travel with his compensation package at our organization. A proof of his annual income is attached to this letter.
Please do not hesitate to contact me, if you require any further information.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
[Name of person writing the letter]
[Position at the organization]
[Phone number]
[Email address]