(HANOI, VIETNAM) – The Slovak Embassy in Hanoi directed visa applicants on July 6, 2026 to use VFS Global after Slovakia suspended alternate provider BLS International and shifted affected appointments to the new channel.

Official communications from the embassy and VFS Global said the embassy had instructed VFS Global to accept all applicants who previously held appointments with BLS International. The emergency measure followed a suspension that began on June 24, 2026.

The Slovak Republic suspended BLS International services for Slovakia “until further notice.” The embassy cited “integrity-related concerns” and “recurring operational issues,” including non-compliance with official instructions, delays in document forwarding, and “multiple discrepancies” in daily and monthly reporting.

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Officials said the embassy had reviewed VFS Global’s operations before expanding its role. That review included 24-hour CCTV footage from June 15, and the embassy expressed “satisfaction” with VFS Global’s compliance.

Applicants caught by the switch now have to re-confirm appointments through the VFS Global portal. The embassy authorized VFS Global centers to take an added 30 to 50 applications per day per center to work through the backlog.

The move places the Slovak Embassy and its outsourcing partners under tighter operational scrutiny. VFS Global must provide accurate operational reporting, while CCTV review has become part of the oversight system tied to the handover.

Slovakia had already signed a five-year contract with VFS Global in early 2026. That agreement covers 83 countries and 159 centers, and the suspension of alternate providers accelerated the consolidation of services under VFS Global.

The provider change comes alongside broader visa rule changes from Slovakia. National, or Type D, visas now carry validity of 120 days, up from 90 days, and an online employer submission system became mandatory in late 2025.

Those adjustments matter for applicants whose cases involve work-related travel and document timing. A longer Type D validity period gives applicants and employers more room while outsourced processing shifts between providers and appointment systems.

In the United States, Slovakia directs applicants to VFS Global centers in Washington D.C., New York, or Boston. The Austrian Consulate in Los Angeles also represents Slovakia in several Western states.

The embassy’s instructions point applicants to official channels, including the Slovak Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs at mzv.sk, the Slovak Embassy in Washington, and the VFS Global Slovakia portal. Applicants checking policy updates can also review the USCIS newsroom.

Although the Slovak visa transition is a foreign government decision, the timing overlaps with a wider push on visa integrity and vetting by U.S. authorities. On July 6, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security released a 358-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to implement the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act.

A DHS spokesperson said, “This proposal represents the most comprehensive regulatory update to the [visa] program in years, providing long-awaited clarity while introducing several new compliance measures and investor protections to root out fraud and ensure national security.”

Earlier, on March 30, 2026, USCIS issued a policy alert on “Strengthened Screening and Vetting.” USCIS said, “Our top priority is ensuring that all individuals seeking immigration benefits are properly vetted. This alert provides the public with a detailed account of what we have found, what we are doing, and what we will continue to do to protect national security, public safety, and root out fraud.”

The U.S. statements do not govern Slovak consular processing, but they mirror the language now surrounding the Slovak Embassy’s handling of outsourced visa work. Terms such as integrity, compliance, vetting, and fraud prevention now appear on both sides of the process, even when the legal systems differ.

For applicants, the immediate effect is procedural rather than legal. A person who booked with BLS International must shift to VFS Global, confirm the appointment again, and follow the instructions issued by the Slovak Embassy and the VFS network handling Slovakia’s files.

Interview scheduling may also change as the backlog moves from one provider to another. Applicants who had expected to appear at a BLS International center now face a different intake process, different reporting lines, and tighter checks on how documents move between the center and the embassy.

That matters most for cases tied to travel dates, work starts, and residence formalities that depend on a timely visa stamp. The extension of Type D validity to 120 days offers more time on paper, but interview access and document transfer still shape when a traveler can actually move.

The handover also sharpens the role of commercial service providers in sovereign visa systems. Slovakia’s decision shows how quickly an embassy can redirect applicants from one contractor to another when it finds compliance failures inside an outsourced chain.

BLS International had operated as an alternate provider before the suspension. VFS Global now carries the immediate burden of restoring continuity, absorbing daily overflow, and meeting the surveillance and reporting standards that the Slovak Republic said it had verified.

Applicants in Hanoi and elsewhere now face a simpler instruction, even if the transition itself is disruptive: use VFS Global, not BLS International, for Slovak visa processing from July 6, 2026. The embassy’s review of CCTV footage, its references to reporting discrepancies, and its rapid reassignment of appointments leave little doubt about how it intends to police the system from here.