BLS International is the only company authorized by the Indian consulate in Canada for visa and passport services. Many clients report being pressured to pay excess fees, facing demands for courier costs even when they retrieved documents personally. Former employees confirm malpractices where staff were incentivized to overcharge or find mistakes in applications to generate additional revenue. Public reactions include negative reviews, petitions, and an 'F' rating from the Better Business Bureau, highlighting widespread customer dissatisfaction. Despite this, BLS maintains it upholds a reputation for service excellence.
Every time Prashant Vashista thinks of BLS International, his mind goes back two years to his mother's death. Grief-stricken, he drove an hour to BLS's Brampton location to arrange for emergency visas so he could see his family in India.
Former employees at one BLS branch say they're not surprised, saying staff were encouraged to charge clients as much as possible and find minor errors in their forms or photos to sell services.
A quick web search reveals a trove of public Facebook posts, Reddit threads and online petitions, one of which has more than 7,000 signatures created by frustrated BLS clients.
In response to CBC Toronto's questions about the complaints, BLS said the company has a 'longstanding reputation for transparency, compliance, and service excellence.'
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