I was applying for an e-visa to Cambodia and the most prominent site that came up on the search was this one ...

http://www.evisa-cambodia.com/

To be honest it looks like the official e-visa site yet when you receive a confirmation e-mail back they tell you they are charging an extra $20 for the service over and above the official rate.

I have sent them an immediate reply asking them to cancel the transaction and the application and we will have to wait to see what the result is on that score.

If they do refuse to stop the application and the transaction my credit card company has already advised they will dispute the payment and refund the money but they cannot stop the transaction before it is made.

Hopefully this will make some people aware and to make doubly sure they are entering the official Cambodian visa site. The official site is

http://www.mfaic.gov.kh/evisa/

I hope those urls are allowed

Thanks

You first clue should have been .com that is a business .com as in commercial. Official government websites are never dotcom.

I think any web site either government or dot.com that sell a product or an "evisa" should inform the buyer of extra or administrative fee before concluding the transaction...not after.. So I agree with pattayadingo that he should contest that 20 dollars charge.

That site is almost an exact copy of the official site, it does detail an additional $20 'processing fee' on the main page.

I doubt you are the first (or the last) to be caught out by this agent passing himself off as the official vendor of e-visas

Annoying and misleading to say the least.

As i expected, this company have refused to accept my - almost - immediate request to cancel this transaction / visa application even though I did mail them yesterday when their offices were closed. Now down to my credit card company who have said no problem on a refund.

As I recall was their not a similar situation regarding visas and sites making themselves look like official sites for U.S. and U.K. visas?

Anyway, now I wait until Tuesday to start the ball rolling with the credit card company

From the FAQs on the two sites, they seem to be run by the same merchant.

Did you see your creditcard statement yet?

What is the Merchant's Name to be displayed on my credit card statement?

CAMBODIA e-VISA

Their website clearly states, in English, that there is a $20 service charge. Fees USD20 + USD5 (processing charge) + USD20 (Service fee) | Urgent case 1 day (+ USD10)

You contracted their services so you should pay the charges that you agreed to and get on with your life. Is it really with all of the BS for less than 600 baht because you didn't read or understand the terms and conditions?

You first clue should have been .com that is a business .com as in commercial. Official government websites are never dotcom.

I never thought about that. Thanks for the tip.

www.mfaic.gov.kh/evisa/ - is the correct site, a bit of care is needed when using the internet. This scam is fairly well documented.

Edited June 11, 201214 yr by Guest
fix font

It's not a scam it's a business! The service charge is clearly documented in the "fees" section on the website. It's no different that going into a restaurant where the menu states that a 10% service charge will be added to your bill! Read the T's & C's before you contract the services, not complain after because you didn't!

Their website clearly states, in English, that there is a $20 service charge. Fees USD20 + USD5 (processing charge) + USD20 (Service fee) | Urgent case 1 day (+ USD10)

You contracted their services so you should pay the charges that you agreed to and get on with your life. Is it really with all of the BS for less than 600 baht because you didn't read or understand the terms and conditions?

Yes it is.

That site are setting themselves up to appear as if they are the official Cambodian government site. It is extremely misleading and you are quite likely to commit to an extra (unnecessary) $20 if you are not aware of the government site.

Do you condone that ?

The site states that it is an agency, not an official site of the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign affairs as the other site does, and clearly states that there is a $20 service charge.

eVisa-Cambodia.com is one of the most recommended agencies in processing visa-on-arrival for visitors to Vietnam. We have been serving our customers worldwide since the early 1999s. Fees USD20 + USD5 (processing charge) + USD20 (Service fee) | Urgent case 1 day (+ USD10)

You should fully understand the T's & C's before you enter into any contract, not after, and the site is not a carbon copy of the Cambodian MFA website.

Coincidence but I just purchased my Cambodia visa on line at the official site. It was $20 + $5 as stated. Went through the whole process and it was very easy. One day later after applying I got the visa in an email. Then I checked my bank statement and sure enough I was double charged. $25 twice. I called my bank (Schwab in USA) and sure enough Cambodia submitted two charges. Bank said to contact them to see about refunding the overcharge and if they don't, then the bank will put in a dispute. Seems like I read somewhere where E-visa was discontinued by PayPal for to many of these actions. Anyway I sent them an email this morning and will wait to hear back from them.

Coincidence but I just purchased my Cambodia visa on line at the official site. It was $20 + $5 as stated. Went through the whole process and it was very easy. One day later after applying I got the visa in an email. Then I checked my bank statement and sure enough I was double charged. $25 twice. I called my bank (Schwab in USA) and sure enough Cambodia submitted two charges. Bank said to contact them to see about refunding the overcharge and if they don't, then the bank will put in a dispute. Seems like I read somewhere where E-visa was discontinued by PayPal for to many of these actions. Anyway I sent them an email this morning and will wait to hear back from them.

You probably got impatient and submitted the form twice or something. Don't you use 'verified by visa' or something to prevent this happening? I don't think anyone who is aware of how to take care of their own finances will have any problem with the Cambodian evisa.

Coincidence but I just purchased my Cambodia visa on line at the official site. It was $20 + $5 as stated. Went through the whole process and it was very easy. One day later after applying I got the visa in an email. Then I checked my bank statement and sure enough I was double charged. $25 twice. I called my bank (Schwab in USA) and sure enough Cambodia submitted two charges. Bank said to contact them to see about refunding the overcharge and if they don't, then the bank will put in a dispute. Seems like I read somewhere where E-visa was discontinued by PayPal for to many of these actions. Anyway I sent them an email this morning and will wait to hear back from them.

You probably got impatient and submitted the form twice or something. Don't you use 'verified by visa' or something to prevent this happening? I don't think anyone who is aware of how to take care of their own finances will have any problem with the Cambodian evisa.

Coincidence but I just purchased my Cambodia visa on line at the official site. It was $20 + $5 as stated. Went through the whole process and it was very easy. One day later after applying I got the visa in an email. Then I checked my bank statement and sure enough I was double charged. $25 twice. I called my bank (Schwab in USA) and sure enough Cambodia submitted two charges. Bank said to contact them to see about refunding the overcharge and if they don't, then the bank will put in a dispute. Seems like I read somewhere where E-visa was discontinued by PayPal for to many of these actions. Anyway I sent them an email this morning and will wait to hear back from them.

You probably got impatient and submitted the form twice or something. Don't you use 'verified by visa' or something to prevent this happening? I don't think anyone who is aware of how to take care of their own finances will have any problem with the Cambodian evisa.

Technically it's not a scam but in reality it is because they are hoodwinking people into thinking it's the official government site, why would they do such a thing, how does it benefit an applicant going through this bogus site as opposed to the official .gov site - plain and simple - it doesn't but costs an extra $20