Those who plan to go to the Dominican consulate in New York should make an appointment in advance to be attended to in their proceedings.
Melissa Sánchez, from the Dominican consulate, explains: “The decision was made by the health protocol of the city of New York, you need to make an appointment so as not to have crowds of people.”
As of this Monday, the consulate only attends to those who have previously made their appointment. Due to the limit in the capacity of the people who now serve for the pandemic, a very long line formed under the building that is located in the Times Square area.
These people were not only exposed to contracting the coronavirus, they also had to face the weather conditions, cold and sometimes rain or snow: “It is to protect us all, to help us of course, yes, it is fine, it is fine,” explains a national.
The consulate, which serves about 300 people a day, has halved the number of people in the waiting room, there is hand sanitizer in different parts of its facilities and physical distancing must be respected.
“It’s better because when I wasn’t there, there were too many people. I came and it was horrible,” says one of the people present.
This is how this new measure, which in addition to preventing the spread of COVID-9, makes the service much faster. Now the process has been simplified.
“You only arrive at the consulate, it is enabled that you have an appointment, we confirm, go to the box and pay, once your photo and once the fingerprint and go home,” says Sánchez.
And although an appointment is needed to do consular procedures, it is accommodating people who have to travel for an emergency, such as the death of a family member.
To make an appointment, you just have to visit the website of the Dominican consulate and fill out the form. It can also be done through your social media accounts or by calling their call center at 212-768-2480.
Madeline Escaño, from the Dominican Consulate, points out: “People who do not have access to one of these platforms, who do not have access to a computer or do not have a cell phone domain, we will gladly make an appointment for them.”
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