Steve Baldo Ford

We are a passport and [redacted] expediting serviceClients pay us a fee (generally ranging from $69-$+ government and shipping fees) for processing a passport or [redacted] application with the US State Department or foreign embassiesWe act as in intermediary between the applicant and the governmental agencies, however we have no control over what a specific government issues or does not issueOur level of accountability is clearly documented in our disclaimer which is available for review when clients are placing an order, before submitting the request: “I understand I am using an private company authorized and registered with the US Department of State to process my applicationAll credit card transactions covering US Government and/or Foreign Embassy/Consular Fees incur a $convenience fee per itemShipping times are not calculated into processing timeframesI agree that I will be charged $when I click "Place My Order" aboveBy using this site I acknowledge and confirm that I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms of use.” – the “terms of use” links to the following [redacted] “General Service DisclaimerItsEasy Passport & [redacted] Services (ItsEasy) serves as an agent only on behalf of passport and [redacted] applicantsWe accept no responsibility for the services of U.SPassport Services of the U.SState Department or any Consulate or Embassy regarding the timeliness, issuance or correctness of passports or ***s as the issuance or decisions rest exclusively with the government in questionIn most cases, refunds from governments are not available regardless of request outcome.” The following information is listed on the Chinese Embassy web site regarding the matter: [redacted] “Why I was granted a different type of [redacted] with what I applied for?The consular officers will determine whether or not to grant a [redacted] and its category, validity and permitted duration of stayThe decision is final unless there is an technical error on the ***.” (a technical error being the wrong photograph or a misspelled name)US citizens are generally issued multiple entry ***s valid for years for tourism and business regardless of what they requestIn the past few weeks, some applicants (less than 2%) have received ***s for periods as short as days without explanation form the consulateThis is not something we have any control over and is not reflective of the service we provided, it is at the sole discretion of the Chinese governmentIn cases of reduced validity ***s, the only recourse is re-applying from scratch including new fees paid to the consulate for a new [redacted] requestThis information is provided on our web site, however we offer multiple “check out” paths and I will admit that on the specific path this client placed their order that this additional information is not indicatedWe are updating our system to show this information on all check out pathsRegardless, the outcome would have been identical whether the client used our firm, another firm or had gone to the consulate in person – it was specific to the applicant and had nothing to do with our serviceOf the $the client paid, $was paid to the Chinese consulate, a total of $was used for round-trip FedEx shipping and our service fees totaled $While again clearly stating the outcome was not something we had any control over and that our disclaimer, which the client agreed to at checkout, does indicate this, as a courtesy we have refund our total service fees form this order totaling $(processed on 2/ [redacted] @ 10:43am EST to [redacted] card ending [redacted] – this generally takes 3-business days to post to a client’s credit card statement)If the client wishes for us to submit a new application (requiring a new order, new documents, new fees for the Chinese government and FedEx), we will also waive our processing fee by refunding upon receipt

Dear Revdex.com,Please accept our response in relation to the complaint lodged by [redacted] on November **, First off, we would like to state that ItsEasy Passport & Visa has been in business for nearly years with a Revdex.com file dating back to and have always held a Revdex.com assigned A+ rating This rating helps to properly reflect not only our general dealings with the public, but also our dedication to resolving issues as they may ariseAs a national company who handles tens of thousands of passport and visa applications for clients every year, ItsEasy has a proven track record of doing its jobOur company’s history with [redacted] dates back to May of when she first ordered a Brazilian visa from usThis was followed up by her request for a second US passport in August of Her most recent order was for a Russian visa which was ordered in September of this year and is the order in questionWe do confirm that she placed an order for a Russian visa on Thursday, September [redacted] with an estimated processing time of 10- business days which we received the afternoon of Monday, September [redacted] Her application was submitted to the Russian consulate the following day with an estimated business day processingWe processed her visa request in business days – faster than what she had requested or paid forHer package was then shipped out using the pre-addressed, pre-paid [redacted] envelope she provided We recommend clients ship using [redacted] due to their more consistent delivery and tracking, however we do give clients the option to ship documents using they’re preferred carrierThe legal disclaimer on our web site (available from every page) states the following:“ItsEasy accepts no responsibility for delays, loss of passports or other materials or documents occasioned by any commercial or [redacted] delivery services, Embassy, consulate or US State DepartmentDamage compensation is not available from ItsEasy.”We understand, and we agree, that the package does not show up on any [redacted] tracking systemThis then brings into question whether or not we actually delivered the package to ***This is essentially the crux of the complaint [redacted] also questions whether or not we actually obtained the Russian visa, but as she has used our service multiple times and received completed documents in the past, it is assumed that she is not really questioning whether or not we got the visa, but more on proof of delivery to ***.In order to address it, I have provided copies of the Russian visa submission manifest and Russian visa paid receipt from ILS which is the public arm of the Russian EmbassyRussian visas are not actually submitted directly to the Russian embassy, they are processed through a contracted Russian company named ILS who handles all verifications and payments on behalf of the Embassy (this is not common, but India and a few other countries implement similar interfaces in order to reduce direct public interaction)The Embassy then issues the visas and they are distributed back through ILSThe two documents included show the daily submission manifest reflecting [redacted] application and the submission payment receipt from the same day listing [redacted] There is no “proof of completion” issued from the Embassy or ILS as the visa itself is considered a “receipt” so to speakWe do not make copies of the client’s visas for security reasonsAgain, while it was mentioned in the complaint, I don’t think whether or not we actually got the visa was really the main issue We process tens of thousands of visasIf we didn’t actually get the visas we wouldn’t be in business.As [redacted] did not scan the package, it is of course nearly impossible for us to “prove” that we delivered the package to the Post Office (short of subpoenaing video footage from the Post Office which the package label wouldn’t be visible anyway)I did speak with the two employees responsible for this order, the manager that oversees Russian visas and her courier who goes to the embassy and makes other local deliveries (including the Post Office) for herThe courier, who is a trusted employee, remembered this delivery very clearlyWe ship hundreds of passports every day and they are, generally speaking, [redacted] or UPS It is uncommon that clients use [redacted] for shipping passports due to the importance of the document and the inconsistency of the ***, and to a lesser degree UPS, are more reliable, have much better tracking capabilities and are able to locate missing packages quicklyIt has been our experience that the [redacted] system is less consistent and packages go “missing” from time to time, with no accountabilityI asked the courier who handled this package to document and have notarized his recollection of the eventsI have attached his statementAs a valued employee, I consider his statement to be factualWith all of that said, I understand that at this point, [redacted] has her primary passport which is valid for travel, but does not have her secondary passport (to be clear, US citizens may have two passports, the second being valid for years only)In her most recent order, [redacted] paid the following:$Russian Embassy Visa Fee $ItsEasy Service Fee $ Check Writing Fee (this is the fee to obtain the money order needed to pay Russia for the visa) ------------ $TOTALWe did fulfill our duties and obtain the visaWe have provided ample statements to support that we delivered the pre-paid, pre-addressed [redacted] package to the post officeWe cannot be held liable for a failure of a shipping company chosen by the clientThe US State Department charges $for a standard processing second passportIn order to help resolve this case what we are offering to do, while expressingly not admitting to any fault on our part, in the spirit of good faith for a repeat client, is to refund the service fee paid in relation to her most recent order totaling $ In addition and as noted above, [redacted] also utilized our service to obtain her second passport a few months agoFor this service she paid a $service fee (not including government fees which were an additional $170)We will also provide a credit for the service fee she originally paid us to obtain the second passportThis results in a total refund of $+ $= $398.00, which more than covers the fee for [redacted] to obtain a replacement second passportWe would not, and cannot, refund the Russian Embassy or US State Department fees as those were pass through charges which went directly to the Russian and US governmentsAgain, and we can not stress enough, we did everything we were supposed to do and the failure is a result of the ***I have already processed the refunds ($credit approval code: [redacted] ; $ credit approval code: 1605159824)These generally appear on a client’s statement within 4-business days.While this compromise may not meet the client’s request of $873.48, it is far more than we are obligated to do and more than covers the cost for [redacted] to obtain a replacement passport through channelsWe hope this provides resolution and closes the matter.Sincerely,Mark H [redacted] EVP, ItsEasy Passport & Visa Services

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# ***, and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:
It's Easy to blame the Chinese Consulate but the simple fact is that It's Easy did not deliver either the *** I paid for in receipt (multiple entry) or deliver the correct dates despite having all of the informationThey shouldn't have accepted a *** with the incorrect datesThe partial refund is not unacceptable
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above
Sincerely,
*** ***

Dear Revdex.com, Thank you for contacting us regarding the above mentioned complaintI do acknowledge that the clients placed an order for two Brazil tourist visas on December **, and that we received the documents from the clients December **, At the time that they placed their order, the
estimated processing time listed on our web site was business daysThe following two warnings posted on our site do indicate that processing times are not guaranteed: “Processing times are estimates based on both government publish as well as observed processing times” “We accept no responsibility for the services of … any Consulate or Embassy regarding the timeliness, issuance or correctness of passports or visas as the issuance or decisions rest exclusively with the government in question.” While it is unfortunate, our industry is far from an exact science and we are sorry that the applicants did not receive their visas in time for their scheduled tripDuring the period that the visas in questioning were being processed, we noted increasing processing time frames at the consulate in question, in part and increased our estimated processing times to business days (which is still reflected on our site today)This in and of itself would be explanation enough for the delay IF we could prove the applications were submitted when we indicate they wereIn most cases the date the consulate indicates they “received” an application is the date which they first looked at it and scanned itIn some cases applications can be turned into a government agency and may sit in a bin for days or weeks before being reviewedWhile I cannot say that is what happened in this case, we know for a fact that this does happen from time to time with consulates of all countriesMany consulates provide a specific receipt or digital invoice when documents are submitted providing us with a documentable paper trail which we can use to prove we are not at faultIn the case of Brazil that is not the caseWe do receive a “slip” but it does not indicate specific applications, ergo in this particular case, while we are confident we did our job to the best of our abilities, we cannot prove itThe client states in their complaint: Purchase Price: $338.00Disputed Amount: $The client actually paid a total of $The amount they paid is broken down as follows: $Brazil Government Visa Fee $ItsEasy Service Processing Fee$ Postal Money Order Fee (listed as “Check Item”)$Brazil Government Visa Fee$ItsEasy Service Processing Fee$ Postal Money Order Fee (listed as “Check Item”)--------------------------------------------------------------------- $TOTAL The $x ($320.00) Brazil Government Visa Fee was paid to the Brazil Consulate, this is not a fee we can refundWhile admitting no fault, but accepting that we cannot “prove” our position, we are refunding all service fees ($x 2, $x = $353.00) to the clients Visa card ending ***As with any credit card refund, it can take several business days to post to their account, however I can confirm the credit was issued and approved today with Bank Reference Transaction ID: ***This is certainly not the type of experience most clients see and again, we are sorry that the visas were not delivered in time for the intended departure

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# ***, and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:
It is clear you have no interest in resolving my complaintYou ignored my emails and did not respond until I filed a complaint with the Revdex.comMoreover, despite having all of the information about the requested dates including flight itinerary, hotel stay, and a *** letter invite, your company returned a *** for the wrong datesIt's Easy isn't thorough and I would never consider using your service againI don't consider this resolved.
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above
Sincerely,
*** ***

Normally when a complaint like this is lodged, I feel bad and I want to learn from the experience and increase the quality of our service. I will review the history of the order and speak with all team members that were involved to see what may have gone wrong. In most cases I will discover...

something that we could have done better, apologize to the client and do whatever I can to make up for it. We are all human and no matter how good a company is there are always cases where we fail a client in some way and we need to take responsibility and step up to the plate to make things right – and having been in business for 40+ years and having an A+ Revdex.com rating confirms that we do just that. In this particular case, we are all fully aware of what transpired as this client utilized most of the companies resources and time by not following directions and while there are things that can be learned from an experience like this, pretty much everything in the clients complaint is misleading, blown out of proportion or flat out not true. The client in fact signed up for the service on January ** (not Jan ** as indicated). Mark H[redacted] did field the initial call with the client as the center Chelsea K[redacted] works in was having power issues that day, The client was greeted, some basic information gathered and transition to Chelsea, a senior Concierge Service team member the following day when power was restored at her location. The client purchased Concierge Service (as client correctly indicated in the complaint) at an additional fee of $199/applicant. All fees are discussed with clients in introductory calls to ensure they are clear and understand the fee structure of concierge orders. The client himself indicates in his complaint that he ordered concierge service and then later states that he order “basic passport services”. Chelsea went over the fee structure in a recorded phone call with the client and almost every email the client had with Chelsea, his Concierge Specialist, had a subject line of “Concierge India Adams 260524” and her signature line indicates “Concierge Specialist”. So for client to say now that he did ordered “basic passport services”, while at the same time acknowledging himself that he ordered Concierge Services is an example the experience we had with this client from the beginning. The client was sent documentation he needed to fill out and return on Jan **. He returned the documentation incomplete ten days later on Jan **. The client indicated he lived in NY and had proof of residency, but he did not. He has a driver’s license from California. The Indian government requires proof residency by way of driver’s license or other state issued ID or electric, sewer or gas bills in the clients name, none of which he could provide. He would try to “negotiate” with us to provide his Geico car insurance bill or his AT&T bill. It was explained to him multiple times that this was not sufficient. There were added complications with the mother being Tibetan, but born in India and having renounced her Indian citizenship and naturalized as a US citizen and one of the children being named by a Tibetan monk with names that do not match the parents. While cases like this do cause additional levels of complexity, our Concierge Service team is used to handling complicated cases and these hurdles were handled and not the issue. After submitting incorrect documents, client then went on vacation for two weeks and did not provide update documents until he returned. The documents sent in were still not correct (unsigned passports, unsigned visa applications, etc). Client then wanted to upgrade service to faster processing (which added hundreds of dollars in fees and was not necessary), then wanted to cancel request altogether, then wanted to downgrade back to original service levels. We did everything we could do accommodate the client. “No Chelsea, we are not available today.  I am running a business and have spent hours chasing your requests.  I'm out of patience with this process.  Outside of the delay with our vacation schedule, we have exhausted all efforts to satisfy your requests.  Example, notary did not have a stamp kit for Ayrton's fingerprint requiring two visits.  It's endless with what should be a standard Visa request.” – again, this was not OUR requirement, this is what the Indian government requires and had been explained to him previously. The real issue with this entire order was that the client was simply not available, did not follow instructions and kept flip flopping on what services he wanted. There are call logs of 18 calls that were placed to the client over a 30 day period, numerous voicemails left, dozens of emails asking for the same items, etc. After being provided completed visa applications to send in for processing with explicit instructions on how to sign them, client sent them in unsigned. The client continuously pushed back on a requirement to have signatures on children’s visa applications notarized as if we were simply inconveniencing him while this is a requirement of the Indian Embassy for children’s visa applications. Clients credit card was also declined he stated it was lost/stolen on vacation, so again fees were discussed and he happily provided a new card for billing. I understand the client is a busy man and I understand that Indian visas, especially for children, can be a complicated process. We service hundreds of thousands of clients every year and never had so much difficulty with a client who simply did not want to follow the process, was essentially unreachable by phone, and who simply did not follow instructions. So on to the money part… The client is stating that he paid $1422.00 and that he wants $750.00 refunded since “he did not approve them”. He did approve them - twice. It is true that his account did peak at $1422.00 at some point because he kept changing the services request, but it was not the final invoice and $412.00 of that was refunded months ago. This might be confusing for the client to figure out since he had to use multiple credit cards to pay the bill. The final invoice was $1010.00 broken down as follows: [redacted]
*  [redacted]
 
[redacted]
*  [redacted]
*  [redacted]L There were actually additional fees we could have charged, but did not. The following is a breakdown of charge/refunds made between the clients two credit cards (because the first one stopped working) [redacted] We cannot calculate where the client is coming up with the request for a $750 refund (there is no math to support that number – it’s just a number he apparently picked). It is clear he doesn’t realize that $412.00 was already refunded to him in March. So essentially he is asking for another $338.00 to be refunded. While this client received much more service than he paid for, in order to move past this we will split the difference of the disputed about which in reality is $338.00. $338.00 / 2 = $169.00. So this actually totals $581.00 of the requests $750 returned (although in reality $412.00 of that was refunded two months ago). I have tried to refund the $169.00 onto the clients card, but now his second card doesn’t work anymore either, so we will have to mail him a check (even if he supplied another credit card, we can’t refund onto a card that we have not charged). This will be cut and mailed out via USPS today for delivery within the next week or so. We are done with this matter.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me and the matter has been resolved.I would like to thank you very much for your intervention and helping me to receive some responses and resolution for this situation. I would also like to thank It'sEasy for finally responding to my queries in detail and making restitution. I sought this type of explanation the multiple times that I called the company, but was met with quite curt and even rude responses. I would like to specifically mention that when I called It'sEasy that Emory (10/**/15) has been polite and helpful, whereas [redacted] (10/**/15) yelled at me and hung up on me, and Stephanie (10/**/15) claimed to be her supervisor, but was also less than helpful. I thought that since It'sEasy repeats over and over about their commitment to customer service while the customer is on hold that polite and helpful customer service would be the norm, especially when the customer is in a difficult situation, as I was. Thank you for stepping in and providing me with the information that I sought in October.   
Sincerely,
[redacted]

We are sorry that you “disagree” with the facts that the Chinese government has the final say or that our disclaimer clearly indicates “ItsEasy Passport & [redacted] Services (ItsEasy) serves as an agent only on behalf of passport and [redacted] applicants. We accept no responsibility for the services of U.S. Passport Services of the U.S. State Department or any Consulate or Embassy regarding the timeliness, issuance or correctness of passports or [redacted]s as the issuance or decisions rest exclusively with the government in question. In most cases, refunds from governments are not available regardless of request outcome.” We did not, and do not, misrepresent our role in the [redacted] process and our services – which were described and agreed to by you during the checkout process. You hired our firm to assist you with document preparation/review, hand carry your passport and supporting documents the Chinese consulate, retrieve your passport once the Chinese government issued a [redacted] and send the passport containing the [redacted] back to you in a period of 12 business day. We did everything we were retained to do in 8 business days. And while we did everything that we were supposed to do, we still provided you a full courtesy refund of everything you were charged for our service (less the Chinese government and shipping fees) and even offered to process a new request without charging you a service fee. The root cause of your issue, the only part that you could potentially disagree with, is that you were not issued the [redacted] you wanted. Your issue is with the Chinese government. You were/are traveling to China. You were going to pay the fees to have the [redacted] application processed. The outcome would have been the same regardless of using our service, a different service or if you had flown to San Francisco and submitted the application yourself. While we understand that you are not satisfied with the outcome, we have done everything we can (and far more than we were legally obligated to do) to appease your “disagreement”. There is no more money we can offer you or response we can provide.

Dear Revdex.com,Please accept our response in relation to the complaint
lodged by [redacted] on November **, 2015. First off, we would like to state
that ItsEasy Passport & Visa has been in business for nearly 40 years with
a Revdex.com file dating back to 2004 and have always held a Revdex.com assigned A+...

rating.
This rating helps to properly reflect not only our general dealings with the
public, but also our dedication to resolving issues as they may arise. As a
national company who handles tens of thousands of passport and visa
applications for clients every year, ItsEasy has a proven track record of doing
its job. Our company’s history with [redacted] dates back to May of
2014 when she first ordered a Brazilian visa from us. This was followed up by
her request for a second US passport in August of 2015. Her most recent order
was for a Russian visa which was ordered in September of this year and is the
order in question. We do confirm that she placed an order for a Russian visa on
Thursday, September [redacted] with an estimated processing time of 10-12
business days which we received the afternoon of Monday, September [redacted]
Her application was submitted to the Russian consulate the following day with
an estimated 7 business day processing. We processed her visa request in 7
business days – faster than what she had requested or paid for. Her package was
then shipped out using the pre-addressed, pre-paid [redacted] envelope she provided.
We recommend clients ship using [redacted] due to their more consistent delivery and
tracking, however we do give clients the option to ship documents using they’re
preferred carrier. The legal disclaimer on our web site (available from every
page) states the following:“ItsEasy accepts no
responsibility for delays, loss of passports or other materials or documents
occasioned by any commercial or [redacted] delivery services, Embassy, consulate
or US State Department. Damage compensation is not available from ItsEasy.”We understand, and we agree, that the package does not show
up on any [redacted] tracking system. This then brings into question whether or not
we actually delivered the package to [redacted]. This is essentially the crux of the
complaint. [redacted] also questions whether or not we actually obtained the
Russian visa, but as she has used our service multiple times and received
completed documents in the past, it is assumed that she is not really
questioning whether or not we got the visa, but more on proof of delivery to
[redacted].In order to address it, I have provided copies of the Russian
visa submission manifest and Russian visa paid receipt from ILS which is the
public arm of the Russian Embassy. Russian visas are not actually submitted
directly to the Russian embassy, they are processed through a contracted
Russian company named ILS who handles all verifications and payments on behalf
of the Embassy (this is not common, but India and a few other countries
implement similar interfaces in order to reduce direct public interaction). The
Embassy then issues the visas and they are distributed back through ILS. The
two documents included show the daily submission manifest reflecting [redacted]
application and the submission payment receipt from the same day listing [redacted].
There is no “proof of completion” issued from the Embassy or ILS as the visa
itself is considered a “receipt” so to speak. We do not make copies of the client’s
visas for security reasons. Again, while it was mentioned in the complaint, I
don’t think whether or not we actually got the visa was really the main issue.
We process tens of thousands of visas. If we didn’t actually get the visas we wouldn’t
be in business.As [redacted] did not scan the package, it is of course nearly impossible
for us to “prove” that we delivered the package to the Post Office (short of subpoenaing
video footage from the Post Office which the package label wouldn’t be visible
anyway). I did speak with the two employees responsible for this order, the
manager that oversees Russian visas and her courier who goes to the embassy and
makes other local deliveries (including the Post Office) for her. The courier,
who is a trusted employee, remembered this delivery very clearly. We ship
hundreds of passports every day and they are, generally speaking, [redacted] or UPS.
It is uncommon that clients use [redacted] for shipping passports due to the
importance of the document and the inconsistency of the [redacted], and to a
lesser degree UPS, are more reliable, have much better tracking capabilities
and are able to locate missing packages quickly. It has been our experience
that the [redacted] system is less consistent and packages go “missing” from time to
time, with no accountability. I asked the courier who handled this package to
document and have notarized his recollection of the events. I have attached his
statement. As a valued employee, I consider his statement to be factual. With all of that said, I understand that at this point, [redacted]
has her primary passport which is valid for travel, but does not have her
secondary passport (to be clear, US citizens may have two passports, the second
being valid for 2 years only). In her most recent order, [redacted] paid the following:$253.00 Russian Embassy Visa Fee $129.00 ItsEasy Service Fee $    7.50 Check Writing Fee (this is the
fee to obtain the money order needed to pay Russia for the visa) ------------ $389.50 TOTALWe did fulfill our duties and obtain the visa. We have
provided ample statements to support that we delivered the pre-paid,
pre-addressed [redacted] package to the post office. We cannot be held liable for a
failure of a shipping company chosen by the client. The US State Department
charges $110 for a standard processing second passport. In order to help
resolve this case what we are offering to do, while expressingly not admitting
to any fault on our part, in the spirit of good faith for a repeat client, is
to refund the service fee paid in relation to her most recent order totaling $129.00.
In addition and as noted above, [redacted] also utilized our service to obtain
her second passport a few months ago. For this service she paid a $269 service
fee (not including government fees which were an additional $170). We will also
provide a credit for the service fee she originally paid us to obtain the
second passport. This results in a total refund of $129.00 + $269.00 = $398.00,
which more than covers the fee for [redacted] to obtain a replacement second
passport. We would not, and cannot, refund the Russian Embassy or US State
Department fees as those were pass through charges which went directly to the
Russian and US governments. Again, and we can not stress enough, we did
everything we were supposed to do and the failure is a result of the [redacted]. I
have already processed the refunds ($129 credit approval code: [redacted]; $269
credit approval code: 1605159824). These generally appear on a client’s
statement within 4-6 business days.While this compromise may not meet the client’s request of
$873.48, it is far more than we are obligated to do and more than covers the
cost for [redacted] to obtain a replacement passport through normal channels. We
hope this provides resolution and closes the matter.Sincerely,Mark H[redacted] EVP, ItsEasy Passport & Visa Services

We are a passport and [redacted] expediting service. Clients pay us a fee (generally ranging from $69-$269 + government and shipping fees) for processing a passport or [redacted] application with the US State Department or foreign embassies. We act as in intermediary between the applicant and the governmental...

agencies, however we have no control over what a specific government issues or does not issue. Our level of accountability is clearly documented in our disclaimer which is available for review when clients are placing an order, before submitting the request: “I understand I am using an private company authorized and registered with the US Department of State to process my application. All credit card transactions covering US Government and/or Foreign Embassy/Consular Fees incur a $7.50 convenience fee per item. Shipping times are not calculated into processing timeframes. I agree that I will be charged $254.50 when I click "Place My Order" above. By using this site I acknowledge and confirm that I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms of use.” – the “terms of use” links to the following page:  [redacted]“General Service DisclaimerItsEasy Passport & [redacted] Services (ItsEasy) serves as an agent only on behalf of passport and [redacted] applicants. We accept no responsibility for the services of U.S. Passport Services of the U.S. State Department or any Consulate or Embassy regarding the timeliness, issuance or correctness of passports or [redacted]s as the issuance or decisions rest exclusively with the government in question. In most cases, refunds from governments are not available regardless of request outcome.” The following information is listed on the Chinese Embassy web site regarding the matter:  [redacted] “Why I was granted a different type of [redacted] with what I applied for?The consular officers will determine whether or not to grant a [redacted] and its category, validity and permitted duration of stay. The decision is final unless there is an technical error on the [redacted].” (a technical error being the wrong photograph or a misspelled name). US citizens are generally issued multiple entry [redacted]s valid for 10 years for tourism and business regardless of what they request. In the past few weeks, some applicants (less than 2%) have received [redacted]s for periods as short as 30 days without explanation form the consulate. This is not something we have any control over and is not reflective of the service we provided, it is at the sole discretion of the Chinese government. In cases of reduced validity [redacted]s, the only recourse is re-applying from scratch including new fees paid to the consulate for a new [redacted] request. This information is provided on our web site, however we offer multiple “check out” paths and I will admit that on the specific path this client placed their order that this additional information is not indicated. We are updating our system to show this information on all check out paths. Regardless, the outcome would have been identical whether the client used our firm, another firm or had gone to the consulate in person – it was specific to the applicant and had nothing to do with our service. Of the $254.50 the client paid, $140 was paid to the Chinese consulate, a total of $48 was used for round-trip FedEx shipping and our service fees totaled $76.50. While again clearly stating the outcome was not something we had any control over and that our disclaimer, which the client agreed to at checkout, does indicate this, as a courtesy we have refund our total service fees form this order totaling $76.50 (processed on 2/** @ 10:43am EST to [redacted] card ending [redacted] – this generally takes 3-5 business days to post to a client’s credit card statement). If the client wishes for us to submit a new application (requiring a new order, new documents, new fees for the Chinese government and FedEx), we will also waive our processing fee by refunding upon receipt.