Standardize Conference Invitation Info for visas

[yarko]

For visa invitations:

• standardize information required;
• to focus requesters, ask for conference registration number;
• possibly make a web-form requesting information;

The proposed information (just to codify what we've been using in 2014, plus registration #):

• Your full name as it appears on your passport
• Your full address, as it appears on your visa application
• Your PyCon conference registration number
• Whether you are presenting a talk, lightning talk, or poster at PyCon
• Whether you applied for or (if after grants awarded) are receiving financial aid

[mlhamel]

Yes, a web form for that would be amazing, plus it would limit the number of personal informations people are sending directly to pycon-organizer.

[lvh]

Absolutely +1, particularly for the web form.

I'm not sure if this is the only intent @yarko had for "focus requesters", but just to reiterate, we can only write these out to people that are already registered. I would like to get this done primarily with no extra work for the person responsible for visa letters, secondarily with as little code as possible.

I think that a) making the form available to people who are registered on the PyCon website only (I realize that does not imply registration) b) asking for registration confirmation numbers is a good start; we can check those asynchronously from form submissions.

[lvh]

Also, minor nitpick, but I think the embassies particularly care if you have received financial aid, not so much if you applied for it. (The rationale being that if the Canadian/USAian entity decides that you are worthy of spending money on to get there, you must be extra important, so should be more likely to get a visa.)

[necaris]

A little late to this discussion - sorry folks! A few cents to add:

• Big +1 to the web form, if this went to a Google spreadsheet that was locked to the relevant staff groups (chair, visa letters, financial aid) that might do the trick? I'm also in favor of minimizing the code we have to write.
• Canadian visa guidance for invitations assumes either a direct personal or business invitation (i.e. I'm inviting someone to come stay in my house / at my company). This isn't what we do and we need to be clearer that we are not sending personal invitations -- it is not me who is inviting someone to PyCon, it is the conference organizers.
  • It would be great to get some clarity on where we as a non-profit, community organization fit in here, but none of my Canadian consular contacts have been able to help me. Apparently this is all largely done case-by-case and embassy-by-embassy anyway.
• The PSF, under whose authority I've been issuing invitations, is not a Canadian organization. Should the host community (e.g. Montreal-Python in this case) be issuing these invitations? I can't tell if this is actually affecting visa decisions at all but it's worth an email thread.