What is electronic Indian Visa (India e-Visa)?

India e-Visa is an electronic travel authorization launched by the Indian Government in November 27, 2014. Presently, India issues electronic travel authorization (e-Visa) to travelers from over 169 countries for different purposes – Tourism, Business, Medical, or Conference. The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs controls the e-Visa applications and grant approval for travelers to visit India.

The process to get India e-Visa is easy if you are familiar with the laid-down procedures and documentation. The application and payment is done online and it is cost-effective. It does not require physical presence of applicants at the embassy or consulate. If all documentation is complete and application form is filled appropriately, approved e-Visa request will be sent as a PDF-attachment to your email.

Our clients confide in us that they are either busy or do not want to face the rigors of the application process. Hence, they use our services to help them apply and get their e-Visa while they focus on other important things. We keep getting high e-Visa approval rate over the years because we understand the e-Visa requirements. A regular e-Visa processing takes 3 – 5 days, submit your application at least a week before your travel date.

Urgent India e-Visa

You should always consider planning your trip as early as possible to avoid last-minute delays. Though India e-Visas are often processed quickly (4 – 7 days), we still advise our clients to start their application at least one week before their trip. Unforeseen situations may sometimes change one’s plan in which one needs to visit India urgently. We can help you process your e-Visa urgently and you will get e-Travel approval in 24 hours or less. There may be little delay in e-Visa approval, this is often encountered when there is public holiday in India or the number of requests overwhelms the immigration staff at the time.

Categories of India E-Visa

The purpose of visiting India is what determine the type of e-Visa to apply for. There are five different categories for which the Indian government issues e-Visa.

• e-Tourist Visa:

  This is for people who wish to visit India for tourism purpose. This include recreation, sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives, attending a short term yoga, music, dance, arts, crafts, cooking, or medicine course (must be an unstructured course not exceeding 6 months, and without issuance diploma or qualifying certificate), and unpaid voluntary aid work not exceeding one month.

• e-Business Visa:

  This is for people who wish to visit India for business related purpose. This include, but not limited to, setting up industry, recruitment, exhibitions, projects, and trading.

• e-Medical Visa:

  This is for people who wish to visit India for medical treatment under Indian systems of medicine.

• e-Medical Attendant Visa:

  This is for people who wish to accompany friend or relative on medical e-Visa for their medical treatment in India.

• e-Conference Visa:

  This is for people who wish to visit India for a conference, seminar, or workshop that is government sponsored. It is also granted for private conferences organized by persons, companies or organizations.

You can discuss your travel goals with us, we will be able advice you properly and also help you to apply for the appropriate visa.

Countries Eligible for India e-Visa

The Indian government scrutinize travelers entering India through e-Visa. Only travelers with passport from eligible countries are allowed to apply for e-Visa. India is a friendly country that allows travelers from many countries to visit, nationals of 169 countries are eligible to apply for India e-Visa. Always check that your country as stated on your passport is on the list of eligible countries. Also, nationals of some countries do not need e-Visa as they are granted Visa-on-arrival or Visa-exempted.

Know Designated Entry and Exit Points For e-Visa Holders

There are four modes of entering into India – Air, Cruise ship, Train, Bus. For foreign visitors holding e-Visa authorization, two entry points are permitted by the Indian government – Airport and Seaport. Currently, there are 33 ports authorized by the Indian government for first time travelers to India, 28 Airports and 5 Seaports. This list is updated time to time, the last updated list is shown below:

Entry Points

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Airports

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NOTE: After your first entry through any of the designated airport or seaport, you may enter India from your second trip through air, sea, land or rail.

Who is eligible for India e-Visa services?

There are some required conditions that must be met to qualify for e-Visa opportunity. They are as follow:

• The visitor must be a national or hold passport of one of the countries on the eligibility list. (Check the list above)
• Visitor’s main objective for visiting India must be for business, medical, conference, or tourism purposes.
• Passport of traveler must be valid for at least six (6) months at the time of applying for e-Visa, and upon entry and re-entry into to India. The passport must have at least two blank pages to receive stamp from the immigration officer.
• Travelers must have at hand a return ticket, with enough funds to sustain themselves throughout their stay in India.
• Nationals with Pakistani and Bangladeshi origins are not eligible for the India e-Visa.
• Persons holding diplomatic passports, Laissez-passer/international travel document are not eligible to apply for India e-Visa.
• Individuals on parent’s or spouse’s passport cannot apply. Each applicant must have a separate passport.

Countries Eligible for Visa-On-Arrival (VOA)

Citizens of Japan, South Korea, and The United Arab Emirates who had earlier obtained e-Visa or regular/paper Indian Visa are eligible for India visa on arrival. Nationals of the above mentioned countries must not be of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin, because such persons can only visit India on appropriate Visa. Applicant passport must be valid for at least six months upon arrival in India and VOA is also not applicable to holders of Diplomatic or Official passports.

If you meet all the conditions above, you are required to download annexure I application form, print it and fill it. The filled form is presented to Visa officer upon arrival, and you also need to bring your duly filled disembarkation card. The visa is valid for only 60 days and it is granted for tourism, medical, conference and business purposes only, and the Visa officer may grant double entry.

VOA hopefuls are expected to enter through six designated airports – Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai.

Don’t hesitate to message us to get the annexure I form, advice on how to fill the form as well as other visa/e-Visa related advice.

Visa-Exempted Countries

Citizens of Nepal, Bhutan, and Maldives are allowed entry into India without visa. Citizens of Bhutan and Nepal can work or live freely in India without any restriction or limit to how long they can stay. On the other hand, citizens of Maldives can only stay up to 90 days. For these citizens to make use of this option, it is important that they do not arrive from mainland China.