Any foreign Tourist seeking India Entry must obtain a Visa from Indian Diplomatic Missionary or Consulates unless they belong to the Countries subject to Visa Exempt, Visa On Arrival, or E-visa Service.
Visa Policy of India By Country
Freedom of Movement
Citizens of Nepal and Bhutan do not require Visa to enter India for any purpose unless they are traveling to India either from, Mainland China, Hongkong, Macau, Maldives, or Pakistan.
Nepalese and Bhutanese even don’t require to bring or show a passport to seek entry, any Government-issued official identity card is enough if they are reaching India Directly from their respective Nation. They have even freedom of Working or conducting business and can stay as long as they want. Likewise, Indian also has the same freedom and right as Bhutanese and Nepalese have. But Nepal and Bhutan have no Reciprocality relation in terms of Visa.
OCI Cardholders or Persons of Indian Origin(PIO) Card Holder
Holders of a Certificate of Overseas Citizen of Indian Status or Persons of India Origin Card are exempted from visa requirement and have a right of domicile. They are allowed for unlimited entries. The citizens of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Mainland China, Nepal, and Pakistan are generally not entitled to OCI Certificate or PIO Card.
Visa-Free Entry
The Visa Policy of India has allowed Maldivians to enter India without Visa. They are allowed a maximum of 90 days to stay in India. The Maldivians who arrive in India from Mainland China are not eligible for the Visa-Free Facility.
Visa on Arrival
Citizens of Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates are eligible for Visa on Arrival if they are arriving through the international airport at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, or Hyderabad. However, the citizens of the aforementioned countries are not eligible for VOA if they or either of their parents, grandparents, or Great Grandparents were born in or is a permanent resident of Pakistan. The citizens with Pakistani Origin or parents, grandparents, or great grandparents from Pakistan are not eligible for VOA.
Furthermore, Emiratis from UAE who are traveling to India for the first time are also not eligible for VOA, they have to apply for an E-Visa or regular Paper Visa in Indian Diplomatic Mission or Consulate Office.
If the foreign citizens eligible for Visa on Arrival as per the above paragraph want to use the Ports or Airports that are not under the VOA Scheme, can apply for E-Visa instead.
Electronic Visa(e-visa)
On November 27, 2014, the Government of India introduced the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) Facility. With the expansion of the facility to more and more foreign citizens, the Electronic Visa or Online visa of India is now available for 113 countries and Territories.
Initially, it was known as ETA, later in 2015 it was renamed as E-Tourist Visa, and finally, in 2017, it was again renamed ad E-Visa and divided into three subcategories; E-Tourist Visa, E-Business Visa, and E-Medical Visa.
The E-Visa must have applied at least 4 days before India Arrival and a maximum of 120 days in advance.
The Bureau of Immigration of India will provide a variation of E-Tourist Visa. The continuous stay in India by the E-tourist Visa Holder is a maximum of 90 Days. However, the maximum number of days for continuous stay for Nationals of Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America is 180 days. The E- Visa fee is categorized into four Slab. The Bank fee of 2.5% of the Visa Fee is also applicable.
E- Visa allows for arrival in only following 29 Airports and 5 Seaports
Airports
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Seaports
- Cochin
- Goa
- Mangalore
- Mumbai
- Chennai
e-Tourist Visa Issued by The Bureau Of Immigration, India
- One Month Double Entry e-Tourist Visa (Non-Extendable and non-Convertable)
- One year Multiple Entry e-Tourist Visa
- Five years Multiple Entry-Tourist Visa
Citizens of the Following Nations with respective E- Visa Fee can obtain the facility unless they are of Pakistani Origin.
Free of Charge
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US$25
- Japan
- Singapore
- Sri Lanka
US$80
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US$100
- Mozambique
- Russia
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom( Including Anguilla, Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands)
- United States of America
Restricted & Protected Area Permits
- The India Visa alone not enough to travel all around India, Restricted are and protected area permission is also required to visit some area in India. To visit Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, Protected Area Permit(PAP) is required. Likewise, some areas of the States of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, and Kashmir, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand also required PAP.
- Andaman and Nicobar Islands and some parts of Sikkim are restricted area so, must have to obtain a Restricted Area Permit(RAP) to visit the area.
- RAP and PAP are not necessary for Nepalese who are traveling via Air from Kathmandu and Bhutanese who travel to Bagdogra from Thimpu via air also don’t need to obtain permits. However, citizens of Nepal and Bhutan traveling to the restricted or protected area by land have to obtain a Pass issued by either the Foreigners Regional Registration Office, Superintendent of Police, or the Diplomatic Representation in the respective country is required.
- To enter the Lakshadweep islands, special permission is required.
- Maldivian citizens are allowed to visit Minicoy Island for up to 15 days with the permission of the High Commissioner of India in the Maldives.
Pakistani Passport Holders and persons of Pakistani Origin
Holders of Pakistani Passport/Citizenship are not eligible for E-Visa. Likewise, the history and parental background of the person also affect the India Visa Facility.
Persons who held Pakistani Citizenship previously, or whose spouse or spouse who held Pakistani Citizenship are not eligible for India’s E-Visa Facility.
Pakistani over 65 Year Age
With certain Terms, Pakistani Citizens over 65 years of age are eligible for Visa On Arrival at the Checkpoint of Attari Wagah for the sole objective of meeting friends or family.
The Terms are as follows:
- The applicant has to present the Sponsorship Certificate from their contacts in India
- Have to attest that respective India will be responsible for the visit of the Pakistani Friend or Relative
- The sign of any reputed person who personally knows the sponsor: DM, SP, SDM, Tehsildar, BDO, SHO, Groups A officer of State and Central Government, or principal/headmaster of a government college or government school
- The scheme is not applicable to visit Kerala, Punjab, and any restricted area and protected area as well.
- Anyone who has previously been rejected for any type of Visa by India is not eligible for this scheme.
Non-Ordinary passport
Holders of Non-Ordinary Passport of the following countries do not require India Entry Visa.
Diplomatic or Service Passport
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Diplomatic Passport only
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Special Terms to Nepalese and Bhutanese passenger Travelling to India
Citizens of Nepal and Bhutan are not required to present a Valid Passport while traveling to India either by land or Airt.
- Any of the following documents are sufficient to enjoy Freedom of Movement in India:
- Government-issued Citizenship
- Or Valid Passport
- Or Voter Card issued by the Election Commission
- Or Limited Valid Photo-Identity Card provided by Nepalese/Bhutan Mission in India
- For the children between the age of 10-18, any photo Identity issued by the principal of the school/College is accompanied by valid Travel Documents of the Parent. Children below 10 Years are not required to present any identity.
- The Valid Passport is required to travel from/to other than Motherland.
- Nepalese or Bhutanese Citizen Entering India either from China, Macau, Hongkong, Pakistan, or the Maldives must have obtained an India entry Visa.
