On the 69th independence day of India, the Indo-British relationship will reach a new height, with the e-Tourist visa scheme finally being extended to the British Indians. British Gujaratis and British Punjabis have a reason for double celebrations now, with Ahmedabad and Amritsar airports being added on to the designated list of ports, that could accept such e-visas on arrival.
Government of India had launched this tourist visa scheme on 27th November 2014. It had initially included 77 countries and only 9 airports were designated for allowing e-visa till now. However this facility will be extended to a further 36 countries now including the UK, increasing the total number to 113 and 7 more Indian airports will be added to the list providing or accepting/processing such e-tourist visas on arrival.
The new countries being included in the scheme are: Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Belgium, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, East Timor, Guatemala, Hungary, Ireland, Jamaica, Malta, Malaysia, Mongolia, Monaco, Mozambique, Netherlands, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Turks & Caicos Island, United Kingdom, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The 7 more Indian airports added to the designated list of ports accepting such visas on arrival are: Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Gaya, Jaipur, Lucknow, Trichy and Varanasi.
The applicants will need to apply for the visas online minimum 4 days in advance of the date of arrival with a window of 30 days. Example: If you are applying on 1st Sept then applicant can select arrival date from 5th Sept to 4th Oct.
The eligibility includes: International travellers with return or onward tickets and sufficient money, whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sight seeing, casual visit to meet friends or relatives, short duration medical treatment or casual business visit.
The passports need to have at least six months validity from the date of arrival in India and must have at least two blank pages for stamping by the Immigration Officer.
However, international travellers having Pakistani Passport or who are of Pakistani origin may need to apply for regular visa at the Indian Mission. This visa is also not available to Diplomatic/Official Passport Holders or to individuals endorsed on Parent’s/Spouse’s Passport or to International Travel Document Holders.
Since the launch in November, more than 200,000 e-Tourist Visas have been issued till now.
It is expected that this substantial addition of countries and airports will give a big rise to Indian tourism, also giving the Indo-British relation a new boost.
More details: https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/tvoa.html
