India Launches Online Visa Facility for 43 Countries

The Government of India has launched electronic visa (e-visa) facilities for 43 countries on the 27^th of Nov, 2014. The move is aimed towards providing the tourism sector a shot in the arm. Tourists who wish to visit India can now easily apply for a visa online and receive the visa within 96 hours.

India has issued about 22,000 E-Visas in the first month itself, when compared to 24,963 E-Visas issued between January and November of 2014.

Validity of the e-visa facility

The electronic travel authorization (ETA) will have a validity of 30 days. The facility will be available to foreigners whose only objective of visiting India is recreation, leisure, sightseeing, short duration medical treatment, visit friends and relatives or casual business meet.

The e-visa facility will not be valid for any other purpose or activities. A tourist can avail an e-visa to visit India twice a year.

The facility is ideal for travellers who want to travel for short-term duration to India or take via routes while travelling to other countries or bring along family members while on business visits to India.

Main advantages of the e-visa facility

The e-visa facility offers several advantages for the international tourists. The significant advantages are mentioned below:

Citizens of 43 nations can now travel to India for tourism, short-term medical treatment or visit friends and relatives.
The e-visa allows eligible tourists a short stay of 30 days
Eligible foreign tourists will now be able to apply for Indian visa online, without having the need to go to Indian mission or embassy.
Eligible foreign tourists will be able to pay visa fee online
Once the tourist’s application is approved, the applicant will receive an email authorizing him or her to travel to India
A foreign tourist will just require a printout of the authorization email to show to the Indian immigration authorities. The immigration authorities will then stamp the passport of the tourist that will mark his or her entry into the country.
A tourist may apply online minimum 4 days in advance of the date of arrival with a window of 30 days
The e-visa facility can be availed twice a year
Tourists can enter and depart the country through nine international airports selected as the entry and exit points
Biometric details of the tourist will be mandatorily captured on arrival

Airports related to e-visa facilities

Any tourist travelling to India with an e-visa will be allowed to enter and depart from nine international airports in nine cities. These nine airports include the ones at

Bengaluru
Chennai
Delhi
Goa
Hyderabad
Kochi
Kolkata
Mumbai
Thiruvanathapuram.

Processing Fee for e-visa to India

The processing fee for e-visa has been fixed at USD 60.

Extension of e-visa to other countries

The government has decided to extend the e-visa facilities to almost all other countries of the world in a phased manner within the next 2 years. Apart from eight countries, namely, Pakistan, Sudan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Sri Lanka and Somalia, all 180 countries which host India’s diplomatic mission will be covered under the e-visa list in phases.

List of 43 countries approved for e-visa

The Government of India has approved the names of 43 countries in its first phase for providing e-visa facilities. These countries are:

Australia	Brazil	Cambodia
Cook Islands	Djibouti	Federated States of Micronesia
Fiji	Finland	Germany
Indonesia	Israel	Japan
Jordan	Kenya	Kingdom of Tongo
Laos	Luxembourg	Mauritius
Mexico	Myanmar	New Zealand
Niue	Norway	Oman
Palestine	Papua & New Guinea	Philippines
Republic of Kiribati	Republic of Korea (i.e. South Korea)	Republic of Marshall Islands
Republic of Nauru	Republic of Palau	Russia
Samoa	Singapore	Solomon Islands
Thailand	Tuvalu	UAE
Ukraine	USA	Vietnam
Vanuatu