Passport and Visa
When you are travelling out of your country of residence, you require a travel document issued by your government, which is an identity that you are a citizen of that particular country. This document is called a Passport.
On the other hand, Visa is an approval on a passport which indicates that the passport holder is allowed to enter, leave, or stay for a specific time in a country.
In India, all foreign nationals who wish to visit the country, are required to possess a valid passport with approval in the form of a Visa obtained from an Indian Mission or Post abroad. Depending on the purpose of the visit, different types of Visas can be obtained by a traveller, of which one is the Tourist Visa.
Foreigners who do not have a residence or occupation in India, and whose only purpose of visiting India is sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives, recreation etc., are issued with a Tourist Visa.
Eligibility
For obtaining an entry in India, one needs to fulfil the below eligibility:
- A person who holds a passport of another nation and whose only purpose of visiting India is sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives, recreation etc.
- The passport of travellers should be valid for at least six months from the date of arrival in India. For the purpose of stamping by the Immigration Officer, the passport should also have at least 2 blank pages.
- A person who wants to visit India, should have a return flight ticket or onward journey ticket with sufficient money to spend during his/her stay in India.
- Each individual should have his/her separate passport. Visa is not available to individuals endorsed on their Parent’s/ Spouse’s passport.
- Visa is not available to Diplomatic/Official Passport Holders or Laissez-passer travel document holders.
E-Visa Facility
E-Visa or the Electronic visa is simply the one that you can apply for, through a country’s visa website. One can apply for his/her visa online by visiting the website - https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/
The Government of India provides E-Visas to nationals of the following countries.
Visa on Arrival Facility
To boost the country’s tourism and economic growth, the Indian government has extended tourist visas on arrival for the below countries.
Permits in Uttarakhand
Due to security reasons, certain areas of Uttarakhand are restricted and some have been protected from visits of foreign nationals, as these regions are near the international boundary with China.
Few parts of Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Pithoragarh districts in Uttarakhand come under the restricted areas, where foreign tourists are not allowed to visit at all. However, there are few protected areas also in these three districts which have tourism importance. So, to visit these protected areas, foreign tourists are required to obtain an inner line permit from the government authorities.
We will help you in obtaining the inner line permits (if required) for your visit to any of the protected areas.
Disclaimer
The information furnished above on Visa and Permits is based on the current policy issued by the Government of India that may be amended from time to time.