India e-visas – all you need to know before applying

For what purposes can I use an e-visa?

E-visa can be granted to a foreigner whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sight seeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives, attending a short term yoga programme, Short term courses on local languages, music, dance, arts & crafts, cooking, medicine etc. which should not be a formal or structured course/programme (courses not exceeding 6 months duration and not issued with a qualifying certificate/ diploma etc),Voluntary work of short duration (for a maximum period of one month, which do not involve any monetary payment or consideration of any kind in return), medical treatment including treatment under Indian systems of medicine, business purpose, as attendant to e-Medical visa holder, attending a conference/ seminar/ workshop organized by a Ministry or Department of the Government of India, State Governments or UT Administrations etc. & their subordinate/ attached organizations & PSUs and private conferences organized by private persons/companies/organizations. For any other visit purpose you must apply for a standard visa.

Can I use any entry point to enter India if I hold an e-visa?

No, you can only enter from the following authorised immigration check posts: Airports

• Delhi
• Mumbai
• Chennai
• Kolkata
• Thiruvananthapuram
• Bengaluru
• Hyderabad
• Cochin
• Goa
• Ahmedabad
• Amritsar
• Gaya
• Jaipur
• Lucknow
• Trichy
• Varanasi
• Calicut
• Mangalore
• Pune
• Nagpur
• Coimbatore
• Bagdogra
• Guwahati
• Chandigarh
• Visakhapatnam
• Madurai
• Bhubaneswar
• Port
• Blair
• Kannur

Seaports

• Mumbai
• Cochin
• Mormugao
• Chennai
• New
• Mangalore

Which nationalities are eligible for an India e-visa?

If you are a national of any following countries, you are eligible for an e-visa:

• Afghanistan
• Albania
• Andorra
• Angola
• Anguilla
• Antigua & Barbuda
• Argentina
• Armenia
• Aruba
• Australia
• Austria
• Azerbaijan
• Bahamas
• Barbados
• Belarus
• Belgium
• Belize
• Benin
• Bolivia
• Bosnia & Herzegovina
• Botswana
• Brazil
• Brunei
• Bulgaria
• Burundi
• Cambodia
• Cameroon Union Republic
• Canada
• Cape Verde
• Cayman Island
• Chile
• Colombia
• Comoros
• Cook Islands
• Costa Rica
• Cote d’lvoire
• Croatia
• Cuba
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Djibouti
• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• East Timor
• Ecuador
• El Salvador
• Equatorial Guinea
• Eritrea
• Estonia
• Fiji
• Finland
• France
• Gabon
• Gambia
• Georgia
• Germany
• Ghana
• Greece
• Grenada
• Guatemala
• Guinea
• Guyana
• Haiti
• Honduras
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Indonesia
• Ireland
• Israel
• Italy
• Jamaica
• Japan
• Jordan
• Kazakhstan
• Kenya
• Kiribati
• Kyrgyzstan
• Laos
• Latvia
• Lesotho
• Liberia
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Macedonia
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Malaysia
• Mali
• Malta
• Marshall Islands
• Mauritius
• Mexico
• Micronesia
• Moldova
• Monaco
• Mongolia
• Montenegro
• Montserrat
• Mozambique
• Myanmar
• Namibia
• Nauru
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Nicaragua
• Niger Republic
• Niue Island
• Norway
• Oman
• Palau
• Palestine
• Panama
• Papua New Guinea
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Philippines
• Poland
• Portugal
• Republic of Korea
• Romania
• Russia
• Rwanda
• Saint Christopher and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• Saint Vincent & the Grenadines
• Samoa
• San Marino
• Saudi Arabia
• Senegal
• Serbia
• Seychelles
• Sierra Leone
• Singapore
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Solomon Islands
• South Africa
• Spain
• Sri Lanka
• Suriname
• Swaziland
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Taiwan
• Tajikistan
• Tanzania
• Thailand
• Togo
• Tonga
• Trinidad & Tobago
• Turks & Caicos Island
• Tuvalu
• UAE
• Uganda
• Ukraine
• United Kingdom
• Uruguay
• United States
• Uzbekistan
• Vanuatu
• Vatican City-Holy See
• Venezuela
• Vietnam
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

However, e-visa is not available if the person or either of his / her parents or grand parents (paternal or maternal) was born in, or was permanently resident in Pakistan. E-Visa is also not available to holders of Diplomatic/Official passports, UNLP (UN Passport) holders and international travel document holders e.g. INTERPOL officials. List of countries whose nationals are presently eligible for e-visa is given in Appendix I.

When is the best time to apply for India e-visa?

You can apply as early as 120 days in advance prior to expected date of arrival in India. You shouldn’t apply less than 4 working days before your trip as you may not get your visa on time.

Who doesn’t need a visa to travel to India?

Citizens of Nepal or Bhutan entering India by land or air do not require a visa unless they are entering India from China, Macau, Hong Kong, Pakistan and Maldives.

How long my passport should be valid for to apply for an India e-visa?

Your passport should have at least six months validity at the time of making an application. International Travellers should have return ticket or onward journey ticket, with sufficient money to spend during his/her stay in India.