India Passport & Visa Information

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Passports

Your passport must be machine readable, with 2 blank pages for your visa and valid for a minimum of 180 days at the time of your visa application. The guidelines regarding passport validity on arrival in India can be unclear. To avoid possible problems at immigration, please ensure your passport is valid for a minimum of 180 days at the time of entry into India.

All travellers will need to secure a visa in advance of travel to India. Please see detailed guidance on this process below.

E-Tourist visa

You will need to secure a visa in advance of travel to India and the easiest way to do this is via the Indian Government’s official online e-Visa system, which can be accessed from this website. Please note there are several websites offering Indian visa services, but this is the official link to use - so please ignore any others.

The e-Visa system can be used for entry at all major airports and the validity of the e-Visa can be arranged for 30 days, 1 year and 5 years from the date of your arrival in India. The 30-day E-Tourist visas are valid for a maximum of two entries of up to a total of 30 days. However, if you are making more than two entries into India, or you are entering overland, or arriving at a minor airport, then this system will not be valid and it might be best to contact a visa specialist like Travcour.com.

The e-Visa process is straightforward: you will need to fill out the website form and complete payment online. The fee is US$25 for departures between July and March and US$10 for departures between April and July and this can be paid by debit or credit card. You will also need to upload and attach a digital passport photo; this should be head and shoulders only, taken against a plain, white background, and note that the maximum file size of the photo is 1MB. Your application will then be processed within a maximum of 3 days, and your visa acceptance notification will be sent as an attachment via email. You will need to print out the confirmation document and present it to the immigration official on arrival in India.

How to book
See our selection of holidays to India, plus when to visit and suggested tours. To discuss your travel needs, complete an enquiry form or call our Asia experts on 020 7720 9285.