Visa on arrival service now operational at Bangalore

by Devesh Agarwal

The Visa on Arrival service is now operational at the Bengaluru International Airport. Visitors from 11 countries, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, Philippines, Indonesia, Luxembourg, Finland, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia are eligible for this service.

The visa will be issued at the immigration desk and will be valid for a maximum period of 30 days. The airport authorities BIAL, will provide separate desks, special seating arrangements and appropriate signage. In the future, the facility will have an enclosure for photographing foreign nationals and currency exchange counters.

Visa on Arrival shall be granted to foreign nationals who are visiting India on recreation, sightseeing, short duration medical treatment or casual business visit. The tourist must hold a valid passport with minimum six months validity. Documents required to be presented at the counter are:

• passport
• two passport size photographs
• photocopy of passport
• hotel booking confirmation (if possible)
• return ticket.

A fee of US $60/- or an equivalent amount in Indian rupees per passenger (including children) will be charged for the grant of Visa-on-Arrival. Travellers will be able to obtain single-entry tourism visas, which will be valid for 30 days, which can be extended, in special cases, to 60 days.

More information can be obtained from the Bureau of Immigration website.

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Indian Government expands visa on arrival scheme to 11 countries

The Indian Government is expanding its Tourist Visa on Arrival (TVOA) scheme, first introduced in 2010 to the nationals of 11 countries, Japan, Singapore, Philippines, Finland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia. The TVOA facility is only available for arrivals at the four metro airports, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.

The government has also expanded the purpose of visit from tourism and visiting friends and relatives (VFR) to include business and medical treatment, where trips are sometimes required at short notice.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India, has detailed the guidelines of the TVOA scheme.

Eligibility

• The scheme can be availed by nationals of eleven countries namely Japan, Singapore, Philippines, Finland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia.
• The scheme can be availed by foreign nationals visiting India for tourism, medical treatment, casual business or to visit friends/relatives, etc.
• TVOA shall not be granted to foreign nationals who have permanent residence or occupation in India and to holders of Diplomatic/Official passports.
• The foreign nationals must hold a passport with minimum validity of six months and a re-entry permit, if required by the law of his country.
• The foreign national must be a person of assured financial standing.

Validity, extension, and restrictions

• Under the scheme, a foreign national may be granted a single entry visa for maximum period of
• 30 days.
• The TVOA visa cannot be extended or converted in India.
• A visa on arrival can be obtained for a maximum of two visits in a calendar year and there should be a minimum gap of two months between two visits.

Fees

• The visa can be obtained on submission of prescribed application form, one passport size photograph and Indian Rupees equivalent to US Dollars 60.

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