All about the Indian visa and the online application form

All you need to know about the Indian visa

You need to apply for a visa in advance in order to travel to India. This requirement applies to those traveling for business, tourism, or to visit family and friends. It also extends to minors.

The Indian visa in short

You can apply for the Indian visa via a simple application form. If you are travelling to India for a holiday and you are staying for a maximum of 30 days, you are advised to apply for the standard tourist visa. If you want to stay in India for more than 30 days, you should apply for the 365-days tourist visa, which allows a maximum lenght stay of 90 days. The business visa even allows you stay in India for up to 180 days. Read all you need to know about the visa's requirements, validity period and application procedure.

Depending on the visa type you choose, you may stay in India for up to 30, 90 or 180 days. Submit your application as soon as you know where you will stay in the country.

Tourist travel to India

A tourist visa is required to travel to India for a holiday, or to visit friends or family. If you will stay in India for less than 90 consecutive days, you can submit your application online. You will receive your visa by e-mail, and it will be valid from the day it is granted. You have the choice to apply for a 30-day or for a one-year visa. The 30-day visa allows you to enter India twice, but you must leave the country in the 30 days following your first arrival. The one-year tourist visa is valid for one year and allows you to travel to India an unlimited number of times. You may stay in India for a maximum of 90 days per trip with this visa. However, you are not allowed to stay more than 180 days in India per calendar year with this visa.

Apply now for a tourist visa

Business and work travel in India

The business visa is intended for individuals travelling to India for work. It is suitable for meeting potential business partners, visiting trade fairs or recruiting staff. The business visa also permits to carry out specialist work, provided the traveller does so in the service of an organisation based outside India. This implies that it is not allowed to be employed by a local organisation. The validity period is one year from the date of issue. Each stay in India cannot be longer than 180 consecutive days. Only if you register at a Foreigners Registration Office after these 180 days, you can in some cases stay in India for more than 180 continuous days.

Apply now for your business visa

The online application process

Both the tourist and business visa mentioned above are also known as e-visas. This means that they are processed and granted electronically. Travellers apply via an online application form where they have to fill in their details and travel itinerary in India. After providing this information, you can pay the visa fees via Trustly, Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal or creditcard. To complete the application, travellers must upload a passport photograph and a passport scan. Once all documents have been uploaded, the application will be processed immediately.

The application is approved within 7 days on average. You can also submit an urgent application. Urgent applications are usually processed within 24 hours. After approval, you will receive your visa by e-mail as a PDF file. You must print it (in colour) and keep it with your passport during your trip. You must show your printed visa both during check-in and on arrival in India. Read more about the online application procedure on the extra information page of this website.

A visa sticker at the consulate

The requirements for e-visas were considerably relaxed in 2019. Hence, it is no longer necessary for most travellers to follow the ‘old’ procedure at the Indian consulate, consisting in affixing a physical visa on the traveller's passport. This is now only necessary for travellers who do not meet the requirements of the Indian e-visa.

Summary of the India e-visa

British citizens need a visa to travel to India
This requirement also applies to accompanying children
The application process takes place entirely online
The visa is available with a validity of 30 days or one year
The one-year visa allows unlimited travel to India
The maximum continuous stay with the one-year visa is 90 days (tourist) or 180 days (business)
The application fee can be paid via Trustly, Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal or credit card
The India visa is sent by e-mail as a PDF within 7 days on average
The visa must be printed and kept with the passport
Travellers are advised to read all visa requirements carefully