Visitors from 43 countries can now get visa for India online

NEW DELHI: Foreign nationals from 43 countries may now apply for and get their tourist visa-on-arrival (TVoA) online, entitling them to enter India anytime within 30 days of the approval. The electronic travel authorisation, which will be in the form of an email received by the tourist from the Indian authorities, will entitle the prospective tourist to a 30-day stay in India.
The TVoA enabled with ETA, launched on Thursday by Union home minister Rajnath Singh and minister of state for tourism and culture Mahesh Sharma, will enable the prospective foreign visitor to apply for an Indian visa from his/her home country online without visiting the Indian mission and also pay the visa fee online. Once approved, the applicant will receive an email authorising him/her to travel to India and he/she can travel with a print-out of this authorization. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immigration authorities who would then stamp the entry into the country.
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The TVoA enabled with ETA facility will be available at nine international airports in the country namely Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Goa. The facility may be availed no more than twice in a calendar year.
Union home minister Rajnath Singh, while launching the scheme in Thursday, said India has been the centre of attraction for people around the world since the ancient times due to its philosophy and spiritualism. He used the occasion to assure the tourism industry representatives of a safe and secure environment for the visiting foreign tourists.
Minister of state (independent charge) for tourism and culture and MoS for civil aviation Mahesh Sharma said the launch of the TVoA enabled with ETA scheme was a dream come true for the the Indian tourism industry of India and was bound to positively impact the economy. He said the implementation of TVoA enabled with ETA scheme will send out a clear message that India is serious in making travel to the country easy.
The TVoA enabled with ETA facility is available to foreigners whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sightseeing, short duration medical treatment, casual business visit, casual visit to meet friends or relatives etc. It is not valid for any other purpose/activities.
The facility will encourage people to travel with short-term planning, take via routes while travelling to other countries and bring family members while on business visits.
The TVoA enabled with ETA Scheme will facilitate nationals of 43 countries including Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Djibouti, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kingdom of Tongo, Laos, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Mexico, Myanmar, New Zealand, Niue, Norway, Oman, Palestine, Papua & New Guinea, Philippines, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea (i.e. South Korea), Republic of Marshall Islands, Republic of Nauru, Republic of Palau, Russia, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, USA, Vietnam and Vanuatu.