INDIA. The Indian government has implemented the first phase of its extended visa on arrival scheme, allowing citizens of 43 countries to begin applying for the visas. As reported in February, India’s previous government had announced that it would extend eligibility for the scheme from just 11 countries to 180.
Visitors can apply for the visas at nine airports – in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin and Trivandrum. Visitors will receive travel authorisation after uploading their passport (valid for at least six months) and a photograph to https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/tvoa.html and paying the US$60 fee.
Kreol Travel Retail CEO AS Lal, whose company partners with World Duty Free Group at Cochin International Airport, welcomed the move. “The new visa rules will bring more passengers and footfall to India’s travel retail outlets,” he said. “International passengers are key to growth in our industry. We welcome the new rules and expect their speedy implementation rather than just juicy announcements.”
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Visitors from 43 eligible countries can now apply for visas on arrival |
At present domestic tourists account for 82% of the country’s overall tourism revenue, Lal noted. International tourist arrivals to India reached just 7 million in 2012-2013, compared to around 26 million visitors each to Malaysia and Thailand, and the country was 65th out of 140 in the World Economic Forum’s rankings on travel and tourism competitiveness.
“We hope to come out of this low ranking soon,” said Lal. “The Indian diaspora comprises approximately 26 million people, many of whom do not have Indian nationality. This provides a large pool of potential tourists who have ties to India. Medical tourism is also a growth area, particularly from the Middle East and Africa.”
India’s tourism industry contributes approximately six percent of the country’s GDP and five percent of its employment, meaning that any growth in tourist arrivals provides a big boost to the economy.
Citizens from the following countries are now eligible to apply for visas on arrival:
• Australia
• Brazil
• Cambodia
• Cook Islands
• Djibouti
• Fiji
• Finland
• Germany
• Indonesia
• Israel
• Japan
• Jordan
• Kenya
• Kiribati
• Laos
• Luxembourg
• Marshall Islands
• Mauritius
• Mexico
• Micronesia
• Myanmar
• Nauru
• New Zealand
• Niue Island
• Norway
• Oman
• Palau
• Palestine
• Papua New Guinea
• Philippines
• Republic of Korea
• Russia
• Samoa
• Singapore
• Solomon Islands
• Thailand
• Tonga
• Tuvalu
• UAE
• Ukraine
• USA
• Vanuatu
• Vietnam
