Do I need a visa to India? Visa to India upon arrival. How to independently issue a visa to India

The charm of India is difficult to convey in words. This is the beauty of the majestic temples, and the lazy delays of the beaches of Goa and Kerala, and boiling with the lives of Mumbai, Delhi and Calcutta. Moderate climate, warm, like fresh milk, water, pine forests, mountains and gardens - a true tourist paradise! Not surprisingly, the flow of tourists in this country is increasing every year. And a considerable part of them are Russians.

Our compatriots are very fond of spending holidays in India - this is an indisputable fact. Some tourists, once visiting Goa or Mumbai, return there every year. They already know which hotel is best to stay, are familiar with the visa regime and the specifics of passing customs control. But some Russian travelers are only planning to visit this fabulous land, and they have many questions. For example, do I need a visa to India? And if necessary, how to get it?

Do I need a visa to India?

Despite the fact that in India the tourist business is very developed, this country has not introduced a visa-free regime. Therefore, the question "is it necessary for India to have a visa" is an unequivocal answer: it is necessary. Permission to enter must be issued to all categories of citizens - tourists, citizens who came to relatives, business travelers, transit travelers, etc.

However, to attract tourists and to facilitate the procedure for obtaining an entry permit, the government introduced visa privileges for citizens of some countries, including Russian residents. This is the so-called visa on arrival, which can get tourist groups from 4 people immediately after landing.

Visa to India: requirements for entry to the country

Upon arrival before customs control, it is necessary to fill out the migration card. Usually the forms are distributed in the airplane, and the flight attendants, when contacting them, help fill in the boxes. But it's not out of place to prepare yourself - print an example of filling out a migration card and take a black or blue pen with you. Forms must be completed for each person separately, including children. In columns, it is necessary to write in printed Latin letters.

Those who come to the country for a period of six months or more must register with the police within 2 weeks from the date of arrival. If the period of stay is from a year or more, then you need to have a certificate of absence of antibodies to HIV.

When you are in the country you can extend your visa for another year. It will also require a certificate of absence of antibodies to HIV infection.

Important information: a tourist visa in India can not be extended, it can only be done outside of it. That is, leave, get a new permit and then come back.

If someone invites you to extend a tourist visa on the spot, you know: these are fraudulent activities aimed at luring money for a fake service. Remember that violation of the visa regime in India leads to criminal liability.

How to get a visa

There are several types of visas: tourist, transit, student, etc. Most often tourist visas are issued, so we will dwell on them in more detail. There are several basic ways to obtain an entry permit:

1. Visa to India upon arrival. It is issued for residents of several countries. It is also available to Russian citizens, but only to visit Goa. It can be obtained by persons in the event of a sudden death of a relative (official documents confirming this fact), transit travelers (stay in the country up to 72 hours) and tourist groups (from 4 people or more). In the latter case, it is necessary to register a route in advance through an Indian travel agency.

2. Independently issue a visa to India.

3. Buy a tour in the agency. In this case, employees of the firm act as trustees, and independently order a permit to enter the country.

Visa-free entry into India is allowed only to citizens of Nepal and Bhutan.

How to make a visa yourself

To obtain permission to enter it is necessary to apply to the embassy of India (it is in Moscow), or at the consulates of India, which are located in Vladivostok and St. Petersburg. When applying, you need to submit documents for a visa to India. For each type of entry permit, there is a list of documents, but these lists are indicative. That is, the employees of the visa department may require additional information, and also have the right to refuse without explaining the reasons. But this happens very rarely.

Documentation

In order to make a visa to India, you will need the following documents:

1. Application form filled in English.

2. Valid international passport.

3. Application for permission, completed in English and in duplicate.

4. Two color photographs 3 × 4.

6. Copies of air tickets, confirmation of the reservation at the hotel or invitation and a copy of the passport of the inviting person.

7. Copies of the Russian and foreign passport.

8. Copy of the child's birth certificate (for persons traveling with children).

9. Consent to leave from one of the parents, in those cases when the child travels with relatives or friends.

10. If a tourist is an employee of any of the media, he needs to fill out a separate form.

Cost and time of registration

The processing time for citizens of the Russian Federation is 5 working days. For employees of the Russian media, the term is extended to 20 days. There is no consular fee in the usual sense of the word. But there is a fee for drawing up the necessary papers - 1600 rubles. It is levied on every person, including minors.

The cost of a visa through a travel agency is 65-75 euros. The same amount is taken when applying for a visa upon arrival.

What to look for when preparing documents

At the passport before the expiry of the validity term should remain no less than half a year. The consent to leave the child and a copy of the inviting party's documents should be notarized.

If you plan to visit another country after resting on Goa, issue a transit visa. There is no visa-free transit through India.

Do I need a visa to India, especially pre-arranged? Indeed, today many travel agencies offer assistance in obtaining permission for arrival. This is a shady way in which fake groups are formed that are eligible for a visa right at the airport. There is such a service about 180 euros. However, there are also disadvantages - the group must fly and fly at the same time, and if the first problem does not arise, then with the second they are quite possible. After all, sometimes travel agencies (namely they are responsible for such tourist groups) can not collect all the participants. It also happens that some of them have left the limits of Goa, and this is strictly prohibited.

Customs regulations of India

At airports, there is a system of "green-red" corridor. The green strip is intended for those who do not import goods subject to duties. Red - for citizens with goods from the restrictive list.

You can not import into India products from the quarantine list. Of course, for a packet of sunflower seeds are not arrested, and even sanctions, most likely, no one will use, but still should not be brought to the conflict. In general, we can say that the punishment will be adequate to the violation - for a slight omission the traveler is threatened with an oral warning, but the illegal importation of currency, gold or drugs is pursued in all severity.

India is an amazing and magical country, a real paradise for all those who dreamed of a good rest. Every tourist who has ever been here, will remember the trip for a long time as one of the most pleasant adventures in his life. Have a nice rest!