If you’ve ever applied for an Indian visa you know what an absolute pain in the rear end this process is. Forms that are a mile long with endless questions that make no sense even though they seem to be in English and countless supporting material that are needed to be provided for the application. I doubt the British had this much hassle when they arrived on those spicy shores hundreds of years ago…and they came to invade. All I am armed with is a digital camera not guns, germs and steel. For a country that really wants you to visit, welcomes you with a billion and more smiles they sure as heck have made it one of the accomplishments in life if you’ve managed to navigate the visa process. Why all the hassle I’ve never figured out.
All that red tape legal ballyhoo is now gone. Finally the long awaited “visa on arrival” program has arrived. I am so happy for this as I travel to India at least twice a year and will never have to go through that application process again. What you need to apply for this visa is a passport valid for six months, a photograph, $60 and four days. A few restrictions apply such as you can only stay for 30 days and can only apply for this visa twice a year.
All this is perfect for our travelers who will be joining me on our March 2015 Yoga and Meditation Retreat to North India.
Here’s the link to where you can apply for your Indian Tourist Visa on Arrival.
Citizens of 43 countries are now eligible for Indian visa on arrival including 12 that were already able to get visa on arrival. These countries are 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.
