Applying for an Indian Tourist Visa in Kuala Lumpur

Hi Bethverde, welcome to IndiaMike!

Thanks for posting your experiences, as I'm sure you found, it really is useful to know what the latest information is.

On the window it says:
Closed: "Saturday and Sunday and (Indian) Public Holidays"

Does any one know if it is also closed on KL Public Holidays?

I am supposed to pick up my passport on Monday and have a flight booked for Tuesday.

TIA!

Visa Application Centres (VACs) usually keep the same holidays as the High Commissions of India (HCI).

According to the 2010 Holiday List on the VAC website, the HCI will be open on Monday.

Good luck getting your passport back in time for your flight.

Forum Advisor Note: This is such a useful thread, it has been promoted to "sticky" status.

Many of the questions about applying for an Indian visa in KL can be answered by looking at the official Grandlotus Website.

For all the rest there's IndiaMike.

Is there a company that (for a fee of course) apply for the visa for me while I am in another country?

Since only a photocopy of the passport, the visa application, and 2 passport photos are required for the initial security check (which is the most time-consuming part of the process), it should be possible, in theory, for me to email these documents to an agent who can apply for the visa on my behalf.

Then, when I come to KL, and the security check is completed, I can hand in my passport in person and pick up the visa the next day.

Does anyone know whether such a service is possible and if so, who can do this for me? If it makes any difference I am Canadian, my partner is German and we want 6 month multiple entry tourist visas.

Thanks so much!

From the visa outsourced site http://www.indiavisa.com.my/main.html Under the application form it clearly states that an original passport is required, and applicant has to sign it and not an agent.

And from the FAQ

Hope that helps.

This is so silly...I could sign the form, scan it and send it to an agent, along with the passport photos and photocopy of passport.

I don't see why I need to be in the country (Malaysia) while they conduct the security check if they only need a photocopy of the passport to do this...

Frustrating...surely for an "extra fee"/baksheesh someone can do this for me so I don't have to spend 5-7 days of my holiday waiting for my Indian visa???? What if someone only has 10 days' holiday for example? Are they just not supposed to go to India?
This is absurd.

For the average tourist this shouldn't be a problem. As far as I know, tourist visas are always valid for at least 3 months, typically 6 months, sometimes longer (all depends on nationality and where you apply).

If you only have 10 days, you can apply well in advance such that your 10-day trip is covered.

You didn't give any details as to where you are staying now and why you want to apply in Kuala Lumpur. Can't you apply in the country where you are now?

I am living and working in Indonesia, on a very remote island.

Thus I cannot apply for my visa in person while I am here.

As soon as I leave the island my holiday starts. So it seems to me absurd to have to spend 5-7 days in Jakarta or Kuala Lumpur waiting for a security check, when all they need in order to do this security check is a photocopy of my passport and a signed visa application (which I can sign, scan and email to someone) and 2 passport photos (which I can also send via email for printing on photo paper).

It makes much more sense for me to apply now, with the help of an agent who will print out my emailed scans, so that when I leave the island and my holiday starts, I can just go directly to KL, the security check will have been finished, and I can just hand in my passport and wait 24 hours for the visa to be put in it.

Am I crazy for thinking there should be a way to do this???

PS my problem isn't that I think the visa they grant me won't cover a 10 day stay, my problem is I don't want to spend 5-7 days of my holidays waiting for a visa in KL!

I just used the 10 day holiday example to demonstrate how absurd it would be if one only had 10 days of holiday (or even 14) and then had to spend 5-7 days of it in KL waiting for the visa.

I also found this on the website for getting an India tourist visa in Kuala Lumpur:

"The applications for visa should be accompanied by two (2) passport size photographs of the applicant and the same can be submitted in person, through travel agents or any authorized person. We do not insist on personal visits to the High Commission."

http://www.indiavisa.com.my/main.html

So they explicitly say that an agent can apply on your behalf, and that you don't have to go in yourself. So why is it so difficult to find out who can make this application on my behalf? I'm willing to pay!!!

im in korea at the moment, im flying to kuala lumpur next week and originally had a connecting flight to india, however i didnt realise my visa would take so long to get and so i wont have it in time!
so im going to spend a week in malayasia n apply for my visa there. however, i was just wondering how far it is from the airport to the visa place? is it cheap n easy to get to by public transport? n also r there cheap places to stay nearby?
i am backpacking n have little money to spend. this discussion has been unbelievably helpfull so far, but these answers would be even better! thanks.

I am currently based in Kuala Terengganu and I was wondering if I could enlist a travel agent or a friend to apply for a visa on my behalf? As it is, I am not very comfortable leaving my passport to a travel agent for a week, but do I have a choice, apart from going to the Grandlotus office personally, and then wait for a couple of days to pick up my visa? I'd rather not do that because that would mean staying in KL without a purpose for a few days.

Hi Pelf, welcome to IndiaMike.

As I understand it, you do not have to apply in person, and there are visa agents you could use. I would strongly suggest that you do try to get a personal recommendation as agents can be of varying usefulness and reliability.

Hi Haylo, thanks for the warm welcome

I am assuming that "personal recommendation" means a friend? In that case, yeah sure, I was thinking perhaps a friend (who would also be going to India to attend the same conference) would be a better help than an agent. Plus, I don't know any travel agents in Kuala Terengganu though I am pretty sure that there aren't many.