Applying for an Indian Visa in the UK: Your Questions and Experiences

A couple of the preceding posts are from Cruise passengers - just curious - did the cruise organisers tell you to get visas? I ask because cruise passengers used to get 'Temporary Permission to Land' issued as a block and organised by the Tour Op.
The rules used to be that you should not make hand-written alterations to your form (and since exit port/ address etc. are not online they are not needed). Refs in India can also just be 'NA'.

AndyD 8-)#

posting while reading multiple threads on this but any immediate guidance would be great and save me another hour!

when going for the 12 month tourist visa, i'm best off according to mike to bypass my local visa centre in cardiff and post everything to include a personal letter detailing the itinerary? he succeeded 3 times straight.

include:

1) passport
2) form
3) 2 x 50 x 50 photos
4) checklist

my feelings tell me i'll miss something and it's best to go to cardiff who will send it onto hayes? i'm not in a rush but i do want the 1 year visa. if doing it in the post so i can include my polite letter/rough itinerary will increase my chances on that i should do it as perhaps the gatekeeper in cardiff would tear up a 'polite letter' in front of my eyes as she'll see it as irrelevant.

filling out form tomorrow to post or go to cardiff office monday morning.

the risk: in going for the 1 year, if unsuccessful and issued with 6 months, i will remain stuck as my current itinerary has me out of india 1 month after arrival then waiting for the winter in india to come before going back in. should i fail with the 1 year, i would have been better off applying for a 6 month (when i get to oz) to begin in november. if this is not clear, my current trip requires india in april>exit>india in nov>exit - an itinerary that will only succeed if 1 year is granted.

As you are in London already, it would be very silly to go to Cardiff to apply?

Applying in person helps if you have made a mistake on your form, but the imbeciles at VFS will feel obliged to give you their usual bucket of cr@p about what visa you can or cannot apply for.

For the umpteenth time..........they are clerks, no more no less.

Your plans as described here are virtually text-book for applying for a one year visa. Put this in a letter with full details and you should have no problems, however you choose to apply.

thank johnny.

i'm in cardiff. but it doesn't matter - from your reply i will now mail everything at the p/off monday morning. if anyone else has any advice, please shoot - otherwise i will mail it.

You give your location as London?

more often than not, i just happen to be in cardiff for the time being!

Then go to the Cardiff centre - they are not a proper visa centre and they are not clerks there but some sort of volunteer (?). They will check your application and then forward it just as if you had posted it yourself.

AndyD 8-)#

Hi all

I have received my visa back today it's for 3 months, single entry.

I am flying back from Kathmandu through Delhi, take it this doesn't count as a second entry into the country!?

I sent my flight itinery with my application so hope they have given me the right one!

Thanks

Transit doesn't count and there is a one off permission for Nepal, etc. anyway at the discretion of the officers..

I went to Goa, India this February as a tourist. I applied for the visa last November and found the whole process time consuming and difficult. The VFS web site is of poor design and quality, with pitfalls for the unwary. The Indian visa process is much more difficult than for places like the USA, Turkey, Egypt and Vietnam. India has a reputation for being chaotic and inefficient, which some find endearing, others after a while find just irritating. I did enjoy my visit to Goa, and the local people there were fantastic. I have sent my thoughts about the Indian visa process, and suggested ways to improve the web site to the Indian High Commission in London. I hope this does not bar me from entering India in the future, but like some other tourists who have given up on India because of the visa problems, it would not be a huge loss to me. I feel for those who have to go to India to visit family and have to go through the convoluted visa process every time, and it does not give a good first impression of India.

I agree the sytem can seem quite hard or awkward for many.

Tell us from your experiences what you feel is wrong so applicants can learn from it. Making their application process easier.

Hi Mike,
I worked for 20 years in systems and IT, and have a lot of experience using various web sites. The VFS website is poorly designed for the purpose it is trying to do, enable people of various categories to apply for a visa. It is not the job of the applicant to try to work out the website, but they need to be guided easily through the process. The tourist visa for the USA for example is much easier, and the Indian High Commission could learn by looking at it. My suggestions in my letter to the Indian High Commission were to get less off the first page so the user is not overwhelmed with unnecessary information. Most want to go as tourists, so ask first Are you a tourist visiting India ? Then ask when are you expecting to arrive and leave ? Then suggest visa for 3 months, 6 months, 1 year as appropriate. Occupation seems irrelevant if visiting as a tourist, as is having to have 2" square photos when passport size should suffice. Then explain application form and passport has to be sent off to the relevant address. Fee should be payable on line using a debit or credit card and clearly explained how it is calculated.
In summary there is far too much confusing information for tourists. The web site would direct people to another area if they require student, or work visas. The layout of the site is poor, and it is one of the hardest to use web sites I have encountered, and drops out occasionally without explanation. In contrast, the USA tourist visa process was a breeze, your passport details are keyed into the web site at the outset so the US authorities know who you are, where you are staying and when you are leaving. India did not ask me when I was leaving. I accept India is very bureaucratic (I have never encountered so many people handling and stamping my passport when leaving Goa), they have manual and paper systems rather than computer. They need a good systems analyst to go through their processes, because it is a shame when tourists will not re-visit India because of the visa process. Many of the people visiting Goa were more than 50 years of age, and the last thing they want is to be tied up in a tedious, stressful application process when it could be made so much easier, without compromising Indian security and illegal immigration. Some of the local hoteliers in Goa were frustrated with the convoluted process too, and quite rightly see it as harming their business, and tourists will decide to go to Vietnam or Mexcico which are probably easier to get into.
This was my first visit to India, and although I loved the people, wildlife and lovely beach, I was shocked at the poor state of the infrastructure like roads, railways and the huge amount of litter near the beach. I realised that the vast majority of Indians are very poor, living on less than $2 per day, and India still has a very long way to go to reach European standards in many areas, or even Chinese standards in many respects. China is an autocracy, India a vast, chaotic country with many issues to overcome, and you have to go there with a different attitude, expect things to be done more slowly and inefficiently. I think China is advancing very quickly, but it has an autocratic government, India much more slowly, although in small patches it is like Europe or America. I watched the film "Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" recently, very good, and shows the good and not so good of India. Many tourists first experience of India is Goa, so it would be good for India if they got the roads and airport up to par in this small area to give a good first impression, perhaps by charging tourists a little more to inprove infrastructure. I was surprised how expensive some of the hotels were there compared to say Egypt and Madeira, although compensated by very low cost of eating out.

Previous post probably too long, last para just my thoughts on Indian development which are irrelevant to the visa process

Hi again,

My friend and I are off to India on 30th march, we posted off our applications together at the start of the month and received them back last week.

PROBLEM! My photograph is on BOTH our visas! So my photo is in her passport!

How do we get this sorted? She phoned h helpline on Monday and emailed them, no response as yet. As you can imagine we are boh getting stressed, time is not on our side.

Current options are await a reply from Vfs, book a flight to London next week and sort it in person or get a agent to apply for a whole new visa.

Any knowledgable person who can help!?

Thanks

Don't bother with the premium rate number, but they (VFS) usually reply to emails.
Assuming that although you posted off your applications together they were in separate envelopes then be prepared for the fact it was probably your fault** (check what photos you both have left). I'm guessing your friend will have to apply for a new visa and pay again.

** Since the photo visas came in all applications are handled separately, even for a couple when handed in together.

AndyD 8-)#