Applying for another Indian tourist visa in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Thanks everyone!

@A_F_D: Unfortuntaly it is really not possible to extend it before 14 days. I went to the FRRO with all the documents and they send me back home.

I have just one other question: What if I send my stuff home and only change flights in India (so I dont leave the airport)? Transfer time will be either 2 or 23 hours. Do I still need a transit visa?

Your original conundrum was that you had to submit a paper to your educational institution, What about that ?

To avoid transit visa, you have to tell us, which airline you will from from CMB to BOM and which airline will you take from BOM to whichever city you are headed to. I do not think you can stay in transit lounge for more than 12 hours.

hi,
I'm from germany and in India on a one year X Visa that is going to expire march 23rd. I'm a volunteer staying in Bangalore at a HIV centre for infected children, but I'm registered in Kerala because this is where I came in the beginning. I went to Delhi to the MHA to apply for an extension. It didn't go well... they gave me the magic envelope and said I should bring this one to Kerala to the office where I am registered... so today they opened the letter and the extension has been denied... as I expected. What I want to try now is going to Sri Lanka and apply for a tourist visa from there... is the fact that my extension has been denied going to be an issue? is it worth a try? I'm just not ready to go home yet, and another three month would be all I want...
I appreciate any advise...

First, I think a Volunteer now needs an E visa (even an unpaid one). That might be the reason for refusing the extension.
http://mha.nic.in/pdfs/work_visa_faq.pdf

A trip to Srilanka for a Tourist Visa - I think the refusal will have a bearing. Also you need to substantiate why you want to go back so early (as in before the 60 day period). If you say you want to work at an orphanage, that is clearly not allowed on a T visa and may be ground for refusal.

No not so, the 2-month rule does NOT apply to X visas.
Just apply for 3-month T in Colombo as a tourist, you should be OK, but it takes a full week.

AndyD 8-)#

Narendra..........again, please stick to what you know. As a well educated Indian, your "known" information is valuable.

However, posts full of "I think" followed by wrong information help no-one really, especially when they relate to the nightmares experienced by foreigners trying to get a visa to your homeland.

Agree that the 2 month rule doesn't apply to X visa, but the OP was intending to get a T visa after an X visa extension was refused to do something that needs an E visa.

Don't you think he will be asked why he intends to travel immediately after his X visa expiry and that he may be refused based on how he answers that.

I will take your advice seriously.

What was written as an original endorsement on your X visa when it was issued in Germany ? and did the FRO in Kerala write or make a notation on your passport after opening the envelop ?

It is important because, many if not all volunteers who get visas, are issued with name of the NGO and the place mentioned in the visa, be it X or any other visa; you moved from one NGO & place to another outfit in another city, you did not inform/change your registration, or inform the FRO, which is required.

I know of that being done with no problem. 3-month T visas in Colombo are usually a formality (takes a week).

AndyD 8-)#

When the Visa was issued they wrote :volunteer year with a social activity in St. Joseph's Provincial House in Aluva, Kerala.

After opening the letter from Delhi they did not make any note or anything like that on my passport.

But still they will have some mentioning about the refused extension in their files will they not?

I doubt HCI Colombo is fully online & integrated with New Delhi, so the refusal of visa extension will not be visible to HCI in Sri Lanka. You will be fine as long as you do not get flagged for a personal interview, in which case you'd be questioned further.

In your extension application in New Delhi, did you mention the above NGO or the HIV Center in bangalore ?

Do update us here on the outcome of your trip to SL.

I had a letter of recommendation from the HIV centre in Bangalore. The Visa in my passport showed what is written on it.
I'm still not sure if it's worth to try an application from SL... Have to figure it out within this week.

Even if I'll get the Visa will there be any problems at the immigration while coming back to india?
Is it better to go to Colombo or Kandy for the VIsa application?

So I took the step to go to Sri Lanka to give it a try. I went to Kandy and applied for a three months tourist visa. There is a new application office which is better than any office I have seen in India so far...
Anyway... I filled out the forms and I already had photos, so I was the first to give in the papers and I got the token nr.1 but it wasn't crowded and it was about 9.30 or something.
As they called me to the desk the woman said that there has to be a two month gap befor I can get a new tourist Visa. I told her that this applies only for two tourist visas in a row and that my previous visa was X-Visa. She apologized and asked no further questions. I paid the fee (5244 Rs.) and was told to come back after seven days befor 11.30am to submit my passport and later that day, after 4.00pm to get the passport back. So I was quite optimistic.
Yesterday then I went there again to submit my passport. No problems so far. When I came back at 4.30 (they told me 4.30 in the morning) I waited for one hour till the passports came from the HCI. Then finally i got my passport back - without a new tourist Visa! They told be that they need the clearance from Delhi first and that takes 25 days. By that time my Visa for Sri Lanka would already be over, so they said that I should come back to the office one day before the Sri Lankan Visa expires with a request that I might get the Visa for India earlier... But this is by no means certain. And the probability to get the clearance from Delhi is very low in my opinion. So there is no real point in waiting, for even if Delhi clears it, and I go back to the office to request an earlier Visa, it might only start at the 25th, three days after the Visa for Sri Lanka expires...
The guy at the office said that some people had the same thing like my, they waited and got the clearance and Visa for India. One guy whatsoever did not get if... and I think I would be a second one, for Delhi will be for sure suspicious...
Now I have to get a ticket back to germany and it is probably a good idea to let some time pass before I apply for a new Indian Visa.
Maybe this can be of some help to someone somtime...

The money is lost by the way...

Hi everyone,

I am currently in Banagalore on a 6 month employment visa with my wife (who's visa is dependent on mine).

We want to stay for an extra 3 weeks after our visa expires because we have family travelling over to visit us (great timing!)

My office has quoted 20,000 rs to renew the employment visa with another 27,000 for an agent to help. I can't afford this!!

So I was wondering what our options are?
-Can we switch to a tourist visa?
-If we went to Sri Lanka could we get a tourist visa there?
-Is there a cheaper way to extend employment visa?
-Any other ideas?

Any suggestions would be really appreciated - thanks

Lenny's last comment may be germane..