Change to tourist visa rules re multiple entries - 60-day-out rule scrapped

Can you give more information? Such as which new rule you mean, and which city's Consulate has it on their website?

Is it possible to use a new visa on a separate passport if I wish to return before the two month span is over?

I don't understand your question. You have two passports, one with a new visa and one without a visa? I can't imagine how you can use two different passports for entering & leaving the country. I'm sure your name, passport & visa would be put into a computer.

If you wish to return within two months, there is a form to fill out on the travisa website. https://indiavisa.travisaoutsourcing...idelines?id=16

Trying to bypass a visa rule, if you got caught, could get you kicked out of India permanently.

Just an update from the Sydney visa office..quite possibly confirming earlier comments here as I've started to lose track of this thread.

I was applying early for a tourist visa because I was wanting to have visas arranged before my trip. I was still well with the 6 month period, so that my time in India would be covered by the visa. But I was told to come back in 6 weeks because it was highly likely I would be refused a 6 month visa this time (all previous visas had been for 6 months). The official told me the visas being granted were now 3 month. Also, this time there were no visa application forms at the office ... people were being told to go to internet cafes to download them, some not so happy as they'd waited 2 hours in queue to be told this.

If the passports are of two different countries, I think you may slip below the radar. I wouldn't chance it, say, with two US passports (which Americans can get if they want to use one for Israel). My Australian-born son travelled recently on a 6-month tourist visa and it is clearly marked on it that there has to be a gap of 2 months before re-entry.

OT: I should have coughed up for him the AU$400+ they extort for an OCI. (Extort because the Aussie $ is almost at par with the US$ and that was an old conversion rate of the US$275 they charge if you apply in the US.)

The Indian forms don't seem to cover the relatively rare case of dual citizenships. e.g. the OCI form (not relevant here) asks for "previous" citizenship, but a dual citizen is "still" a citizen of the other country.

This from a VFS website:

"Thank you for your query,

A transit visa’s validity is for a period of 3 months. You must travel any time within those 3 months. Once you land in India the transit visa will expire within 15 days of your arrival. You need to travel back within 15 days of your arrival in India. A transit visa is valid for 72 hours from the time of arrival. You need to leave/transit within 72 hours of your arrival. To avail a transit visa one is required to have a confirmed itinerary."

It seems to imply significant differences in transit visa policy (assuming they understand it)..

That would indeed be a significant change in the validity period of a transit visa. Unless the embassy that VFS office serves has unilaterally decided that it makes sense to issue them with a longer validity, having them valid for three months, and the 15 days only starting to "tick" once you've entered India for the first time is going to make life a lot easier for many people.

The "FAQs relating to Tourist Visa" were updated again on 28 July 2010.

On the Home Ministry's website (address see below under "source"), there're still two different links which take us to "FAQs relating to Tourist Visa".

The first link, "FAQs relating to Tourist Visa", listed under "Citizen Services", used to lead us to the penultimate version.

The second link, "Foreigners, Tourists and Visa", listed under "Other Links", was more important as it would ultimately guide us to the latest version of the "FAQs relating to Tourist Visa".

Now, it's the other way round: it's the first link which currently takes us to the latest version.

The changes in that version:

A section which had no longer been listed under paragraph 2 has been re-inserted under that paragraph:

"(d) If a foreign national applies for Tourist Visa frequently i.e within one month of expiry of the previous Tourist Visa, the Indian Missions/Posts abroad would refer such cases to MHA (Foreigners Division) for clearance before grant of fresh Tourist visa."

Under paragraph 3, another question has been added, followed by a short answer:

"Q.5: Whether the requirement of reference to the Ministry of Home Affairs in respect of those foreign nationals who apply for Tourist Visa within one month of expiry of the previous Tourist Visa would apply in respect of nationals of all countries?
Ans.: Yes."

Answer VI under paragraph 3, question 2 of the next-to-last version has been deleted:

"(VI) If a foreign national applies for Tourist Visa frequently i.e. within one month of expiry of the previous Tourist Visa, the Indian Missions/Posts abroad should scrutinise the application thoroughly and refer such cases to MHA (Foreigners Division) for clearance before grant of fresh Tourist visa."

Source: http://mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?Id_Pk=233
(now taking to the latest version of "FAQs relating to Tourist Visa")

Great catch, Kela. Noticed that there's now an X visa FAQ here (maybe I just hadn't noticed it before) which may help with the numerous X vs Tourist visa and related questions.


Unfortunately, this MHA site still links to the 16 June Tourist FAQ, which has a filename indicating 17 May. Argh.

I have no proof, but really I'm not convinced that they were updated. Nycank reported that link on another thread and I came to the conclusion that it was a link to an old version of the rules that has a misleading file name.

See my post here for my explanation at the time, I'd be interested to hear what you think. Re-entering India on an Entry Visa

Thank you for your friendly remark, curtdfw! And thank you for your information, Haylo!

I succeeded in dragging up the following versions of "Frequently Asked Questions" from the abysmal depths of my PC:

version 1 (created 31.12.2009 18:44:06):
named "FAQTouristVisa.pdf",
titled "FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS RELATING TO TOURIST VISA";

version 2 (the date of creation should have been 21.05.2010):
named "FAQ-TVisa210510.pdf",
I can no longer recover the exact title;

version 3 (created 17.06.2010 15:01:57):
named "FAQ-TVisa170510.pdf",
titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ T Visa 16.6.2010.doc";

version 2 update (created 17.06.2010 15:01:57):
named "FAQ-TVisa210510-u.pdf",
titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ T Visa 16.6.2010.doc";

version 2 update (created 12.07.2010 16:09:03):
named "FAQ-TVisa210510.pdf",
titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ T Visa 16.6.2010.doc";

version 4 (created 28.07.2010 15:59:06):
named "FAQ-TVisa280710-1.pdf",
titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ on tourist visa modified.doc".

I compared the ultimate version (version 4, created 28.07.2010) with the antepenultimate version (version 2, probably created 21.05.2010). They almost completely tally! Only one section is missing in the ultimate version: paragraph 3, question 2, answer VI:

"(VI) If a foreign national applies for Tourist Visa frequently i.e. within one month of expiry of the previous Tourist Visa, the Indian Missions/Posts abroad should scrutinise the application thoroughly and refer such cases to MHA (Foreigners Division) for clearance before grant of fresh Tourist visa."

To avoid misunderstandings: The fact that "answer (VI)" has not survived does not mean that the one-month bar has been rescinded. The bar is mentioned elsewhere in the ultimate version - even two times!

The visa rules for volunteers have been withdrawn: the ultimate version (version 4, created 28.07.2010) no longer contains the new visa rules for volunteers of the penultimate version (version 3, originally created 17.06.2010), but restores the old visa rules for volunteers of the antepenultimate version (version 2, originally probably created 21.05.2010).

At present, the MHA's website takes some users to the version
named "FAQ-TVisa280710-1.pdf", titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ on tourist visa modified.doc",
created 28.07.2010 15:59:06, and leads others to the version
named "FAQ-TVisa170510.pdf", titled "Microsoft Word - FAQ T Visa 16.6.2010.doc",
created 12.07.2010 16:09:03.

Thus, innocent volunteers seeking advice get either the ultimate or the penultimate information about the visa rules for volunteers, just depending upon the link they come across on the MHA's current website.

Let's look forward to the next version - where we can find it, whether it tallies with a version which we reckoned to have been outdated, whether a wrong month misleadingly appears in the file name, and, above all, whether the MHA remain true to themselves by directing unsuspecting users of their website to the penultimate version (possibly even with a flying "NEW"-flag next to the link)!

I've been out of touch for about 2 weeks, so forgive me if I've missed something. I've just noticed the part that says:

"...a Tourist Visa can only be granted to a foreigner who does not have a residence or occupation in India.."

Does this mean that the authorities will be blacklisting those people with "registered" properties who are on the investigation list (Goa)? Any comments please.

hey,

I'm a US citizen possessing a 5 year tourist visa. I'm currently staying in Delhi until Nov 22, which will be the end of my 180 days. Then I will return to the US.

I would like to return to India in late Jan (i.e. after two months), but stay until summer or so. I am actively looking to volunteer/intern/work with one of several Delhi based NGO, so I hope to apply for a different visa and return under employment or X based visa.

However, failing that. I would like to return anyway on my tourist visa. The frro said that this was fine. (partly because I took an 11 month lease and would prefer to stay out my lease in Delhi while job hunting instead of living at my parents).

Does anyone have experiences? If I know a fairly good NGO, how hard is it for them to completely documentation?

Just to be clear: I'm not trying to violate any Visa laws, in fact I would say that I am actively trying to avoid violating any. It is just difficult to even know what the law is, or even the intent of the law (in detail).

If your parents are Indian, and not expats who happen to be living there, why are you bothering with all these complicated visa issues?

Get yourself OCI and you can travel freely to India, live work, do what you want without the need for a visa.

I never said anything about my parents being Indian, they are not. I'm White.