My stay in Kathmandu for Visa 25.12.06 - 3.12.06

machadinha

This has often been mentioned here now yes.

It's so far unclear to me does this mean:

-- Applications for back-to-back visas won't be entertained?

Or:

-- Once you've been declined for whatever reason, there's absolutely no point in trying again within the foreseeable future (which would seem fairly logical)?

While there's been a trickle of comments here suggesting Nepal isn't so ideal anymore to apply for a new visa, if it had become impossible you'd expect more, and more definitive, reports to that effect. So I'm unclear on, but would like to know, the situation, for the benefit of other members that is.

__________________
Reading tips, all picked up at IndiaMike : INDAX's A Comprehensive Guide To India / Dinoj Surendran's Desi Humor / ITHVC on Culture Shock & Travel Health / JetLag Travel Guides For the Undiscerning Traveller / India Travel Links

kishori_ray

It mean that you cannot go for tourist visa again and again. If you have been there twice for this reason, then after this they would not give you tourist visa again.

With other types of visa it is even more hard. As they first sentence says,

__________________
'Vasudhaiva kutumbkam'- The universe is my family.
http://www.youtube.com/kishoriray
http://kishoriray.multiply.com/
[url]http://www.flickriver.com/photos/kishoriray/

machadinha

Yes, but is that your experience, or is it your reading of the site?

I know the site and its wording, but it seems to be ambiguous. And I've never seen any definitive report on it yet, hence my asking. It would be nice to know what the deal really is.

As for that (fuller) quote:

Depending on how you read this, this seems to say only that they'd rather have you apply for a visa in your home country (of course they would). It doesn't explicitly say you can't get one there.

Leaving aside in all of this of course that some embassy's website stipulations won't necessarily match the actual situation on the ground.

jcbrum

I was in Panjim police station last week trying to sort out my residency permit (total waste of time).The policeman dealing with foreigner reigistration said why don't you get a 5 year visa instead of the one you have got.I replied they won't give them to you in the Uk.So he showed me a British passport with a 5 year tourist Visa issued in Nepal dated last month.So it seems you can get them still there.

sirensongs

Namaste from Naya Nepal: I can tell you that all the rules @ the Indian embassy of Kathmandu appear to be changing. (I say appear to be because of course, it is ambigious.)

It took me several weeks and FIVE interviews to get the standard 6 mos. tourist visa. They're essentially not giving anyone 6 months at this embassy, esp. if you have recently been in India.

If you are a foreigner 'resident in Nepal' on a non-tourist Nepali visa you can get 6 months.

*Nobody* in the lines the many days I went to the Embassy got 6 months. Everyone got three, four - one Chilean guy only got 2 weeks, so did an Israeli. This was in the months of Feb - March.

I talked to at least a dozen people of all nationalities; they all said the same thing. They were questioned very closely about "why do you want to go to India?" or "why are you going back to India? you just came from there" (because I like it and want to spend money there????) and given only 3 or sometimes 4 mos.

If you refer to the current web site
http://www.south-asia.com/Embassy-India/consular.htm
(for all i know it always said this stuff, but

you will notice it says:
---# Applicants are advised to obtain Indian visas from the Indian Missions located in the country where they normally reside. The Embassy of India in Kathmandu will normally entertain visa applications only from foreign nationals residing in Nepal. However, transit/tourist visa applications from foreigners visiting Nepal for short periods will be entertained.-----

I guess this means if you come FIRST to Nepal and then decide to go to India, fine. Notice they don't say how long a tourist visa they will "entertain" you for. From the reports I got it was 3 months.

---it goes on to say
#--- Tourist Visas which are now valid for 6 months are issued only to those foreigners who have no residence or occupation in India and whose sole objective in visiting India is recreation, sight-seeing or casual visits to friends and relatives. ---

They never come out and say, "if you have just come from India we won't give you another 6 months."

I suppose this is what's meant by the mysterious "repeat applications."

And the fact is, no one I talked to got 6 months.

**another curious thing happening is that every single person i spoke to (myself included) was told, "your home embassy is not responding to the fax." What, every single country - Brazil, Chile, UK, US, Russia, etc - none of them responded to the faxes? This is what we're expected to believe. This is also the excuse they give ("we didn't get a response so we don't know if you are really cleared - so we can only give you 3 mos."). Note they still take your 300Rs fee to send the fax they obviously are NOT sending.

So don't expect much except a BIG hassle if you go there for a visa.

__________________
"Why do people go to India to find themselves? India is where you go to lose yourself."
Feringhee: The India Diaries

Nick-H

Thanks for the up-to-date report; bad news for many.

__________________
.


Just one member of the IndiaMike Mod Team

atala

Recently an Israeli acquaintance told me he was in the Embassy in Kathmandu and he could not get another visa without waiting six months (special rule for Israelis). he asked what he could do to stay in India for a long time, and an employee there told him to apply for a student visa. Then my friend said: But I am not a student, to which the employee replied: well just assume the role of a student, an answer which my friend could hardly believe he heard from an employee there. Of course he would still need some letter of acceptance at some institution. But I am telling this here to encourage people to take heart that everything is not lost about the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu.

SarahTrixie

really helping having someone spell out their experience, thanks!
off to Kathmandu in 2 weeks....

Yorgo

Thanks for the info sirensongs.. can you tell me if you were on a visa run and also what passport you hold.. and did you try any visa agencies like Mr Hari (Budget Travels).. cheers

mckay25

I believe (as when I was there last year) that the ability to use visa agents has been closed down for well more than a year now so no luck there.

There may be a relaxation of their attitude after the exodus leading up to the Nepali election winds down or maybe they'll just randomly change their minds again (since there is no explanation as to why they are so concerned anyway) and start issuing longer visas. No way to really tell for sure, but seems like Sirensong's latest experience is the current state of affairs.

McKay

__________________
~Only a mediocre person is always at their best~

http://thewindonmyface.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mckaysavage/

jcbrum

I would be interested to see how you get on,as we are going to Kathmandu in Sepetember.I emailed the Indian Embassy there a few weeks ago and the reply was we won't have a problem renewing there.So we will wait and see.

John

kishori_ray

Hi, I just went to Singapore, hoping to get at least 6 month tourist visa... It was a frustrating experience. First of all the main officer wanted to send me straight to Berlin to get a Visa. {I am staying in India for almost 20 years, always leaving to get new visas, had 2 times 5 year tourist visa.]
After lots of effort, he agreed to give me 3 month tourist visa. It appears to me that people who had been granted already twice a tourist visa, and it does not matter so much from where they have gotten it, are not anymore sure to get a 6 month tourist visa, or any visa at all.
It becomes a big question mark for me why the 6 year tourist visa for 16 countries had been introduced at all, about 2 years ago.
Last November I went to Germany, Frankfurt and I got the same treatment as here. But I have to add that nowadays the Indian Embassy is not anymore issuing the visas. They had huge waiting times to get the visa, and in almost all cases they send it to you by post [means extra costs]. I went all the way from Berlin to get the visa instantly but had to learn that the visa will be issued only after about 5 days. As soon as I arrived back in Berlin, to be correct, Potsdam, I found my passport with visa inside my post box, for this I had paid an additional [forgot the exact amount, but lots of euro].
I think people who have long term interest, should try to find others ways, if they had already many tourist visas or years inside India. This is the sad truth I had to learn.

kishori_ray

As far as I have heard travel agents cannot anymore help for visas in Nepal. If I am wrong, please correct me. Anyway I wish all the best to all the India lover, and hope they find their ways to visit and stay in India!

machadinha

If I remember correctly, a condition of those "6-year visas" would be that they'd be valid for up to 3 (or even 2?) months at a time only.

I must say that I never saw anything definitive on did those go into effect at all, what are the precise conditions and what nationalities does it apply to (well, I've seen some -- partial -- lists of countries), or anything. I've seen just one report here by a Finnish (I think) member who claimed 3 (or 2, then?) months was all they could get, but haven't heard anything conclusive on it beyond that.

How long was the visa for that you got back home then, if we may ask? The regular 6 months? Was there a requirement of a certain period spent at home before you were issued a new one? (Maybe Germany is different again though, I didn't know about those 5-year visas you mention.)

kishori_ray

sorry was a typo... not 6 years tourist visa, but 5 years... so sorry...