Tourist Visa - Do they check it?

7055

Hi, new here so hello to everyone.

I am currently in KL, I lodged an application for a six-month tourist visa. I called my dad and he said someone phoned the house (I've not been in England for two years), and asked me for me. He said I don't live there any more. I think I put down my home number on the application. Do you think it's someone checking to see if its really my address or am I just being a bit paranoid? I'm worried now that they'll think I'm lying - the guy on the phone didn't say why he was calling so can't be sure.

edwardseco

I think its a coincidence...
unless...
you made an error on your application and they are trying to get a hold of you..

Haylo

Did they have a foreign accent?

Visa officers do not routinely telephone applicants to check home addresses, there would be no point, because someone answering a number the applicant has given them and saying "Yes Mr X lives here" proves nothing!

As Edwardseco says, it's probably a coincidence, but if it was the Indian Embassy, it's far more likely that they were calling to ask for further contact details so they can get in touch with you for some reason. Obviously, as they have your passport, they knew you would not be answering a phone in England...

If you do give a phone number on an official application form for somewhere you haven't been living for two years, it is probably best to let the person know so they know to tell any callers that you are "on holiday"!

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7055

My dad said it was hard to tell, and also many different people have foreign accents in the UK, it means nothing.

Well thanks for the responses, its eased my mind a bit - I get pretty anxious when dealing with bureaucracy. I just hope I get the visa sorted because KL is to expensive to be lounging around waiting.

Haylo

The only people on here who have reported being refused Indian tourist visas in KL are people whose previous Indian tourist visa has run out and they were trying to get back to back visas. It seems as if the first one you get is only three months then the second back to back one is very likely to get refused.

So, the chances are very high that you'll get your visa no problem.

7055

Hmm, I was under the impression that the visa was for 6 months? Cheers.

Haylo

Oops! I was talking about Kathmandu not KL when I quoted people being given three months for back to back visa renewals, sorry. That is the emerging picture for back to back renewals though, and basically whatever you apply for the reality is that you get what you're given!

It sounds like this is your first Indian visa application though, or that your last one ran out a while back, so yes you may well get six months, though the Malaysian Indian visa website does say "Maximum of six months".

It always takes far longer away from your country of residence. I just checked, instead of relying on my clearly failing memory, and found a few posts on here about processing times. One member reported getting their visa back after 5 working days, two other members have posted saying "Day 6 and no visa yet" but didn't ever return with updates, so presumably got theirs visas through soon after that.

How long have you been waiting so far?

7055

Oh shit! I just made it up on the times when I was thinking I will stay in India, I think I said April/July, but really if my moneys good I would happily stay for 6 months since I really dislike the idea of going home - I did this under the assumption that they would automatically give me a 6 month visa. :/

No it hasn't taken ages (yet), I went in on Friday and its the weekend so...

Desdichado

In Goa last year, I bumped into a Brit who was living there. He told me that every six months, he hops on a plane to Colombo and renews his visa in a matter of days. He claimed that he'd never been checked or even questioned bespite his British passport being filled up with Indian tourist visas.

Haylo

Yes, there are many people in Goa (and elsewhere in India) who live there on back to back tourist visas, and who have done so for many years.

However, it seems that the Indian authorities are not overly impressed with this tactic and people are now reporting that Indian embassies in nearby countries are clamping down on issuing tourist visas to people who are clearly not tourists.

It's a shame, not only for those who hope to make a life in India, but for those few genuine tourists who are fortunate enough to have sufficient funds to be able to take a break from work and want to spend more than six months or so exploring what India has to offer.

You'd need a six month visa for those dates, they don't issue visas for any other periods between three and six months. Travel dates aren't a problem anyway, presumably you applied for a multiple entry visa, so they would be only the dates of your first trip, of which there could be more planned.

With any luck they would reject your visa application if you applied now for a one month visa, for a trip starting in May!

Desdichado

Indeed. When I first visited India, I didn't actually need a visa. It changed after Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated. I have the opportunity next year to visit India to conduct research for a book I'm writing with a colleague. Hopefully, I'll be able to stretch it out a bit so that I can visit some areas I haven't been to yet. I don't quite know how I'll get around the six-month limit but I'll deal with that problem if and when it arises.

It's just a shame that one can no longer visit Kashmir with any degree of safety. I went there in 1977 and loved every minute. I met some actors who were there filming out in the mountains. Quite a rum bunch they were too but great company.