General Information on travel to India

On this page we document various practical issues related to travel to and within India by non-Indians.

Contributions are welcome. Please feel free to just add additional items to the following list. We will eventually group them up into categories as the number of items grows.

Visas

Most people will need a visa to visit India.

India offers the possibility of obtaining an e-visa online. Several types are offered, includnig e-Tourist, e-Business, e-Conference, etc. Applications for the e-visa are made via an online form (including a cost) and submitted. Approval (and the e-visa number) typically comes by e-mail within a few days.

Several institutions, such as the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in Mumbai and the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics in Kolkata, are operated by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) of India. As of January, 2023, they require a proper paper visa affixed in the passport (business or conference) rather than an e-visa. The business e-visa is not sufficient. To obtain the paper visa you will likely need to make an appointment and visit an Embassy or Consulate of India and may need to leave your passport with them.

To apply for the e-visa (and likely the paper visa), you will need several things:

  • The visa number from your last visit to India (if applicable)
  • A list of all countries visited in the past 10 years (although the form currently seemed to limit it to 20 entries)

Obtaining regular visas (non e-visas) in various locations:

In Geneva

  • General information can be found on the Permanent Mission of India website
  • The Consulate General of India in Geneva provides visa services for those residing in the Cantons of Geneva, Vaud, Valais and Neauchatél of Switzerland

The Netherlands

  • General information can be found on the Embassy of India website
  • They outsource the management of this to an external entity VFS Global
  • As part of the application for all types of visas they ask for proof of residence in the Netherlands

France

  • TBD

USA

  • TBD
  • (Including specific notes for applying in various specific cities.)