Indian visa help/advice needed please

realised

Doshwaster wrote: »

My worst airport experience of my life was leaving Mumbai about 5 years ago. The bureaucracy and queues was amazing to behold and I just caught the flight by the skin of my teeth - though I'm told it has improved in recent years. Then again, I flew out of Delhi in November last year and just sailed through the airport. Their new international terminal is fantastic.

The last time i went to India (mumbai) was 10 years ago. Being only a child, all I remember is people in arrivals pushing and shoving to get their passports stamped. Then we finally managed to get out of the airport and we were swarmed with beggers/people wanting to take our luggage for us. I was terrified! Real culture shock.. I'm a little apprehensive to be going back for so long!

Mr_Wang

realised wrote: »

Hi all, I'm going to India in August (returning in september) with my mum and brother. My mum already has an Indian passport but my brother and I will need a visa. We are going for 5 weeks and if what Pollycat is saying with regards to the length of visas, do you think I should wait until July before applying?

Also, once the application has been filled in online, is there a way it can be saved before printing out? Unsure of whether to fill out on my laptop or wait until I am on a computer with printer.

Indian Visa's are always issued from the date they are approved. So you should apply as late as possible, but giving yourself time for the visa to be processed. If you are going in August then you should ideally be looking to apply now.

You can retrieve your online application easily whenever you need it. And it can be saved to your machine too.

budgetflyer

TRIVANDRUM now has a new International terminal. There is a compulsory airport developement charge just before check in. I think it was about 600 Rupees. We had no hassle whatsoever exiting India via here. Much smoother than GOA in fact.

As Mr Lahey, oops, sorry I mean Mr Wang says, The visa application is a pain, but all you need is patience and just double check everything before handing/sending them in

budgetflyer

realised wrote: »

Hi all, I'm going to India in August (returning in september) with my mum and brother. My mum already has an Indian passport but my brother and I will need a visa. We are going for 5 weeks and if what Pollycat is saying with regards to the length of visas, do you think I should wait until July before applying?

Also, once the application has been filled in online, is there a way it can be saved before printing out? Unsure of whether to fill out on my laptop or wait until I am on a computer with printer.

no dont wait that long.Just get it ASAP. Saves any last minute panic if there are hicups. Its valid for 6 months. If you leave India, you cant re enter without a 2 month break anyway

realised

Thanks, I will apply tomorrow morning. I was just worried that there is a chance they issue us with a 3 month visa and it expire whilst we are still in India.

jamsandwiches

My partner and I posted off our India visa application the Saturday before last via registered post from our local Post Office enclosing a registered envelope for its return. It was received by VFS on Monday and it arrived back at our home on Friday morning.
We applied for a 12 month visa and this is what we got, the forms were easy to fill in and we had the photographs from a local photography shop so there were no problems with them.
Read the forms first - you can print off an example of the visa application form although it is a little different from the one you actually fill in on line.
Beware of the calendar for your date of entry - it does take a while for it to change from today's date to the one you want and we did not notice this until we checked it before turning to the second page.
Now we have the visa we can sort out our flights at leisure without rushing to get the visa nearer to our date of departure which may be when lots of other people are applying.

soil_2

Mr_Wang wrote: »

It is a myth that getting an visa for India is difficult. Far from it.

The visa system has two purposes and they are first and foremost to protect the country from illegal immigrants and those wishing to exploit the country for whatever reason, and secondly to make money for the government off the back of tourism.
Few countries are in the habit of turning potential tourists away for the laugh and India is exceptionally easy to get a tourist visa for. (unless you are of certain origin, such as Pakistani, then the process becomes slightly more complicated and lengthy)

Hmm, well as a UK citizen I recognise that I am generally privileged when it comes to visa issues. US? No problem, just a simple online idiot-proof process. Singapore? Enter for a two night stopover (or longer of course) free, stamped in by friendly immigration staff, free bowl of sweets. All of Europe? No problem.

Fact is most of the world is open to Western countries with either no visa or a simple 'give us some cash on arrival' process.

We want to visit Delhi and surrounds, fly onwards and return six weeks later to Mumbai. Returning within 2 months is a no-no and they have additional, and unclear, documentation requirements in this case, plus extra fees. So we have asked our travel agent to skip Mumbai and see if they can ticket us directly back from Singapore. In 2 nights in Mumbai we would spend probably £500, money that is now going to be directed to Singapore or just kept in our pocket.

My wife has two passports, they insist she should apply using her British passport, but this could cause problems for her in her home country, so we will probably tell them she doesn't have a British passport, this is risky but it's a consequence of their rules.

The online system is confusing and seems to always offer an appointment even though it is possible to make postal applications. They make you apply online even though this doesn't obviate the requirement for tedious form filling.

I have no problem sending them £50 each or whatever they want, what gets me is all the traps in the process, parental permission letters (no doubt to stop kids being kidnapped by estranged parents, but there are numerous other countries where you can travel without this).

The attractions of India for tourists are obvious, but if we were considering a package holiday to Goa for instance, we'd have given up by this point, and gone to the Gambia/the Caribbean instead. As we are intending to see the Taj Mahal, there is no real substitute (although there are of course places like Angkor Wat, Chichen Itza, and other world wonders that are easier to get to from a hassle/bureacuracy point of view), so we are going to put up with it.

We are going mid-July so we don't have long left.

Doshwaster

soil wrote: »

The online system is confusing and seems to always offer an appointment even though it is possible to make postal applications. They make you apply online even though this doesn't obviate the requirement for tedious form filling.

Welcome to Indian bureaucracy, If you are going to be travelling in India then you need to get used to it. We introduced the joys of form filling, standing in queues and petty officialdom to India but they have implemented it with a zeal like like only a country with a billion people can even imagine. Often it's only an excuse to give lots of people a job and something to do.

Try changing money in India. The last time I did it, I completed more paperwork than I did when I bought my house and it took 3 people to complete the transaction.

jamsandwiches

Doshwaster wrote: »

Try changing money in India. The last time I did it, I completed more paperwork than I did when I bought my house and it took 3 people to complete the transaction.

Try it in a bank in Vietnam - a 15 minute interview before they gave us £500 - much easier from ATM


soil - maybe miss Delhi in July - very hot and very wet.

Pollycat

Mr_Wang wrote: »

- If you apply in person and wish your passport to be returned via post then you must pay something in the region of £8 per passport for it to be returned.

According to the VFS website, it's actually £7.40 for the courier service BUT you can have 2 passports returned in one envelope.

DX Courier Delivery
India Visa application centre in Hayes has been using DX secure, UK’s leading independent courier and Mail Company, for returning the passport(s) to the applicants who wish to use the service from us for a nominal charge of £7.40. DX secure www.thedx.co.uk offers a trusted, reliable and secure service with a signed for delivery by the recipient. This service will be accordingly extended to all India Visa application centres in the UK.

Please remember a maximum of two processed passports shall be returned in one envelope. You are requested to pay the charges for the same along with the visa fees and VFS service charges.

Mr_Wang wrote: »

As for using a visa service I personally don't see the point. All they do is what you can do anyway, and any claims they can increase your chances of getting a visa (provided you have filled in your application correctly etc) is a load of hogwash, that you are paying for.

I've never uses an agency either but some people (especially those maybe not very PC-savvy now the application must be done on-line) do like to do that.

Some agencies charge a hefty fee so be aware what you're being charged ON TOP of the standard visa fees & VFS admin fee and Consular fee ALL of which you will have to pay as well as the agency fee.

Some areas with a large Indian population (I've heard Leicester mentioned) offer a service where you pay a small extra fee (which goes to the local community) for them to take your application on your behalf.