Indian visa help/advice needed please

Doshwaster

Pollycat wrote: »

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.

It depends on what you call a "hefty fee". Most passport agencies are about £30. That seems a bargain compared to the time, cost and inconvenience of going down to London for the day.

Bob_the_Saver

Doshwaster wrote: »

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.

Ah the British taught them well but I must admit they have perfected it.

Mr_Wang

soil wrote: »

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.

Got to be honest, if you are just visiting Delhi then it is not worth the hassle. I despise that place and it will be even worse in July when the Monsoon will be at full force.
If by surrounding area's you mean Rajasthan then you'll get a let up from the monsoon and see some of the best things India has to offer.
The Taj Mahal is indeed an amazing sight, but half a day, possibly even less is more than enough - Hence why most do it on the day trip from Delhi. If you do get to Delhi then seriously consider Rajastahn.

Mumbai is certyainly worth the effort and it is one of my favourite cities on earth. That said it will be drenched and it one of the wettest cities in India in the monsoon and so if I were you I'd do no more than a couple of days before getting a cheap flight down to Kochi for some cool Kerala action.

Pollycat

soil wrote: »

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.

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).

Like it or not, it's the prerogative of a country to set tourist immigration rules as they see fit.

And if you don't like it, the only alternative is to choose another destination.

Mr_Wang wrote: »

Even those who are going to Goa for a fortnight can in most cases expect a 6 month visa to land on their doormat. Why some people differ from this is one of the mysteries of Indian bureaucracy which is lengendary for its often puzzling and confusing formalities.

Doshwaster wrote: »

The bureaucracy and queues was amazing to behold and I just caught the flight by the skin of my teeth

I totally agree with the comments of bureaucracy which includes stamping of documents and form-filling but as Doshwater says here:

Doshwaster wrote: »

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.

Doshwaster

Pollycat wrote: »

I totally agree with the comments of bureaucracy which includes stamping of documents and form-filling

I think things are improving as India attracts more tourists and business visitors. The first time I went there you literally did have to stand in a queue for 30 minutes just to have a piece of paper stamped and then be told to stand in another queue for another stamp. However, I was in Delhi and Kochi in November and it was all relatively straight forward - once you got used to fully armed soldiers coming up to you and demanding to see your papers. I suppose it gives them something to do rather than fighting Pakistan

Pollycat

Doshwaster wrote: »

It depends on what you call a "hefty fee". Most passport agencies are about £30. That seems a bargain compared to the time, cost and inconvenience of going down to London for the day.

But I've never travelled to London (or Birmingham) to get my visa (even before the service was outsourced to VFS) so time, cost and inconveniece has never been a necessary consideration.

I've always applied by post (with the one exception detailed below), downloading the forms and completing by hand (before the compulsory on-line application), sent them off via Royal Mail Special Delivery and never had a single problem.

So, for 2 of us, it costs:
Visa cost: £30.00 x 2
VFS admin fee: £9.24 x 2
Consular fee: £2.00 x 2
RM SDE x 2: £5.05 x 2 (outbound & inbound)

TOTAL for 2 travellers: £92.58

So I'd guess I'd call an additional £60 (2 x £30) 'hefty' for something I can do in the comfort of my own home and then just pop up to my local Post Office (5 mins away).

It's a personal choice, if you are happy to pay the extra - that's fine.

One year (2007 maybe and definitely before out-sourcing to VFS), High Commission of Indian stopped postal applications at very short notice (2 weeks).
This meant that people had to either go to London, Birmingham or Edinburgh or use the 'visa surgeries' dotted about the counry on selected days.

As you can imagine, demand for the surgeries was massive and people at the Bradford surgery had been queuing for hours and at 4pm they just closed the doors and told the many people still waiting: 'no more visas, go home'.
As you may imagine, feelings ran very high, and the Police were called.

The following week, we travelled to our nearest surgery (1 hour away) and arrived at 6am on a damp October morning.
There were already quite a few people in the queue and the guy in front had been there since 3am.
He'd been one of the unlucky ones at Bradford and said he wan't going to make the same mistake again.
We finally got our visas around 11am.

HCI re-instated postal applications shortly afterwards.

Pollycat

Just to clarify my comments about 3 month visas:

This is an extract from the VFS website:

A tourist visa can only be granted to a foreigner who does not have a residence or occupation in India and whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives, etc. No other activity is permissible on a tourist visa. A tourist visa may be issued normally for three months to six months with single or multiple entries and is non-extendable and non-convertible. The duration of the visa is the sole discretion of the Issuing Authority. Please note the validity of the visa is effective from the date of issue.

Here is the link:
http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/touristvisa.html

Most other references to Tourist visas on the website mention 6 months.

From what I've read, some of the people in professions that require additional documentation (i.e. letter from employers), such as journalists, police officers, armed forces are the ones being given 3 month visas.

I agree it's not the norm but maybe it's something that people applying should take into account.

soil_2

Mr_Wang wrote: »

Got to be honest, if you are just visiting Delhi then it is not worth the hassle. I despise that place and it will be even worse in July when the Monsoon will be at full force.
If by surrounding area's you mean Rajasthan then you'll get a let up from the monsoon and see some of the best things India has to offer.
The Taj Mahal is indeed an amazing sight, but half a day, possibly even less is more than enough - Hence why most do it on the day trip from Delhi. If you do get to Delhi then seriously consider Rajastahn.

We are going to stay in the Oberoi (at the Taj Mahal). It looks fantastic.

Where shoud we go in Rajsthan (with two kids 9/4)?

Mumbai is certyainly worth the effort and it is one of my favourite cities on earth. That said it will be drenched and it one of the wettest cities in India in the monsoon and so if I were you I'd do no more than a couple of days before getting a cheap flight down to Kochi for some cool Kerala action.

We are going to stay fly in from Singapore on the 4th September, then fly back to London on the 6th of September. Only a stopover.

Mr_Wang

soil wrote: »

We are going to stay in the Oberoi (at the Taj Mahal). It looks fantastic.

Where shoud we go in Rajsthan (with two kids 9/4)?

We are going to stay fly in from Singapore on the 4th September, then fly back to London on the 6th of September. Only a stopover.

If you open an Indian Travel Brochure, or watch a Bollywood movie - Chances are you will be looking at Rajasthan.
From camel safari's across the dunes of Jaisalmer, to mystique palaces and huge forts there is something for everyone in Rajasthan.
I would certainly consider ditching Delhi on day 1 and heading out to Agra, then if time permits Varanasi, if not, come back toward Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Jaipur and maybe throw in Pushkar and Chittor.

Google image those places and be prepared to pick your jaw up from the floor.

It is also one of the drier parts of India during the monsoon in terms of practicality - Unless you head up towards Leh, but few people do.

Bob_the_Saver

mr_wang wrote: »

if you open an indian travel brochure, or watch a bollywood movie - chances are you will be looking at rajasthan.
From camel safari's across the dunes of jaisalmer, to mystique palaces and huge forts there is something for everyone in rajasthan.
I would certainly consider ditching delhi on day 1 and heading out to agra, then if time permits varanasi, if not, come back toward jaisalmer, jodhpur, udaipur, jaipur and maybe throw in pushkar and chittor.

Google image those places and be prepared to pick your jaw up from the floor.

It is also one of the drier parts of india during the monsoon in terms of practicality - unless you head up towards leh, but few people do.

They've only got a few hours they'd need a helicopter, Delhi - Varanasi by train
would be around 12 hours each way if you were very lucky.