Indian visa help/advice needed please

jamsandwiches

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

It mentions 12 month visas in a couple of places one I found immediately.....


A Tourist Visa is granted to those who would visit India for tourism. Tourist visas may be valid for 6 months to 1 year with single or multiple entries. Irrespective of the duration of validity of visa, on each visit maximum period of stay in India is limited to 6 months (180 days) only. Please note the validity of the visa is effective from the date of issue.

soil_2

Bob_the_Saver wrote: »

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.

I might not have made it clear.

We are flying into Delhi on the 11th of July (am), we have 'a number of days' (yet to be confirmed).

Our time in Mumbai is OTOH limited to the evening of the 4th of September till the morning of the 6th.

soil_2

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.

I lol'ed at the description of Varanasi on wikitravel:

Bathe Over 60,000 people come down to the waters edge every day to take a dip in the sacred waters of the Ganges. Try not to think too much about the dozens of sewage pipes and sunken corpses in the waters around you and you'll find it's not nearly as bad as you expect once you're actually in it. Although medically, bathing in water in which a corpse resides risks infection with numerous blood borne diseases (notably hepatitis) and many infections.

Bob_the_Saver

So you'll be going back to India within 2 months after leaving the country - on a tourist visa?
Assuming you get permission to do that (possible, I've done it) you have to register
with the police when you get back to India and get the papers to allow you to leave the country again. this can take a number of days.
Finding where to do it and the queue can take a couple!!!


Restrictions on Tourist Visa
This is for information that there should be a gap of at least 2 months between two visits to India on a Tourist Visa. This stipulation of two months gap does not apply on any other type of visa, i.e. Business (B) or Entry (X) types of visas. It also does not apply to PIO and OCI card holders.

In case of requirement to visit India within 2 months, permission should be sought from the High Commission of India, London or the Indian Consulates at Birmingham and Edinburgh directly without going through the outsourcing agency VFS Global (UK) Ltd. Applicant may fill up application from, one photograph, application stating reason for re-entry within two months with supporting documents/travel itinerary etc and a fee of £7/-. Where permission is accorded in such cases, registration with the local FRRO/FRO would be required within 14 days of arrival in India.

If you need to do this in a couple of days it's the thing nightmares are based on.

soil_2

Bob_the_Saver wrote: »

So you'll be going back to India within 2 months after leaving the country - on a tourist visa?

This is allowed but additional bureaucracy.

My concern is more with this:


Applications submitted in London, Birmingham and Edinburgh will take minimum 2 to 3 working days to get processed. Applications submitted in Manchester, Cardiff & Glasgow will take a minimum of 5 to 7 working days.(The same are for UK nationals only and would vary from case to case).


Applications in the following cases may take longer (minimum 7-8 weeks or more) to be processed:


Non-UK passport holders residing in the UK for less than two years. (minimum 15 working days).


Nationals or origin of Pakistan (Minimum 7-8 weeks)


Nationals of Sri Lanka, China, Bangladesh, Afghanistan (Minimum 15 working days)


Where clearance from India is mandatory.



My wife has two passports (not from one of these countries) but it would be better to apply on the non-UK passport, however they say you should apply on the UK one in this case. I however don't think they can find out that she has a UK passport but am still slightly concerned about it, also we only have 2 weeks to get the visas. It is not clear whether a non-UK national living in the UK more than 2 years is a special case or not and would take longer.

soil_2

Bob_the_Saver wrote: »

So you'll be going back to India within 2 months after leaving the country - on a tourist visa?
Assuming you get permission to do that (possible, I've done it) you have to register
with the police when you get back to India and get the papers to allow you to leave the country again. this can take a number of days.
Finding where to do it and the queue can take a couple!!!

The problem is the flights we have are SIN-BOM on one day, BOM-LHR the next, so we really need to stop over, albeit only for 2 nights.

We don't however fancy spending that time trying to get permission to leave again.

jamsandwiches

I know someone who did not get permission to leave thinking nobody would notice - her first flight to Mumbai (internal) was not a problem but when she got to Mumbai they sent her back to get the permission which was only a stamp at the local police station.

Bob_the_Saver

soil wrote: »

The problem is the flights we have are SIN-BOM on one day, BOM-LHR the next, so we really need to stop over, albeit only for 2 nights.

We don't however fancy spending that time trying to get permission to leave again.

Getting out of even my experience here but my guess is on the same visa your f**ked, :eek: but I stand to be corrected.
I don't know how you would stand getting a NEW transit visa for India in Singapore. (Very helpful Indian High Commission in Singapore)

Who are you flying with?

Bob_the_Saver

jamsandwiches wrote: »

I know someone who did not get permission to leave thinking nobody would notice - her first flight to Mumbai (internal) was not a problem but when she got to Mumbai they sent her back to get the permission which was only a stamp at the local police station.

Yes, but it's the paperwork and waiting to get that stamp.

Bob_the_Saver

If your booked with the same airline from Singapore to India and then on to London I would seriously consider changing your flight (I know it will cost you) and then checking the bags through to London and going through Mumbai as a Transit passenger (air-side so no visa needed).
Mumbai can wait for another day.