South Asia

The process in Kandy isn’t difficult but need some patience and some extra rupees due the bureaucracy and rigid rules.

The Indian Visa Services in Kandy (IVS) is almost empty all the time, so you don0t need to wait for a long for your turn. The IVS is also easy and cheap to reach by local bus.

Documents:

• Passport (valid for 6 months and at least two blank pages)
• Copy of passport
• Copy of Sri Lanka visa page
• Reference Form, aka FAX
• 3 photos (not just 2 like everywhere else)
• fee: 6172 LKR

Some observations:

• The Reference Form or FAX Form, can be downloaded from the official page of IVS (http://ivsvisalanka.com/ForeignPassport.aspx). Although this form is not accepted by the Kandy services and you must buy a new one (with the same information but in a different format) inside de IVS (40 LKR);
• You can fill the form on line, but probably the officers will find some mistake and make you fill another one. If you don’t want to fill the form again and come back in the next day you can go to one of the nearby agencies that do it for you (350 LKR)… that’s why you need 3 photos, because this guys can’t upload your photo. Inside the IVS, behind a photocopy machine there’s also a man that can do it (250 LKR)

Anyway, some tips that can be useful for you to fill the form:

• If you have been in India before you must have a copy of the last visa, and mention that in the on-line form.
• If you don’t have a previous visa stamp in the current passport, just say NO when you fill the form on line.
• If you want to apply for 6 months visa with multiple entries you must write “all ports” in the field “port of arrival” and “port of exit”.

After you have all the paper, the process at the IVS doesn’t take more than 10 minutes.

The approval process takes 5 working days. Meanwhile you keep your passport with you.

Then on the 6^th day (or later) you need to submit your passport at 9 am.

In the same day you can pick it at 4 pm.

Usually, if you already have a visa in your passport, probably you can only get a 3 months visa if you apply in a foreigner country. In your country you cam always get the 6 months with multiply entries. Anyway, this is no a official rule, just a knowledge get by my experience and information shared with other travellers.

Address:

No. 675,
William Gopallawa Mawatha,
Kandy.
Email: infokandy@ivsglobal.in

Submission Time: 8:30 am to 2:00 pm
Collection Time: 16:00 to 17:00
Website:  http://www.ivsvisalanka.com

How to go to IVS in Kandy:

Form the bus terminal close to Clock Tower, ask for a bus that go to Peradeniya Road.

And ask to get out at the “India visa” or at the “Amaya Channel Center” that are at the same place.

Bus ticket: 12 LKR

At least since December 2015 that is not possible to get an Indian Tourist visa is Malaysia, as also in Thailand.

At the IVS /Indian visa Services) in Kuala Lumpur you can apply for visa, give all the documentation, fill a form as non-resident, make the payment and anyone will tell you that the India Embassy in Malaysia in not longer giving tourist visa to non-Malaysia Resident for more than two years. The only things that they ask is you to sign a paper that you agree to the submission of your application to the High Commission, don’t tell nothing about the meaning of this.

Later you’ll find that there is 99% of chances that you application is refused, and no way to have you money back.

The IVS staff in Kuala Lumpur is extremely impolite and totally incompetent to provide proper and clear information.

The only option if you are in one of this countries (Malaysia or Thailand), is to apply for 1 month e-visa if you are citizen of one of the 133 eligible counties:

Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Island, Chile, China, China- SAR Hongkong, China- SAR Macau, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niue Island, Norway, Oman, Palau, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Macedonia, Russia, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Samoa, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Turks & Caicos Island, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vatican City-Holy See, Venezuela, Vietnam.

https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/tvoa.html

Apply for Indian Visa in Thailand

Since October 2015, it is no longer possible for a non-Thailand residents to get a Indian Tourist visas in Bangkok or any other city.

Indian Tourist Visa is only given to Thai residents.

Check update info at: http://www.travelfish.org/orientation_detail/thailand/bangkok_and_surrounds/bangkok/bangkok/138

The only option is to apply for 1 month e-visa if you are citizen of one of the 133 eligible counties:

Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Island, Chile, China, China- SAR Hongkong, China- SAR Macau, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niue Island, Norway, Oman, Palau, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Macedonia, Russia, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Samoa, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Turks & Caicos Island, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vatican City-Holy See, Venezuela, Vietnam.

https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/tvoa.html

(this post is from June 2015. Please, always check the mentioned website for more update information)

India recently introduced the system ‘visa on arrival’ to the following countries:

Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Island,Chile, China, China- SAR Hongkong, China- SAR Macau, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niue Island, Norway, Oman, Palau, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Macedonia, Russia, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Samoa, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Turks & Caicos Island, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vatican City-Holy See, Venezuela, Vietnam.

• the “visa on arrival” is valid only for 30 days; with a single entry;
• “visa on arrival’ is only available in the following airports: Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Trivandrum;
• at land borders need to apply visa before entering the country;
• this “visa on arrival” can not be extended;
• this is valid only for Tourist Visa!

If your country is not in the list above (witch probably isn’t) you must have to apply your visa in an diplomatic service (embassy or consulate) in your country or in any other Indian diplomatic representation that more or less are all over the world.

Note that if you apply the visa in your country, you’ll probably get a 6 months visa… in other counties many times just give 3 months visa. Anyway, if in your passport you still don’t have any Indian visa, probably you’ll get the 6 months, even if you ask it in other country.

The proximity and geographical position that allows access by land (not a easy journey!) or a an hour by plane, Nepal is a country often chosen for those who are in India and plans to extend their stay, what commonly is called “to extend the visa”

This requires use of the services of the Embassy of India in Kathmandu: a process that is not difficult but requires some patience, documentation and take about five working days.

Necessary documents:

• application form that you can find on the website of the immigration service, which must be filled online and submitted to the immigration services; do this at least one day before going to the embassy;
• 1 photography with 2 x 2 cm size, in color, with white background; other formats will not be accepted;
• copy of passport (identification page);
• copy of the last Indian visa (if applicable) including pages with entry and exit stamps;
• copy Nepalese visa;
• note that in the online form the ‘current address’ field must be filled with the address of the hotel or guesthouse in Kathmandu.

The visa application is processed in three steps:

1. Go to the embassy with all this documents on mentioned schedule (9 am – 12 pm). Once inside, grab a ticket from the machine and wait until your number is called; after present your documents and pay the fee you’ll get a receipt with a date and time stamp to submit your passport.
2. On the second visit (usually 5 business days after the delivery of documents), the passport must be delivered in the services, accompanied by the proof of payment;
3. On the third visit, usually one working day after, the passport is returned in the afternoon hours (5 pm to 5:30 pm) with your visa.

Duration:

The duration of the visa depends on the number of previous visits:

• in the case of the first visa application (or at least the first of this passport) the visa is 6 months with multiple entries;
• people with other Indian visas in their passports only got 3 months, regardless of what they applied for, and valid only for a single entry.
• However there are situations where, for no apparent reason, only one or two months of visa

Costs:

• Whatever the visa issued, 3 or 6 months, the fee is always the same: 4990 NPR (Nepali rupees). Visa fees.

It should reach the embassy early morning, even before the opening of doors, for by 9 am there is already a considerable line of people. If you arrive about 7am you have a good chance to be one of the first of the line. After the door open, by a friendly Nepali guard, take a ticket from the machine and just wait…. depending on the number of people but may take about 2 hours.

This is a good opportunity to interact with other foreigners and share experiences… there’s lot’s of peoples here with a long and vast experience in Indian visas.

After the delivery of the documents in the first counter, left side window, move to the next window immediately to the right to make the payment, where we are given a receipt of payment where is stamped the date and time of the second visit to submit your passport.

If for some reason the visa is not refused, the amount paid will not be refunded.

In the absence of any of the documents required visa application will not be accepted. If you need a last minute copy or printing, there’ s a shop that also take photos, just before the embassy that practice reasonable prices.

It is advisable not to buy bus or plane tickets before you overtake this bureaucratic process: is unpredictable and may take longer than expected without apparent reasons.

Previously there was a rule that was necessary to wait two months to apply for a new Indian visa, but now this already changed and now you can ask new visa just after arrival in Nepal.

Address of Indian Embassy in Kathmandu

336, Kapurdhara Marg, Lainchaur

Kathmandu, Nepal

Near British Embassy – British Council. It’s a reasonable walking distance from Thamel and not that far from Basantapur Square.

Telephone: 977-1-4410900 / 4414990/4411699

(24×7, Emergency Contact Number) – 977-1-4423702

Mob. no. 9851107021 (24×7)

Fax No: 977-1-4428279

Site: www.indianembassy.org.np

email: visa.india@nsbi.com.np

Working hours (for visa):

For visa: Monday – Friday – 9:30 to 12:00

For general info: Monday – Friday – 9:00 to 17:30

Close on Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays

Online visa application form:

https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/index.html