India visa holders must now wait two months before returning to India?

Official notification from MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) / MEA (CPO):

As per the extant instructions of the Government of India, 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, sight seeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives etc. No other =activity is permissible on a Tourist Visa. The Tourist Visa is non-extendable and nonconvertible.

It has come to the notice of the Government that there has been abuse/misuse of the Tourist Visa. With a view to curb the abuse/misuse of the Tourist Visa, instructions have been issued by the Government imposing the following restrictions:

(a) In respect of foreign nationals holding Tourist Visas with multiple entry facility, there
should be a gap of at least 2 months between two visits to the country on such a Tourist
Visa.
(b) If any foreign national is required to visit the country again within a period of 2 months of
his last departure, such foreign national should obtain special permission from the
Mission/Post concerned. The Mission/Post may consider such requests on merits of each
case.
(c) In all such cases, the foreign national should register himself with the FRRO/FRO
concerned within 14 days of arrival. An endorsement to this effect will be made on the
visa sticker.
(d) If a foreign national applies for Tourist Visa frequently i.e within one month of expiry of
the previous Tourist Visa, the Indian Missions/Posts abroad would refer such cases to
MHA (Foreigners Division) for clearance before grant of fresh Tourist visa.
Frequently asked questions with regard to the above issues and replies thereto are outlined
below for information, guidance and compliance of all concerned:

Q.1: Whether the gap of two months between two visits would apply to all Tourist Visa holders ?
Ans. : The gap of two months between two visits would apply to all Tourist Visa holders.

Q.2 : Whether the gap of two months between two visits would apply irrespective of the duration
of stay in India during the previous visit ?

Ans.: The intention behind the stipulation of a gap of two months between two visits on a Tourist Visa is to curb the abuse/misuse of the Tourist Visa. With a view to ensure that the genuine tourists are not affected by the recent guidelines, the following clarifications are furnished:
(I) Foreigners holding Tourist Visas, who after initial entry into India plan to visit
another country largely on account of neighbourhood tourism related travel and reenter
India before finally exiting, may be permitted two or three entries, as the
case may be (need based), by the Indian Missions/Posts subject to their submission
of a detailed itinerary and supporting documentation (ticket bookings). If they are
already outside of their country of origin, they can also get such an endorsement
from the nearest Indian Mission/Post.
(II) The Immigration authorities in all the Immigration Check Posts may also allow
such foreign nationals on Tourist Visas arriving in India without the specific
authorization from the Indian Missions/Posts to make two or three entries into the
country (need based) subject to production of an itinerary and supporting
documentation (ticket bookings).
(III) The total period of stay in the country counted from the date of first entry into the
country shall not exceed the stay stipulation period of 180 days or 90 days, as the
case may be.
(IV) Once such a foreign national finally exits the country after availing the facility of
two or three entries (within the stay stipulation period of 180 days or 90 days as
the case may be), there should be a gap of at least 2 months before he/she can
come again to the country.
(V) If any foreign national falling in the category as mentioned in sub-para (IV) above
is required to visit India again within a period of 2 months after his/her last
departure, such foreign national should obtain special permission from the
Mission/Post. Such re-entry within the stipulated gap of two months may be
permitted only in emergent situations like death/serious illness in the family, nonavailability
of connecting flights to return to his/her country of origin or travel to
another country or any other exigent situation which can be duly justified with
proper documentation to the satisfaction of the Mission/ Post granting the
permission. The Mission/Post will have to examine each case on merits before
grant of requisite permission subject to the following conditions:-
(a) The applicant should furnish an undertaking on the following lines:-
(i) That the purpose of his/her visit is because of emergency situation.
(ii) That he is not engaged in Business activities, nor in Employment or
pursuing studies/research etc.
(b) In all such cases i.e. those covered by sub-para V above, the foreign national
should register himself with the FRRO/FRO concerned within 14 days of
arrival. This registration may be done with the FRRO/FRO concerned
preferably at the first place of entry. An endorsement to this effect will be
made on the visa sticker.
(VI) If a foreign national applies for Tourist Visa frequently i.e. within one month of
expiry of the previous Tourist Visa, the Indian Missions/Posts abroad should
scrutinise the application thoroughly and refer such cases to MHA (Foreigners
Division) for clearance before grant of fresh Tourist visa.
Q.3: Whether the permission for the second visit within the period of 2 months in respect of
foreign nationals falling in the category mentioned in sub para (V) in reply to Question (2) can
be granted by the Posts?
Ans.: Yes.
Q.4: Whether the Mission/Post in any country can grant permission for the second visit within
the period of 2 months in respect of foreign nationals falling in the category mentioned in sub
para (V) in reply to Question (2) or whether this can be granted only by the Mission/Post in the
country of origin of the applicant.
Ans.: The requisite permission can be granted by the Mission/Post in any country on merits of
each case and subject to the conditions mentioned in sub-para (V) in reply to Question (2) above.
Intimation about the grant of permission may be furnished to the Ministry of Home Affairs
(Foreigners Division) and to the Mission/Post from where the original Visa was issued.
Q.5: Whether the requirement of reference to the Ministry of Home Affairs in respect of those
foreign nationals who apply for Tourist Visa within one month of expiry of the previous Tourist
Visa would apply in respect of nationals of all countries?
Ans.: Yes.
Q.6: Are there any standard guidelines for the Indian Missions/Posts to decide the requests for reentry
within the stipulated gap of two months?
Ans.: The re-entry within the stipulated gap of two months, as mentioned in sub para (V) in reply
to Question (2), may be permitted only in emergent situations like death/serious illness in the
family, non-availability of connecting flights to return to his/her country of origin or travel to
another country or any other exigent situation which can be duly justified with proper
documentation to the satisfaction of the Mission/Post granting the permission. The Mission/Post
will have to examine each case on merits before grant of requisite permission.
Q.7: In cases mentioned in sub para (V) in reply to Question 2, where will the foreigner register
himself?
Ans.: The registration should be done with the FRRO/FRO concerned preferably at the first place
of visit on re-entry.
Q.8: If a tourist’s passport is not stamped to indicate no re-entry within two months, can the
tourist assume that he will be allowed to re-enter India within two months?
Ans.: No. Even if the tourist’s passport is not stamped, the restrictions as laid down will be
applicable.
Q.9 Whether the restriction of two months gap for re-entering India is applicable to PIO/OCI
card holders and foreigners holding business, employment, student and other categories of visa?
Ans.: No. The two months gap is applicable only to Tourist Visa holders.
Q.10 Whether any fee is required to be charged for making the requisite endorsement on the
Passport.
Ans.: Miscellaneous Consular Service fee may be charged for making an endorsement.
Q.11 : How will medical tourists who return regularly to India for onward treatment be handled?
Ans.: For persons coming for medical treatment, there is a separate category of Medical Visa.
Foreign nationals coming for medical treatment will have to come only on Medical Visa and not
on Tourist Visa.
Q.12: How will the family members of diplomatic households who do not qualify for diplomatic
visas (e.g. older children or domestic partners) be handled?
Ans.: The family members of diplomatic households who do not qualify for diplomatic visas may
have to come on an ‘Entry(X)’ Visa if eligible. If they come on Tourist Visa, the restrictions as
laid down will be applicable.
Q.13: How will individuals who come to India to volunteer for various charity organizations be
treated? Many of them travel around the region while volunteering in India for extended periods
on tourist visas.
Ans.: Tourist Visa is not the appropriate visa in such cases. A person coming for voluntary work
can apply for ‘Entry (X)’ Visa. Reply to this

My reading of this is that you can return before two months - up to three times - before they make your life really miserable.

You just need to have a good reason and preferably an itinerary - "subject to their submission
of a detailed itinerary and supporting documentation (ticket bookings)" are the relevant words.

Don't give up. This is India. It's always like this but there's always a way around things.

John Reply to this

Actually, most countries have a restriction similar to this. What they are trying to do is prevent people using a tourist visa as a way of avoiding getting a working visa by leaving the country and re-entering each month or so.

This is why they ask for an itinerary and/or travel documentation which will prove that you are really a tourist. A hotel booking and a ticket out of the country is usually enough. It doesn't have to be a plane ticket, a train/bus/whatever will do as long as it has a date on it. You don't even have to stay in the hotel or take the plane. you can always cancel the booking once you are back in India. (I am not suggesting you do this but you could if you wanted to and no-one would be any the wiser.)

Of course, a large and subtle bribe will achieve the same but can be a bit more risky.

John. Reply to this

hahaha, Thomas that made me laugh as I know the stress of planning something and then coming up against things like this!! I am sure you gonna be just fine......John thanks for your words! They too are making me more hopeful! Thomas please let me know how you get on as I had to go to the doctors today and could not get to the high comission on time!!! I am wanting to book my ticket as the prices are rising but I cant do that before I know if I will be granted re entry!! It is so confusing as to what to do!!! Reply to this

hey! well yours is way more complex in the way of travel than myself....Nope I am just wanting to head back to Kerala 9 got back just a week ago and want to go again 20th March for a few weeks ) no travelling around ( did my backpacking of India two years ago and not really recovered yet!! hehe ) so, well I guess there looks like a better solution for you as you can let them know BEFORE you head to India of your plan where as I have exited and then made a new plan to re enter..... I am going to to tomorrow to the high comission armed with my forms ( begging forms!) however they state that it must be an emergency....I am not getting my hopes up! I am planning to rent a house there from Sep for six months...now that WILL be fun trying to arrange if all of these regulations are still in place!!! Reply to this

Me either!!! And also I now saw on the website that the visas are taking almost 14 working days to process and I can't get a clear answer as to if this is for first time applications or applies to requests for re entry!! IT GETS WORSE!! Did you mention a stiff drink! I need one.... Reply to this

I finally gave up and didn't make it to Nepal. We applied to India before this new rule went into effect but it doesn't seem to make any difference. We met some girls we crossed from Varanasi who learned about this new rule the day before they left. Because they crossed at 4am they were able to bribe the guy 500 ruppees each to have him not stamp their passport with the dreaded: "Not allowed back into India for 2 months" stamp. Scr*w Inida. I'm never going back Reply to this

Well I made it in the end, and found that the whole thing is a total farce and I didnt need some emergency reason...It did not make me give up, I love India and I felt it was worth it to fight but I understad why others may have given in....However I heard the rule is going to be abandonded very soon...Cheers to that! Reply to this

that's a wierd rule, i do not know, what make them do this... Reply to this

Hi Rachel,

I have a friend from the U.S. who recently came to India for a vacation. He was in India a few weeks, then he wanted to go to Nepal for a couple of weeks, then return to India.

When he was leaving India to go to Nepal, he asked the immigration officer at the Delhi airport what he needed to do to come back to India after his trip to Nepal. They said there was no problem, nothing he needed to do and to just come back.

So, that is what he did. When he came back to Delhi and went through immigration, the officer said that he had not followed the proper procedure and that he would have to go to the Foreign Office in Delhi to (I believe) register with them and get their permission to re-enter and stay in India -- because he currently was in violation of India visa laws, etc.

Therefore, my friend went to the Foreign Office in Delhi and filled out all their forms, waited to be interviewed and processed, etc. Fortunately he had a Indian friend who went with him who spoke Hindi, who could help him understand all the things he needed to do. My friend said if you filled out the form incorrectly, you had to start the process all over again.

My friend did not tell me all the details of what he had to do, but he ended-up having to go to the Foreign Office in Delhi for 3 days in a row before he finally got everything done, which he was required to do, to be in good graces with the Foreign Office and be able to stay in India for a while longer.

Each port of entry in India, as well as each immigration officer, could interpret this new visa law differently, so it is hard to know exactly what will happen, when you re-enter India.

My guess is that if you just come back into India and explain your situation, they will tell you what you need to do to enter India again. You may have to go to the nearest Foreign Office and register, etc. -- just like my friend did.

The other thing you could do is go to an Indian embassy or consulate outside of India and ask them what you need to do to come to India without a problem.

However, I would recommend not trying to give the immigration officer on entry any baksheesh, as it could back fire and perhaps get you in trouble - especially if it is a major port like Mumbai, Delhi, etc. If you were crossing the border by land at night, and it was a small immigration station, you might get away with it. But, you never know how the next immigration officer is going to interpret what you did, and you may get in trouble later for not following their procedures.

Anyway, I hope the above is helpful.

Good luck Reply to this