Visa on Arrival in India for New Zealanders – DON’T DO IT!
Ok .. a quick post which will be of interest to only a very limited audience, but I think VERY useful for those that it’s relevant to.
In a nutshell, almost all visitors to India need a visa. Unlike many Western countries that have visa waver programs in place with NZ, India requires a visa to be obtained in 99% of cases, prior to your arrival in India. This means filling out a form, sending it in to the nearest Indian embassy, with your passport, and the $60 US equivalent and then waiting a few weeks for it to be sent back.
Luckily (or so I thought) New Zealander’s get a special exemption, being one of five countries that are allowed to obtain Visa on Arrival. Cool I thought – I will just do that.
Ummm, no, not quite. In a nutshell: DON’T DO IT and here’s why:
- It may be a visa on arrival, but its not an INSTANT via on arrival. It took 3 hours (and this was at 2am when only one other person was applying)
- Its quite a new thing from what I can tell. Signs are so limited at Immigration, and few staff know about it in India, so you end up queuing 3 times before you even get to the right place
- You still need two colour photos, proof of address etc, all the things you need for a normal visa – so all you are doing is putting off what you COULD have done prior to arrival, but are now doing them when you arrive – and anyone who has been to India will know they work at their own pace.
- Most visas are more of an admin thing – but this is a full on interview (by 3 diff people), and then 5 diff staff filling our forms (by hand) while you wait .. and wait.
- Did I mention it takes ages?
So yes, it works, but no, don’t do it. Be organised and apply for a visa to India before you go. (full info on Indian visas on this page) The only exception would be if you want to pop over to India on short notice – I guess it’s handy being a Kiwi then!
Black and White Version: Visa on Arrival for Kiwis entering India does work, but is so slow you are FAR better off applying for a visa the normal way.
This entry was posted by Richard on 28/01/2011 at 9:59 am, and is filed under Travel. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0.You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.
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Darren – have a look on the actual form, the basically went over that in LOTS of detail.
I know they also grilled the guy who was next in line from me as well – he was a kiwi too, but had family from India. They asked LOTS about why I was visiting India, where I was saying (they wanted an address etc), how I would pay for thing etc. Also lost of questions about Pakistan (did I know people from there, would I visit there etc).
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Hi,
Just wanted to add our experiences of getting a VOA for India just over a month ago as it was soooo hard to find info before we went! We flew into New Delhi where the singage at the new airport is good and so the desk you need is easy to find. The short of it is that we actually found it really easy and straight forward (for India) and it took about half an hour for both me and my husband. The biggest hold-up was that there were no scissors to cut out our photos and the guys at the desk ended up doing a lot of folding and very careful tearing!
We did however have everything we needed (photos, proof of onward travel US cash to pay etc) plus possible extras which we didn’t end up needing (booking confirmation from a hotel for the first night, copies of bank statements etc). The another woman being processed at the same time didn’t have proof of her tickets home (as they were booked online) and was having a total nightmare.
It did look for a moment like we were going to have to queue again to get out past immigration, but then we remembered we were in India and cheerfully and authoritatively walked through the ‘special’ line for diplomats and air crew…
So for us it was great, cheaper, quicker and we could have our passports right up untill we left.-
Alison
Thanks for the update and wow – that’s not bad. An hour and a half for India, speedy!
When I looked into it it was the same price as getting a Visa in NZ, hence my advice to get one b4 you leave (no hassle, and same $).
Agreed re having all docs etc – they wanted proof of my hotel etc, and return flights (which of course with an E-ticket one often doesn’t have unless you choose to print it out).
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#5 written by David Quinney 9 years ago
I think this is a lot easier now, I was in Delhi a few weeks back and the visa on arrival only took 30 mins! I had all my paperwork in order as well. Its also cheaper to get the visa on arrival than back in New Zealand as well, from memory it costs $100 back home, but the visa on arrival only cost $50. As long as you have proof of where you are staying, passport photos, and outbound tickets this should be completely hassle free.
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#7 written by Jenny 9 years ago
I say don’t ever enter Mombai without a visa….I was grilled for 3 hours …had all the required info after reading visa requirements but jammed over a paper required to say I was staying in a hotel…Hotel verified but at 3am did not have fax going and so delayed getting my visa… A frightening and bad experience….told by friends here I should have offered money to ‘hasten ‘ the process.
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#8 written by Rahul R. 9 years ago
Hi there, I was born in India but became a New Zealand Citizen, thus losing out on an ‘Indian visa.’ Having double checked with the Indian embassy (Wellington) several times about the visa on arrival, I felt confident about landing in Mumbai at approx 1-2am. According to several sources including the Indian Government, Embassy and contact centres, the VOA is supposed to be quick and painless as it encourages travelers to have a stop over in ‘incredible India.’
This was NOT the case, I had to line up 3 times in 3 different lines, until I said I am not moving until I got someone to come and personally help me, i.e. who knew what they were doing. This occured in early January 2011. I believe they had only introduced the VOA scheme a few months prior and so no one knew what they were doing.
A total of 2-3 hours was wasted, with another Kiwi (pakeha bloke, new to the country, who couldn’t understand Hindi) waiting in lines, then waiting for an officer to find the right form, do the questioning, and finally wait in the police station while over-hearing reports of bribery and corruption. What was worse still was the nonchalant attitude of the POlice, saying you must be mistaken.
Reflecting on the situation now, makes it seem like a joke, the incompetence of the officials, the unprofessionalism of the staff and the overall bad attitude of the rubber stampers has left a sour taste in my mouth. If India really wants VOA to work its officials need to go to Hong Kong and see the efficiency of their process.
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#10 written by Tudor 8 years ago
Hi, Update on this – I used the VOA in Calcutta in November 2011. The guy asked where my visa was – I said I want a VOA. He asked me what that was. I said its the thing that is listed on the sign above his head. He got up and came around the desk and was genuinely amazed that the sign above him said ‘Visa on Arrival’. Took over an hour etc.. Anyway. Delhi this year – dedicated counter, guys were cool. I didnt have an onward ticket so they write the ticket I think I will have. So i did that. Then they had me sign the paper, then they said I was a liar as I didnt have a ticket. I said, yeah but you told me to write that. I didn’t know if they were fukin with me or what. Anyway they let me in. Main advice as others note – Have printed confirmation of next flight, hotel, and your photos ready and you should be fine.
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#12 written by Richard 8 years ago
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#14 written by Sara 8 years ago
Hi, Im thinking of visiting India in November, I have a friend who lives in Mumbai which is where i will be flying in to.
I am currently living in europe so i though it would be impossible to get a visa unless I went back home, but i found out about the VOA.
Can anyone give me advice about getting a VOA in Mumbai and what I need to take etc.
Thanks -
Hi,
I seriously suggest you get your Visa before you go.I am from India and now a NZ citizen.I know how that system works.Get all your papers,photos,photo copy of bookings e,t,c.
I am sorry for you guys and I wish India wouldnt treat its genuine visitors this way.
Now you know why I chose to immigrate to NZ.To get away from the “System”! -
#16 written by Jessica 7 years ago
How long does the VOA last? Is it only 30 days? Different websites say different things and I’m getting quite confused! Im doing 4 months in se asia first so if I get a tourist visa before I leave, will I only have 2months left on my visa? Ive read you can get a year visa, is that at the hi commisions discretion though? Please help, I’m terribly confused :/
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hi there, I’m thinking of getting visa on arrival in india.
do you remember what sort of questions they ask you at the interview?