To come to many countries, in addition to a foreign international passport, you should get a special visa. This is a document that entitles a person who is not a citizen of a certain state, legally enter this land and stay there for a certain amount of time. This type of permit is used all over the world, but there are exceptions – countries that have entered into special accords among themselves, and subjects of these countries can travel around these countries only with ID. But this is practiced only by countries in a certain region, for example, a visa is not needed between some European countries, as well as for Americans, and for citizens of other countries. These agreements are made to facilitate tourism and the movement of citizens between certain countries. But even here, in order to work, you will need a special visa, and the visa-free regime is only for tourists. Visas are issued by special authorized institutions.
What are the types of visas?
There are many types of entry papers, for different periods of stay in the country or for the implementation of any activity of a foreigner in the country. For example, if you found jobs in Dubai on the Layboard website and you are going to work there, you will need a work visa, and in some cases, depending on the country, a visa for a specific type of activity. There is even such a type of visa as a transit visa, just for traveling through the territory controlled by the country. In order to find out what kind of visa you need in accordance with the purposes of your trip and the country of destination, I advise you to find out in advance what kind of entry papers you need, how to get it and where it can be done, and how long it will take. For example, in the UAE, tourists are issued a free visa upon arrival at the airport near a special counter, and such a visa will be valid for 30 days. But to work in the UAE, you need to obtain a visa according to a completely different procedure.
About all visas for India
As in other countries, for different periods of stay in the country, different types of entry papers are needed. For example, short-term visas that are valid from 30 to 90 days of stay are issued electronically and cost a certain amount of money. Other, more specific categories of permits are issued for those who are traveling to the country for a long stay, such as a student visa, permit for foreign workers, a sailor’s visa, and an accompanying person visa for relatives on long trips. All these types of documents are processed at the Indian Embassy in your country. And this document is mandatory in order to legally stay in the country without problems. But if the tourist has already received entry papers , was in the country and left India less than three months ago, the mission may refuse to obtain another visa.
In order to obtain a visa to India, you will need to collect some documents and submit them to the Indian Consulate. A similar list of documents is required to obtain:
- Passport issued in your country;
- A completed visa application form, which you can find on the embassy website or can be issued to you at the embassy itself;
- A photo of 3.5×4 cm in size. One of them must be glued to the questionnaire if it is paper, or uploaded to the desired document while filling out on a computer;
- If the trip is led by a travel company, then you must receive a special voucher of the company, as well as confirmation of the preliminary hotel reservation;
- If you are traveling to India as a tourist on your own, then you must provide the fact of hotel reservation, as well as the availability of round-trip tickets;
- If you are going to work there, then you definitely need an invitation from India in a free form, which must indicate why you are going to India, and explain the need for a visit right now. Also, all your passport data as an applicant should be indicated there.
- If you are going to work for a company, along with the invitation, the Indian employer is required to provide a registration certificate and a taxpayer certificate, as well as a copy of the first page of the passport of the employee who issued and signed these invitations.
- For those who receive a work visa, they also need a certificate from the last place of work, which will indicate your salary for the last six months (for private entrepreneurs – a registration certificate and salary reports for a period of 3 months)
- If you are traveling as a tourist and not as an employee, then salary certificates and a bank account statement are not needed to apply for a tourist visa;
- Copy of the applicant’s internal passport for a visa
All documents that you will submit to the embassy must be provided in English. Therefore, before submitting documents, be sure to translate your documents into the official language, and also certify them with authorities that have such competence. Also, in order to speed up and simplify obtaining a visa, an Indian company must submit your and its data to the embassy, so that they already know that there is a certain person who wants to work in such and such a place.
Can I come to India without a visa?
Yes, but only if you are a citizen of those 3 countries (Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal) that can do this. Citizens of another 11 “chosen”countries can apply for a visa directly at the airport upon arrival. But these are small countries (with the exception of New Zealand and Japan) and states that have entered into special agreements. Most countries have not done this, so most people will have to apply for a visa anyway. In general, it is surprising that India has such a complex visa system, and a lot of entry features, since it is a fairly popular country for both tourists and workers.
Do I need to get visa if I am passing through India?
In order to be in India on transit, you do not need to apply for a visa, but at the same time, you will not be able to leave the transit zone while in India. But if your transit journey takes not a few hours but a couple of days, then you need to apply for a special transit visa. It is valid for 15 days from the date of issue, and it is needed for a stop period of no more than 3 days.
Do children need a visa?
If your child is not a citizen of India, then you definitely need to apply for entry papers, like an adult for them. All citizens of other countries are required to have a permit to enter, regardless of their age.