India Guide
Entry requirements
Gone are the days when Commonwealth nationals could stroll visa-less into India and stay for as long as they pleased: today, everyone except citizens of Nepal and Bhutan needs a visa.
If you're going to India on business or to study, you'll need to apply for a special student or business visa; otherwise, a standard tourist visa will suffice. These are valid for six months from the date of issue (not of departure from your home country or entry into India) and cost £30/US$60/CDN$62/A$75/NZ$90. Single-entry and multiple-entry visas cost the same, so ask for the latter, just in case you decide to make a side trip to Nepal or another neighbouring country.
Much the best place to get a visa is in your country of residence; you should be able to download forms from the embassy and consulate websites. In Britain and North America, you'll need a passport valid for at least six months, two passport photographs and an application form, obtainable in advance by post or on the day; address applications to the Postal Visa Section of the consulate in question. In Australia and New Zealand, one passport-sized photo and your flight/travel itinerary are required, together with the visa application form. As a rule, visas are issued in a matter of hours, although embassies in India's neighbouring countries often drag their feet, demand letters of recommendation from your embassy (expensive if you are, for example, British), or make you wait and pay for them to send your application to Delhi. In the US, postal applications take a month as opposed to a same-day service if you do it in person – check with your nearest embassy, high commission or consulate. Make sure that your visa is signed by someone at the embassy, as you may be refused entry into the country otherwise.
Wherever you intend to get your visa, bear in mind that your nearest High Commission, Embassy or Consulate will observe Indian public holidays (as well as most of the local ones), and that it might therefore be closed. Always check opening hours in advance by phone, or via the website, beforehand.
In many countries it's possible to pay a visa agency (or "visa expediter") to process the visa on your behalf. This is worth considering if you're not able to get to your nearest Indian High Commission, embassy or consulate yourself, or simply can't be bothered to deal with the frequently long queues. In the UK, expediters charge from as little as £15 up to £50, plus the price of the visa; prices in the US run from around $45 up to more than $180. Two working weeks is about standard, but you can get a visa in as little as 24 hours if you're prepared to pay premium rates.
It is no longer possible to extend a visa, though exceptions may be made in special circumstances. Most people whose standard six-month tourist visas are about to expire head for Bangkok or neighbouring capitals such as Colombo in Sri Lanka or Kathmandu in Nepal, and apply for a new one.