On 27 November 2014, India introduced a visa facility whereby travellers from eligible countries could obtain a visa to visit India online rather than having to visit the Indian embassy to obtain the same. Known as the e-tourist visa (eTV) policy, it is extended to travellers from 150 countries with a fee structure ranging from USD 0 to USD 60 and reduced bank charges to 2.5 percent of the e-tourist visa.
Since operation, the policy has recorded impressive results. The absolute number of e-tourist visas issued has gone up from 14,083 in December 2014 to 115,677 in March 2016. Moreover, the share of travellers that obtained an e-tourist visa in the total foreign tourist arrivals (TFTAs) has gone up from 1.61 percent in December 2014 to 14.16 percent in March 2015.
Yet, the success of the policy remains dubious — month on month growth rate of e-tourist visas issued has been volatile averaging at only 19 percent over the 16 month period. Moreover, the average share of e-tourist visas in the TFTAs continues to be a very small share — on an average, only 6 percent of travellers to India for the period December 2014 through March 2016 opt for an eTV while the remaining 94 percent avail their tourist visa at the Indian embassy.
In a forthcoming policy brief
This discrepancy raises the question if eTV travellers can engage in activities such as 'short duration medical treatment or casual business visit' without being held up for visa violations. Moreover, the scheme does not specify what qualifies for short duration medical treatment or casual business visit. In comparison, the Sri Lankan government clearly specifies the business activities that holders of Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) can undertake.
Given the above shortcomings, I provide the following recommendations:
1. If the objective is to issue an eTV, the government should do away with the words “..issued on arrival..”, and instead, use “after receiving your electronic tourist visa (with a visa number) on your registered email, print it out and bring it along with your valid passport when you travel to India. The email print will then be exchanged for a visa stamp which will be placed in your passport at designated arrival airports in India. Designated arrival airports are those where entry through e-visa is valid.”Alternatively, the Indian government can adopt the ETA system. Accordingly, rename the existing policy to ‘visa on arrival through ETA’, make necessary changes to the online system such that travellers are provided with an ETA number which would translate to a visa on arrival at the designated port of entry in India.
Regardless, the government should provide email samples on the official website which include details of the status, approved or rejected, either of the e-tourist visa application or the ETA application.
2. If the objective is to encourage short duration medical treatment or casual business visit, it is essential to rename the ‘e-tourist visa’ to ‘e-visa’.However, if the government is keen on continuing with the name, ‘e-tourist visa’, then it should reduce the scope of activities to ‘recreation, sight-seeing, and casual visit to meet friends or relatives’ so that it does not stand in violation with the ‘Frequently asked questions relating to tourist visa’ available on the Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs. Moreover, the government should update the ‘Frequently asked questions relating to tourist visa’ available on the Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs, with necessary information such that it takes into account the scope of the newly introduced visa regime.
Irrespective, the government should provide details of the activities travellers can undertake on eTV and then consolidates them into broader groups. These groups should be in alignment with the policy’s objective. Therefore, travellers, before starting the application, should be provided with three options:
India’s attempt at reforming visa regimes is to be laudable. Nevertheless, the policy needs to be closely examined and fine tuned. The lessons of the Indian visa liberalisation reforms seem to be well worth considering elsewhere. Facilitating the movement of people is not only important for the ever-expanding tourism industry, but also, for economies in general especially in an era of globalisation and international value chains.
‘India’s share in Foreign Tourist Arrivals’ Press Information Bureau, Government of India, 4 May 2016. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=144794.
< style="color: #000000">Dr. Natasha Agarwal is a research economist affiliated with the World Education Foundation (WEF). She is currently working in the area of international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI), migration, and open government data.
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Dr. Natasha Agarwal is a research economist affiliated with the World Education Foundation. Having completed her PhD in economics from the University of Nottingham Natasha ...
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