TOURIST E-VISA
Planning a holiday in India? Explore the Tourist e-Visa category, understand what information to prepare and organize the details of your visit before starting an application.
Overview
A holiday in India can take many shapes: a long route through several cities, a week on the coast, or a single destination explored slowly. Whatever shape yours takes, the Tourist e-Visa is the category generally associated with leisure travel, and understanding that association is the first step toward preparing well.
Because a visa category is tied to the purpose of a journey, it helps to be specific and honest about why you are travelling. If your plans centre on sightseeing, relaxation or exploring a new region, the tourist category is likely the one to study first. If your trip also involves work or medical care, read about the Business e-Visa and Medical e-Visa categories as well and check current guidance before you decide.
Trip planning supports good preparation. A rough itinerary, a sense of when you intend to travel and a list of the places you hope to see all make it easier to complete forms consistently. None of this replaces the current conditions, which can change, so confirm current details for your own circumstances before you apply or travel. This page offers general information to help you organise your thinking. It does not decide eligibility or promise any outcome.
Travel Purposes
A tourist trip can mean more than a classic holiday. Here are the main reasons people travel to India, explained in plain English.
Whether a particular activity fits your Tourist e-Visa depends on the conditions that apply to you. Check current conditions before you plan or apply. This page is general information, not a promise that any activity is allowed.
This is the reason most people think of first: visiting well-known sights, exploring cities, enjoying a relaxing break and discovering the many regions of India. If your trip is mainly about seeing and enjoying the country, this is the natural place to start.
Many travelers come to India to spend time with friends or relatives. A personal visit like this is a familiar reason for a trip. It helps to write down your hosts' names and the city where you will stay, so the details are ready when you prepare your information.
Short-term yoga activities, such as a retreat or a brief program, bring many people to India. Programs vary a great deal, so check whether the one you have in mind fits the conditions that apply before you book anything. If in doubt, read current guidance first and ask the organiser what the program involves.
Some travelers add a short course to their trip, such as language, music, dance, cooking or arts and crafts. These short activities are different from longer formal study, which belongs to a different visa purpose and should not be assumed to fit the Tourist e-Visa. Check the length and nature of the course against current conditions.
Certain short voluntary activities may fall within tourist purposes, but only under specific conditions. Voluntary means unpaid help, and paid work should never be assumed to be allowed. Before committing to a volunteering plan, check the details of the activity and the conditions that apply to you.
Trekking, mountaineering and other adventure trips attract many visitors. The conditions that apply to these activities may differ from those for ordinary sightseeing, so check what applies to your plan before you finalise it. Keep a note of the places and dates you intend to visit.
Document Finder
Select your reason for visiting India to see which documents to prepare.
Note: Other documents may depend on the exact activity.
Note: For ordinary trekking, no other document is listed here. Other documents may depend on the exact activity.
Compare Tourist documents with the other categories on the India e-Visa requirements page.
Preparation Checklist
Everything on this page is general preparation advice. It is not a list of confirmed mandatory requirements. Check current conditions to learn what applies to you.
Keep your passport within reach. Note your full name, passport number and dates exactly as printed, so that anything you enter matches the document. Your passport must have at least 6 months of validity remaining.
Gather details such as your date of birth, nationality and place of residence. If your name appears differently in different records, decide in advance how you will present it.
Think about when you hope to arrive and depart. Write the dates down and revisit them whenever your plans shift.
List the main places you expect to visit, in order. A simple route makes it easier to describe the trip accurately and keeps your answers consistent.
Prepare an email address and phone number that you check often and can type without errors.
Check current guidance for any documents that may apply to your situation, and keep them clear and legible. Whether a particular document is required is something to confirm, not assume.
Want the full walkthrough? The India e-Visa Guide explains the information worth having ready for any category.
Four Steps
Read the category description and ask whether it matches the reason you are travelling.
Collect your passport information, intended dates and destinations in one place.
Look at current guidance for supporting documents that may apply and set them aside, ready to use.
Compare each entry with your passport and notes, and correct anything that does not agree.
This is a preparation guide only. No application can be started or submitted on this page.
Common Preparation Mistakes
Small inconsistencies are the easiest to prevent. A few minutes of attention before you begin can save a lot of correcting later.
Day-month and month-day order is a classic source of confusion. Write out the month in words when you draft your dates.
If your notes say one thing and your entries say another, one of them is wrong. Reconcile them before you go any further.
Vague entries invite inconsistency. Use the same names and spellings for places each time you refer to them.
A rushed glance misses things. Review your information once to prepare, then again after a break with fresh eyes.
FAQs
Holidays, sightseeing and visits to friends or family are the everyday reasons for a Tourist trip. Yoga programs, short courses, short-term voluntary activities and trekking carry a "check conditions" note on this page, so read those cards and confirm what applies to your plan before you pay for anything.
The website lists three Tourist options: 30 days, 1 year and 5 years. Match the option to the dates and the number of trips you have in mind rather than to the lowest price, and use the fees page to compare each option's entry type, validity and Regular and Express prices.
Yes. A short course lists a letter from the course provider and short-term voluntary activity lists a letter from the voluntary organization, both on letterhead and in addition to the passport page and photograph. Longer formal study is a different purpose and should not be assumed to fit the Tourist category.
Write down your hosts' names and the city where you will stay, so the details are ready when you prepare your information. Keep the spelling of names and places the same everywhere you use them.
Write the month in words when you draft dates, use one spelling for each place, and make sure your itinerary agrees with the dates you enter. Then read everything again after a break, since a rushed glance misses things.
Read the requirements page for the passport page and photograph that every list includes, the fees page for each option's entry type, validity and Regular and Express prices, and the visa options page if your trip seems to mix purposes.
Explore the available visa categories and prepare your information before applying.