The growing popularity of tourism is a common trend globally, and India is no exception. It is known for its rich diversity with landscape, hills, rivers, cuisine, traditions, festivals, etc. So people naturally take an interest in visiting India as tourists. First, however, they need to procure an Indian visa before planning to travel.

Recently in 2014, India started offering the e-tourist visa facility to tourists. Keep reading this article to find out more about it.

The spread of technology is commonly seen in every element of life. Similarly, the Indian government has also developed the facility of electronic visas. Indian e-tourist visa enables visa holders to visit India as tourists. Individuals can travel for the following purposes with this kind of visa.

• Tourism activities
• Visiting friends or family
• Attending a yoga retreat

If you plan to get an e-tourist visa, you must meet the following conditions.

• Only international travellers visiting India for sightseeing, vacation, meeting friends and relatives, business meetings or medical treatment are eligible for this visa.
• They must have a valid passport with at least six months of validity.
• Applicants must be able to show an onward journey or return ticket while providing financial stability to support their accommodation.
• Official or diplomatic passport holders cannot get this visa.
• Holders of international travel documents cannot apply for this visa.

Individuals can apply for an Indian e-tourist visa through the following steps.

Step 1: Visit the official website of Indian Visa online. Click on the "e-tourist visa" option to find all the information on the right panel.

Step 2: Click on the “Apply for e-visa” icon. Enter your details and click on “Continue”.

Step 3: Start filling out the online application form. Next, upload pages of your passport and photographs.

Step 4: Pay the application fees. Click on the final “Submit” button.

Applicants must possess the following documents to get an e-tourist visa for India.

• Passport scanned copy in PDF format
• Photographs in JPG format

Individuals need to pay approximately  ₹ 4,656 as Indian e-tourist visa fees for each application. It is exclusive of the interchange of credit and debit card fees which might also be levied upon the individual. Irrespective of the outcomes, this fee remains non-refundable.

Individuals applying for this visa should keep the following things in mind before starting the application.

• One can make an application for this visa only through online mode. Hence make sure that you have access to the internet connection.
• You must start the application at least four days before your expected arrival in India.
• The photographs must be front-facing and clear without any shadows.
• The front page of the passport should contain all your details such as name, nationality, birth date, date of expiration of the passport, etc.
• It would help if you carried the e-tourist visa while travelling to India.
• The visa will be valid for about 30 days after landing in India.
• You will be allowed to use an e-tourist visa about twice a calendar year.

Therefore, as you can see, getting an e-tourist visa for India is much easier and more convenient than getting a regular visa. It allows you to travel in India without any hassles, and getting its approval is much faster. Hence, if you are planning to visit India for a quick emergency reason, you must get an e-tourist visa.