India reduces e-Tourist visa fees

India reduces e-Tourist visa fees for foreign nationals to boost India's tourism. The fee for e-Tourist Visa for one-year has been reduced to half from USD 80 to USD 40 whereas the procedure for the e-Tourist Visa application will remain the same.

New Delhi:In a bid to give a boost to tourism, the Indian government has reduced the e-Tourist visa fees for foreign nationals.

The fee for e-Tourist Visa for one-year has been reduced to half -- from USD 80 to USD 40 i.e in Indian rupees the amount is reduced from Rs. 5,687 to Rs. 2,843.

Whereas, the fee for a five-year e-Tourist visa would be USD 80.

Meanwhile, during the April to June period, the fee for a 30-day e-Tourist Visa has been further reduced from USD 25 (Rs 1776) to USD 10 (Rs 710).

The online tourist visa was first introduced in 2014 for 43 countries.

This was done to promote travel to India without necessitating a trip to the embassy or waiting in long lines at border control.

In 2015, India rolled out its e-Visa programme for more countries.

In April 2017, the e-Visa programme was retooled, with the introduction of visa sub-categories for tourists, business travellers and medical visits.

The procedure for the e-Tourist Visa application will remain the same.