Because of COVID-19, India kept its borders closed for a year and a half. The entry ban has since been lifted and as of 22 November 2022, it is no longer required to show proof of vaccination or testing upon arrival. Read on this page which measures against COVID-19 you still need to take into account.
Tourists welcome again in India
Since 15 November 2021, it is possible again to travel to India on a tourist visa. Everyone who travels to India in 2024 is no longer required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or to take a COVID-19 test. A visa, however, is still required. You can apply for the required visa with the online application form on this website. Once granted, you will receive the visa by email. With this visa, you can travel to India for a stay of up to 30 days.
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Gradual relaxation of COVID-19 related measures
As a consequence of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, India decided to close their borders completely. Foreigners were not allowed to travel to India until November 2021. Even then, the COVID-19 related measures were still very strict. For example, travellers had to go into mandatory quarantine upon arrival before they were allowed to move freely through the country. Since then, measures against COVID-19 have been gradually relaxed.
Lifting of quarantine requirement
The first relaxation of COVID-19 related measures for international travellers took place on 14 February 2022. On this date, the quarantine requirement was lifted, which made travelling to India considerably easier. However, there were still some COVID-19 related measures in effect. For example, all travellers to India were required to show proof of vaccination or a negative test result. Travellers also needed to complete a health declaration, the so-called Air Suvidha Self Declaration Form, and to continue to monitor their state of health after arrival in India.
Proof of vaccination or testing no longer required
On 22 November 2022, the next relaxations of the COVID-19 related measures were implemented. Since then, Indian authorities no longer check whether inbound travellers are fully vaccinated or have taken a COVID-19 test. On this date, it was also decided to abolish the health declaration, the Air Suvidha Self Declaration Form.
What you still need to take into account
Are you travelling to India in 2024? Then you are not required to have proof of vaccination or have tested against COVID-19 before departure. However, keep in mind that travellers' body temperature may at times be taken upon arrival. Should you display COVID-19 symptoms, measures might have to be taken, in which case local health services will provide you with further information. Moreover, it is expected of all travellers that during their stay in India, they will monitor their own health situation. In the event you would experience any COVID-19 symptoms during your stay, you are required to contact local health services.
Moreover, you need to keep in mind the visa requirement in India. Each traveller needs to have a valid visa upon arrival. To meet the visa requirement, you can use the simplified online application procedure of the India e-visa.
On 22 November 2022, most COVID-19 related measures for travel to India were lifted.
Returning to the UK and Ireland
According to the British travel adviceit is allowed for British and Irish travellers to travel to India again for a holiday, business trip, transit or medical travel purpose. Are you travelling from India back to the United Kingdom? There are no COVID-19 related measures for your return journey. Similarly, travellers returning to Ireland from India do not have to take any special actions regarding COVID-19.
Disclaimer: The coronavirus measures that affect travel to India are subject to frequent changes. The information on this page has been carefully compiled from information made available by both the Government of India and various European governments. Nevertheless, no guarantee can be given that all the information on this page is up-to-date and complete at all times, and no rights can be derived from this page. Are you planning to travel to India? Please check with your airline and travel agent which regulations you need to take into account.
e-Visa.ie is a commercial and professional visa agency, and supports travellers in obtaining, among others, the India visa. e-Visa.ie acts as an intermediary and is in no way part of any government. You can also apply for a visa directly with the immigration service (25,63 USD per visa, via indianvisaonline.gov.in). However, not with our level of support. If you submit your application via e-Visa.ie, our support centre is available to you 24/7. In addition, we manually check your application and all the documents you provide before submitting it to the immigration authorities on your behalf. If we suspect any errors or omissions while doing so, we will personally contact you to ensure that your application can still be processed quickly and correctly. To use our services, you pay us 25,63 USD in consular fees, which we pay to the immigration service on your behalf, as well as € 36,05 in service fees as compensation for our services, including VAT. Our services have saved many travellers from major problems during their trip. Should an application be rejected despite our support and verification, we will refund the full purchase price (unless an application for a previous India visa was rejected for the same traveller). Read more about our services here.