Extension of e-Tourist Visa scheme
to the nationals of China, Hong Kong and Macau from today, the 30th
July 2015
As
you are aware, we have been pleading with the Government to include China for
the e-Tourist Visa Scheme along with other major tourists generating countries.
You
will be pleased to know that China along with Hong Kong and Macau have been
included in the list and this facility has been extended to these three
countries w.e.f. today the 30th July 2015. Now the total
number of countries/territories covered under the e-Tourist Visa scheme has
gone up from 74 to 77, with the inclusion of these 3 countries. We hope,
soon Government will announce extension of this scheme to more countries.
The list of 77 countries and all other details are available on the link
A
copy of the Press Release issued by Press Information Bureau (PIB) dated 29th
July 2015 is enclosed for your reference.
Our
sincere thanks to Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, Dr. Mahesh
Sharma, Hon’ble Tourism Minister and the team in the Ministry of Tourism for
making our dreams come true. We are sure all the 150 countries as announced by
the government will be covered under this scheme very soon.
=========================================
Press
Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Home Affairs
29-July-2015 20:30 IST
Government of India
Ministry of Home Affairs
29-July-2015 20:30 IST
Extension of
e-Tourist Visa scheme to China, Hong Kong and Macau from tomorrow
The
Government has finalised arrangements to extend and implement the e-Tourist
Visa facility to the passport holders of People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong
Administrative Region and Macau Special Administrative Region with effect from
the July 30, 2015, as announced by the Prime Minister during his recent visit
to China. The total number of countries/territories covered under the e-Tourist
Visa scheme will go up from 74 to 77, with the inclusion of these
countries/territories.
The
74 countries already included are Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Australia,
Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Island, Chile, Cook
Islands, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El
Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Grenada, Guyana,
Haiti, Honduras, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos,
Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico,
Micronesia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Myanmar, Nauru, New Zealand, Nicaragua,
Niue Island, Norway, Oman, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay,
Philippines, Republic of Korea, Republic of Macedonia, Russia, Saint
Christopher and Nevis, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand,
Tonga, Tuvalu, UAE, Ukraine, USA, Vanuatu, Vatican City-Holy See and Vietnam.
The
e-Tourist Visa scheme launched by the Government of India on the November 27,
2015 has been extended to 77 countries/territories so far. The scheme will be
extended to more countries/ territories in a phased manner. Under this scheme,
tourists with e-Tourist Visas can arrive at nine designated airports
(Bengaluru, Chennai, Cochin, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai &
Trivandrum). Since the launch of the scheme, about 2,00,000 (Two lakh) e-TVs
have been issued to nationals of different countries.
During
the last three years, a total of 1,79,873 (one lakh seventy nine thousand eight
hundred seventy three) tourist visas have been issued to nationals of Republic
of China, Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR. It is expected that extending the
e-Tourist Visa facility to the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong SAR and
Macau SAR will boost the tourist arrival from these regions and strengthen
bilateral ties among people of these territories.
