Obtaining visa for India in the UK

[Goldryder]

I will be applying for an India visa in December for my April cruise and am wondering if anyone else in the UK has had experience of postal applications, please?

 

The website is a bit confusing as to where the application is meant to go...Birmingham or Hayes...and I'm not altogether sure what the total charges are with postal costs, VAT etc.

 

So if anyone has had experience of dealing with this and can guide me through the procedure in a plain and simple way, please, I would really appreciate it :o

 

Thank you :)

[amazonlady]

i have just got my visa, from hayes. i sent it off on the wednesday and it came back on the saturday. brilliant service. you have to fill in your parents details even if they are deceased, if you have any questions just ask. i was dreading the whole thing, i hate sending my passport anywhere but couldnt believe how fast the whole thing was.

[amazonlady]

Sorry, didnt really answer your questions. the way i did it was to print off the applications forms and fill the details in by hand, then transfer them to the on line form. it guides you through it step by step, if you dont answer something right it doesnt let you proceed. it sorts out all the costs at the end for you and then you just send your passport, or two if you are doing two, in a prepaid secure envelope from the post off ice.

[Goldryder]

Thanks for that...

 

I have tried the online form filling but come unstuck due to the ship calling at 3 ports in India and not having the name/address of ship agent there. Have contacted the cruise line for that information.

 

Going to post my application with bank draft enclosed. I am very nervous about sending my passport anywhere too and also about making mistakes on the forms...the website really is not clear about the costs, ie the toal cost with postage, VAT etc included. The printed off form is tiny too, so not enough space to put all the ports of call information, so thinking of sending a copy of the itinerary along with it.

 

I hate form filling basically :o

[amazonlady]

i think we put in transit, but we are only stopping at one port, cochin. the visas cost £77.72 for two and the special postage cost about £11 i think. i know what you mean, i got in a real panic about our visas but it was fine in the end. you cant really go wrong cos if the form is wrong you cant proceed. your cruise operator should have the port agents details. good luck!!:o

[Crapsitetoregister]

Hello.......I am making inquiries as to the best way to obtain a visa to visit two ports in India next January (2012) We are on P&Os Oriana and have just been told that a visa is required and further that a P&O agency will be in touch to arrange. So far I have established from this particular agency that the cost will be 109 GBP per person. To arrange via the Indian Embassy will cost approx 76 GBP each. How on earth do they justify this cost..........we help you fill in the form was the answer I got.

I would appreciate any help/advice from anyone who has completed the process themselves.

Any one else sailing on 5th January?

[Crapsitetoregister]

Gets even more confusing, due to amount of Agencies offering to obtain Visa....seems I googled one of them thus the 76GBP I have since got onto the Indian Embassy and they quote 30GBP plus 10.20 GBP admin.

 

Watch this space..............

[milamber]

Pull up a comfortable chair and take a deep breath - it's really not that bad:)

 

We have just applied for and received our India Visas for a three stop cruise in November so can probably help with all the questions so far.

 

First and foremost don't bother with any of the agencies. All they do is act as a middle man adding cost and time to your application. VFS are the official Indian Visa agency and you can apply directly to them.

 

http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/

 

It costs £41.24 for a six month multiple entry tourist visa. There is some debate about whether or not you need a multiple entry visa as you almost certainly won't leave Indian Territorial waters between ports, but as the multiple entry costs the same as the single entry visa then simply apply for that and cover all your bases.

 

You do not need to attach copies of itineraries or give them the names of the ship agents in any of the ports. It is not neccessary to tell them that you are on a cruise - it's not relevant. You do need to put down 2 references and one of those could be the cruise line agent in India if you wish. We put down the British High Commission in New Delhi (as advised by our cruise line) plus a personal friend in the UK.

 

The form is a little complicated at first viewing and I did get a few new grey hairs the first time we tried to complete it, but it is not that bad actually. Some of the questions are a bit strange and ambiguous, but this is a different culture and you have to go with it. There is nothing there than can't be completed easily.

 

We completed the form on line then selected 'book an appointment and pay'. You DO NOT have to book an appointment by clicking this - it's an option that you ignore. You can pay on-line using a debit or credit card, then print the form out which will have opened in a separate window.

 

You post the application form, signed in two places, together with 2 5cm x 5cm photos (one photo stuck on the front page of the application in the space provided - the photo requirements have changed and you should just double check them on the home page of the VFS site - passport photos are too small), plus the signed declaration form (found next to the online application on the website) plus your passport.

 

Send the lot off to Hayes by Special Delivery with a pre-paid and self addressed Special Delivery envelope.

 

We sent ours on the Wednesday and had them back by the following Tuesday. You can track your application online once they receive it and this works well and efficiently.

 

Some helpful hints:

 

Signatures MUST match those on your passport!

 

If you are anything like us there will not be enough space on the application form to list all the countries you have visited in the last 10 years. Make sure that you include the countries with stamps in your passport before adding any others in the remaining space. Don't worry if you can't fit all the countries in.

 

Put NONE or NA against any questions that aren't relevant such as 'visible identification marks' or 'employer's address' if you are retired.

 

You can't apply earlier than three months from your expected date of arrival

 

Hope this helps. It really isn't as bad as it seems.

 

Any specific questions just ask.

[soccerref]

Do make sure that you send correctly sized photos. I mistakenly sent passport sized ones last year ....silly me just assumed that they were 2"x2" but they are not big enough. My whole application was returned and I had to do it all again. Other than that, applying through the Embassy site is quite straightforward.