During a late-night stakeholder meeting on 12 November 2025, Jonas Michael Turk—head of the visa section at Germany’s Bengaluru Consulate—told executives from Kerala’s Technopark that the mission is exploring monthly or bi-monthly ‘visa camps’ in Thiruvananthapuram.
The southern Indian IT hub submits roughly 250–300 German visa applications a month, but applicants currently travel 200 km to Kochi for biometrics, causing lost workdays and project delays. A mobile consular team would collect fingerprints and documents on-site, forwarding files digitally to Bengaluru for adjudication.
![German Consulate eyes pop-up visa camps in Thiruvananthapuram to ease India tech-talent pipeline]()
If approved, the pilot could mirror the “Visa on Wheels” model Germany already runs in Pune and Hyderabad, which cut appointment lead-times from eight to four weeks last year. For German employers sourcing Indian engineers, the camps promise a smoother funnel into Blue-Card or ICT-Transfer routes—critical as automotive and semiconductor investments in Bavaria depend on timely onboarding.
Technopark CEO Sanjeev Nair welcomed the idea, pointing to new AI, cyber-security and chip-design contracts with German OEMs. The honorary German consul in Kerala said a permanent Visa Application Centre might follow if demand holds. Mobility teams should track announcements on the Consulate’s social channels and pre-schedule medicals to capitalise on shortened timelines.
The southern Indian IT hub submits roughly 250–300 German visa applications a month, but applicants currently travel 200 km to Kochi for biometrics, causing lost workdays and project delays. A mobile consular team would collect fingerprints and documents on-site, forwarding files digitally to Bengaluru for adjudication.
If approved, the pilot could mirror the “Visa on Wheels” model Germany already runs in Pune and Hyderabad, which cut appointment lead-times from eight to four weeks last year. For German employers sourcing Indian engineers, the camps promise a smoother funnel into Blue-Card or ICT-Transfer routes—critical as automotive and semiconductor investments in Bavaria depend on timely onboarding.
Technopark CEO Sanjeev Nair welcomed the idea, pointing to new AI, cyber-security and chip-design contracts with German OEMs. The honorary German consul in Kerala said a permanent Visa Application Centre might follow if demand holds. Mobility teams should track announcements on the Consulate’s social channels and pre-schedule medicals to capitalise on shortened timelines.
