India’s Ministry of External Affairs disclosed on 19 December that more than 500 visas have been granted to Afghan nationals since August under a revamped six-category visa module. Over 200 of those were medical visas, underscoring a calibrated humanitarian focus as Afghanistan’s health-care system struggles.
Officials said the new online module, rolled out in April 2025, streamlines documentation for medical, attendant, business, student, entry and UN-diplomat visas. Cancer treatment, trauma care and advanced diagnostics accounted for the majority of medical requests processed in the last quarter.
For Afghan applicants who may find the new process daunting, VisaHQ’s India team (https://www.visahq.com/india/) offers an end-to-end concierge service—reviewing paperwork, pre-validating medical referrals and tracking submissions in real time—to ensure applications are complete and travel dates align smoothly with hospital appointments.
![India issues 500 visas to Afghans in four months, prioritises medical cases]()
India’s health minister J. P. Nadda told visiting Afghan counterpart Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali that Delhi would continue to provide free tertiary care at designated hospitals and is preparing to dispatch oncology equipment and additional essential medicines to Kabul.
For mobility practitioners the data signals that India remains receptive to humanitarian travel despite tighter immigration scrutiny elsewhere. Hospitals partnering with corporate insurers should anticipate a rise in Afghan patient inflows and secure appointment blocks accordingly.
The update also reassures Afghan expatriates in India—many working for NGOs and development contractors—that family-reunion and attendant visas are being processed within three weeks on average, down from eight weeks earlier this year.
Officials said the new online module, rolled out in April 2025, streamlines documentation for medical, attendant, business, student, entry and UN-diplomat visas. Cancer treatment, trauma care and advanced diagnostics accounted for the majority of medical requests processed in the last quarter.
For Afghan applicants who may find the new process daunting, VisaHQ’s India team (https://www.visahq.com/india/) offers an end-to-end concierge service—reviewing paperwork, pre-validating medical referrals and tracking submissions in real time—to ensure applications are complete and travel dates align smoothly with hospital appointments.
India’s health minister J. P. Nadda told visiting Afghan counterpart Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali that Delhi would continue to provide free tertiary care at designated hospitals and is preparing to dispatch oncology equipment and additional essential medicines to Kabul.
For mobility practitioners the data signals that India remains receptive to humanitarian travel despite tighter immigration scrutiny elsewhere. Hospitals partnering with corporate insurers should anticipate a rise in Afghan patient inflows and secure appointment blocks accordingly.
The update also reassures Afghan expatriates in India—many working for NGOs and development contractors—that family-reunion and attendant visas are being processed within three weeks on average, down from eight weeks earlier this year.
