In a major boost to India’s digital-first border strategy, Tourism and Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat told Parliament on 6 January that the country’s electronic visa (e-Visa) platform now welcomes applicants from 167 nations—up from 156 last year. The upgrade, confirmed on 7 January, also expands the number of sub-categories from six to nine, introducing an e-Ayush visa for patients seeking India’s fast-growing traditional-medicine sector and removing the cap of three e-Visas per traveller per year.
For global companies the headline win is the re-engineered multiple-entry e-Business visa. Valid for 12 months with single-stay periods of up to 180 days, it eliminates the previous “three-strikes” limit that forced frequent flyers to switch to slower consular channels after exhausting annual quotas. Mobility managers predict assignment lead-times will fall by a full week because passports no longer have to be couriered for stamping.
Travellers and HR teams looking for a hassle-free way to navigate the new rules can turn to VisaHQ, whose dedicated India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) offers end-to-end e-Visa filing, document pre-screening, real-time status tracking and expert compliance guidance—ensuring applications are error-free and processed as quickly as possible.
![India Broadens e-Visa Scheme to 167 Countries and Adds New Categories]()
Operationally, the Ministry of Home Affairs says electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) will continue to be issued within 72 hours, but a planned migration to Aadhaar-based digital KYC later in 2026 could cut that to under 24 hours and allow WhatsApp status alerts. Travellers must still carry a printed or digital ETA and ensure their passport is valid for at least six months; a new passport automatically voids an existing e-Visa.
The broadened scheme dovetails with New Delhi’s ambition to exceed pre-pandemic tourist arrivals and to push footfall to tier-2 airports under the UDAN regional-connectivity programme. Companies are advised to update compliance matrices immediately, confirm that arrival ports are among the 29 e-Visa-enabled airports, and brief assignees on the revised rules.
Industry lobby groups such as NASSCOM welcomed the move, noting that easier repeat access will help start-ups host investors and mentors more fluidly, while pharma majors said the e-Ayush category brings regulatory clarity for wellness tourists who previously relied on short-term medical visas.
For global companies the headline win is the re-engineered multiple-entry e-Business visa. Valid for 12 months with single-stay periods of up to 180 days, it eliminates the previous “three-strikes” limit that forced frequent flyers to switch to slower consular channels after exhausting annual quotas. Mobility managers predict assignment lead-times will fall by a full week because passports no longer have to be couriered for stamping.
Travellers and HR teams looking for a hassle-free way to navigate the new rules can turn to VisaHQ, whose dedicated India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) offers end-to-end e-Visa filing, document pre-screening, real-time status tracking and expert compliance guidance—ensuring applications are error-free and processed as quickly as possible.
Operationally, the Ministry of Home Affairs says electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) will continue to be issued within 72 hours, but a planned migration to Aadhaar-based digital KYC later in 2026 could cut that to under 24 hours and allow WhatsApp status alerts. Travellers must still carry a printed or digital ETA and ensure their passport is valid for at least six months; a new passport automatically voids an existing e-Visa.
The broadened scheme dovetails with New Delhi’s ambition to exceed pre-pandemic tourist arrivals and to push footfall to tier-2 airports under the UDAN regional-connectivity programme. Companies are advised to update compliance matrices immediately, confirm that arrival ports are among the 29 e-Visa-enabled airports, and brief assignees on the revised rules.
Industry lobby groups such as NASSCOM welcomed the move, noting that easier repeat access will help start-ups host investors and mentors more fluidly, while pharma majors said the e-Ayush category brings regulatory clarity for wellness tourists who previously relied on short-term medical visas.
