India simplifies visa process, reduces main categories to 9

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the initiative is designed to facilitate travel for tourism, medical treatment, education, research, and business. In addition to restructuring categories, the government plans to cut the required fields on visa application forms by 65 to 70 percent. The overhaul follows a review of international standards and visa systems of developed nations that began in October 2025.

Tourist Visa Replaced by 'Visitor Visa'

Under the updated framework, the traditional tourist visa has been renamed the "Visitor Visa," which now covers business meetings, medical consultations, wellness activities, and short-term cultural or educational courses alongside leisure travel.

The Visitor Visa is divided into two subcategories:

V-1 Visa: Valid for 30 days with multiple-entry privileges. It covers tourism, short-term business meetings, medical consultations, wellness activities, short-term medical treatment, short-term yoga programs, and courses in Indian languages, music, fine arts, and handicrafts.

V-2 Visa: Intended for longer-term travel with validity options of one, five, or 10 years based on eligibility. It includes all V-1 activities along with mountaineering. A dedicated six-month multiple-entry provision has also been established for mountaineering expeditions.

Medical Visa Restructured for One-Year Validity

The medical visa system has been reorganized to separate conventional medical care from Ayush systems of medicine:

M-1 Visa: Issued for conventional medical treatments outside of Ayush.

M-3 Visa: Issued specifically for treatments under the Ayush system.

Both variants, along with their e-visa equivalents, will generally feature a one-year validity with multiple-entry privileges. Accompanying individuals will receive M-2 visas (for M-1 holders) or M-4 visas (for M-3 holders).

The government expects the extended validity to benefit patients requiring long-term care or follow-up consultations, reducing the need for repeated applications under the "Heal in India" initiative.

Updated Provisions for Students, Researchers, and Business

Student visas have been streamlined into two categories:

S-1 Visa: Covers schooling, undergraduate, and postgraduate studies. Foreign students admitted via the "Study in India" portal may receive e-S1 visas valid for up to five years or the course duration, whichever is shorter, with multiple-entry access.

S-2 Visa: Designated for PhD researchers, guest faculty, research scholars, participants in scientific or anthropological expeditions, interns, and exchange program participants.

Business visas are now organized under two main types:

B-1 Visa: Geared toward long-term business engagements and individuals seeking to establish industrial or commercial enterprises in India.

B-2 Visa: Covers short-term and contractual activities, including manufacturing and investment-related ventures, conferences, sports events, cultural performances, and film shoots. Special provisions under B-2 allow foreign experts, engineers, and technical personnel hired by Indian firms—such as those involved in factory setup, quality control, maintenance, IT/ERP integration, and technical support—to apply via e-visas.

E-Visas for 172 Nations and Implementation Timeline

India currently provides e-visas across 13 subcategories to citizens of 172 countries. The government is upgrading its IT infrastructure to support the changes, with the Ministry of Home Affairs estimating that issuing visas under the new structure will commence by late 2026.

Following the overhaul, the nine core visa categories will consist of Business, Diplomatic, Employment, Journalist, Medical, Official, Student, Visitor, and Miscellaneous.

The Miscellaneous category will accommodate persons of Indian origin (PIOs) and their dependents, dependents of long-term visa holders, individuals joining organizations such as the Auroville Foundation, Afghan nationals seeking residence, and specific long-term visa arrangements for citizens of neighboring countries.