France maybe the tourist capital of the world but India is no less. While Eiffel Tower draws millions India draws tourists in equal numbers to the famed Taj Mahal. In fact, the French themselves form a large number of foreign nationals to India(4th highest) . As of Nov 2021, Indian government has restarted India e-Tourist visa for French Citizens, good news indeed !!
Apply for India Visa Online
India government as waived off India visa fee for the first 500,000 applications. Apply now to get your India visa at just processing fee cost of $25 with us.
We also take care of procuring your mandatory self declaration form for all foreigners visiting India.
Note: The duration of stay will be limited to 30 till Feb 2022.
Tourists from France accommodate for 5% of the total number of tourists to India, and after the pandemic this number is expected to raise even more. This article will help citizens of France in applying for India E-Tourist visa as per the new COVID guidelines in 2021.
It is now mandatory to get COVID related travel insurance for visa application. Get your travel insurance at just $1 per day with visitorscoverage.com
Types Of Indian E-Tourist Visa For France nationals
Before COVID, there was a buffet of India visa types one can choose based on the flavour of your travel, there was yoga visa, mountaineering, spiritual visa. But as a cautionary move as of Nov 2021 only 30 days single entry visa is open
Note: As of Nov 2021, only 30 days single entry visa can be applied for all foreign tourists to India. This article will be updated once we have an official government circular for the availability of other visas.
30 days India tourist visa, this is applicable for French passport holders who are visiting India for a short duration of 30 days single entry which means you can enter India only once. Once your visa is approved you will need to make use of this visa within 120 days. Check your visa approval copy to know the exact expiry date of your visa. If you want to explore India for a long time then you will need to wait for further announcement from the Indian government.
60 days India tourist visa, (Not available as of Nov 2021) this is applicable for the French who are visiting India for a short duration of 60 days. This visa allows double entry which means you can exit & enter India twice. Further details such as expiry date, validity will be endorsed in your visa copy.
1 year India tourist e-visa (Not available as of Nov 2021), this is for anyone one who want to explore the whole country or in general stay for one full year but you can stay for continuous 180 days only after which you need to exit the country and re-enter. This visa is popular among European tourists who want to explore Nepal and Sri Lanka along with India. So you can take a short break to any of these countries and then reset the number of days you can stay in India.
Documents required for applying India e-Tourist visa for France nationals
The documentation for India visa for french citizens is fairly simple but cumbersome to fill as the application form is fairly lengthy because of which you may make mistakes or a small typo can lead to rejection of your visa.
Although you’ll be in a position to get Indian visa online yourself, most of you’d not wish to bear the effort of addressing the Indian government portal isn’t that user-friendly, has long forms to fill and often crashes out.
Also details of your spouse, parents such as passport information, work & nationality related information must be entered in the application, so keep those handy as well.
If you are like me who would rather not spend 3 hours of your life filling forms don’t mind getting it done by a travel agent then you can get your Indian visa done via Travelvisabookings.com.
Apply for India Visa Online
India government as waived off India visa fee for the first 500,000 applications. Apply now to get your India visa at just processing fee cost of $25 with us.
We also take care of procuring your mandatory self declaration form for all foreigners visiting India.
Note: The duration of stay will be limited to 30 till Feb 2022.
Documents needed for India e-Tourist visa are:
- Passport front and back scanned copy.
- A passport size photo soft copy in a white background
- Parents (both mom and dad) information
- Spouse’s information
- Port of entry in India
- Work related information
- A valid COVID Insurance. (You can apply below)
It is now mandatory to get COVID related travel insurance for visa application. Get your travel insurance at just $1 per day with visitorscoverage.com
Beware of India visa scams
There have been a lot of sites which are designed just like India visa and have been charging exorbitant processing fees of $100 or more with false claims of express or emergency visas. These are not possible and are fake.
Government of India has not authorized any agent or intermediary to charge any fee for facilitation of emergency / express Visa/eVisa.
India government advisory
So if someone is charging you more or if someone is promising you fast or express India visas, do not fall for the trap. It is fine taking consultation for a reasonable fee.
Also once you get your visa make sure you are double checking your visa online with your applicationID to see if your visa is genuine. You can verify your visa authenticity on the government website.
What is the fee for India online visa ?
The regular,India Visa fees for the French are as mentioned in the below table. But as mentioned earlier, Indian government has announced free visa for the first 500,000 applicants, so you can apply for your India visa with us at get it just at processing fee cost of EUR 22 !!.
Also note that as of Nov 2021, only e-Tourist visa of 30 days can be applied. Others are not available due to COVID
| India visa Type | Fee for French Citizens | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| e-Tourist Visa 30 Days | $25 (22 EUR) | 30 Days – Double Entry |
| e-Tourist Visa 1 Year | $40 (35 EUR) | 365 Days – Multiple Entry |
| e-Business Visa | $100 (86 EUR) | 365 Days – Multiple Entry |
| e-Conference Visa | $100 (86 EUR) | 30 Days – Single Entry |
| e-Medical Visa | $100 (86 EUR) | 60 Days – Triple Entry |
| e-Medical Attendant Visa | $100 (86 EUR) | 60 Days – Triple Entry |
India E-Tourist visa fee for French citizens is $25 (EUR 22). Banks charge an additional 2.5% of the above amount as their service charge. If you sought the service of a travel agent, then expect to pay anywhere between EUR 10 to EUR 20 extra as a service fee.
Apply for India Visa Online
India government as waived off India visa fee for the first 500,000 applications. Apply now to get your India visa at just processing fee cost of $25 with us.
We also take care of procuring your mandatory self declaration form for all foreigners visiting India.
Note: The duration of stay will be limited to 30 till Feb 2022.
What is the processing time for India visa ?
The processing time for India visa is around 3 working days once you submit your visa application. But the consular who is processing your visa may ask for further clarification or documentation which could further delay your processing. So in this case it is better to have a buffer of 7 working days when you are applying for India visa.
You need to also account for Indian holidays since your visa processing time is affected by that too.
You can submit your visa application maximum of 120 days before your departure if you want the extra peace of mind and do not want to scramble at the last minute. But due to the current COVID-19 pandemic in India, we suggest to apply for your visa 1 week before departure and also book fully refundable flights for extra caution.
Do European citizens need a visa to visit India?
Yes. All European nationals need to get a visa before visiting India without exception. Though the French had a colony in India called Pondicherry, they too need to apply for India visa online. But the visa process is simple and transparent unlike getting a France visa for Indians.
Is it possible for to get a visa on arrival in India for French?
Yes. India has scrapped the visa on arrival policy for most of the 180 countries and replaced it with Online visa called India e-Tourist visa. This is a better option than VOA since this allows you to skip the extra queue at the airport and makes the whole process seamless and simple.
Visa on arrival is allowed to only Japan & as of Nov 2019 even they need to apply for Online visa.
How long will it take for approval of my Indian E-Tourist visa?
It can take anywhere from 2 to 4 days to get your Indian E-Tourist visa approved. Provided all the information and supporting documents you furnished are correct and the Indian Embassy does not ask you for any additional documents.