Key Details
The government approved the category changes on 27 August 2026 and described the revised arrangements on 11 November. Applicants are expected to receive visas under the new framework by the end of 2026, once the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) updates its IT systems.
Area | Change |
|---|---|
Main visa categories | Reduced from 13 to 9 |
Visa sub-categories | Reduced from 49 to 23 |
Application forms | Required fields cut by 65%–70% across the 23 sub-categories |
Existing e-Visa reach | Available to nationals of 172 countries under 13 e-Visa sub-categories |
A Broader Visitor Visa Covers More Short Visits
The former Tourist Visa becomes a Visitor Visa with two routes. V-1 permits specified short visits — including business meetings, medical consultations, wellness retreats and short courses—and is granted for 30 days with multiple entries. V-2 covers eligible longer visits, with validity of one, five or ten years as specified; mountaineering has a separate six-month provision.
This is meant to make visa selection clearer for travellers whose short visit does not fit neatly under conventional tourism. The applicable purpose and eligibility conditions still matter.
Medical and Study Routes Reflect Repeat Travel
The revised Medical Visa retains separate routes for conventional treatment (M-1) and AYUSH treatment (M-3), with corresponding visas for attendants. M-1 and M-3 visas, including their e-Visa variants, are to be granted for one year by default with multiple entries. That could reduce repeat applications during staged treatment or follow-up visits.
The Student Visa is consolidated into S-1 for school and degree study and S-2 for research and other specified academic activities. Eligible foreign students admitted through the Study in India portal may receive an e-S1 visa for up to five years or their course duration, whichever is shorter.
Business Categories Distinguish Investment from Short Assignments
B-1 covers longer-term business activity, including establishing a venture in India. B-2 covers specified shorter-term activities. Its Production Investment Business provision allows eligible foreign engineers and specialists engaged by Indian companies to apply through the e-Visa platform for work such as plant commissioning, maintenance, training and technology transfer. The government says this provision was previously available under the e-B4 name; it should not be presented as an entirely new visa entitlement.
Policy Relevance
The immediate change for foreign applicants is a simpler choice of visa category and a shorter form. For Indian hospitals, universities and businesses hosting them, clearer routes could make planning treatment, courses and technical assignments easier.
Those benefits depend on the year-end system update and on how consistently the revised categories are applied. The announcement does not report faster approval times or guarantee that a visa will be granted. Application completion time, processing time and requests for additional information will be useful measures of whether simplification works in practice.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: After the new system goes live, do applicants and their Indian hosts see fewer category-related errors and shorter, more predictable processing times?
Follow the Full Press Release Here: Government Rationalises the Indian Visa Regime.