India has become famous throughout the whole nation as one of the best tourist destinations so the government of India also provides tourists with tourism and visa policy with high facilities. So have you already applied for your visa or have you already flown over to India and are worrying about how to extend India visa validity or renew the visa? No worries!! One can apply for any kind of Indian visa through an agent or online tourist agency or embassy but one thing you always need to remember is that after coming to India, you can't get any new visa so you either have to extend its validity or renew it. Here's all the required information you need to know about visa extension and renewal.
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Extension
1. Please remember e-visas are non-extendable, and once you have already come to India, you can't extend your visa validity, it'll be valid for only the mentioned period.
2. Though regular visas can be extended in some special cases, like medical emergencies, sudden accidents or if you anyhow lost your visa or passport or other important documents. If any of these happens to you please register to the FRRO (Foreigners’ Regional Registration Office) or if you have already registered, please inform them. They can basically provide you with an extension of 14 days.
If you have applied through an agency or online tourist websites, they must have provided you with all the information or you can ask them. If you have applied via us, Tourist Visa Online, please contact here: support@touristvisaonline.com
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Requirements to apply for visa extension
There are some basic requirements and documents you need to provide for the visa extension.
1. Your visa and passport that you were travelling with. (In case if you have lost them, you need to provide other necessary documents)
2. You also need to provide your recent passport-sized photos.
3. In case of medical emergencies, you must provide a letter from the hospital.
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Details about Visa Extension
1. Basic extension for Foreigners: In case if after staying in India, any foreigner wants to extend the stay, they must appeal to the government at least 60 days before the expiry of the visa or the residential permit.
2. Overstay can be punishable: No foreigner is allowed for overstay even after the expiry date of the visa. Under act 1946, the person gets found with above-mentioned emergencies, he/she can end up in jail for 5 years and with a fine as well.
3. Late visa renewal: If any foreigner gets caught for a late visa or residential permit renewal, they'll be punished with a good amount of fine in Indian currency or the US $30 or can end up in jail as well.
- Special Cases
There are some special rare cases, where the government allows the extension with few facilities or one can even be allowed to change the visa type. Like:
1. If any foreigner marries an Indian, he/she can change the visa type to X visa which is one of the entry visas. This is mainly provided to the foreigners with Indian origin or anyhow related to an Indian. In this case, that person needs to provide all the required documents with a copy of the marriage certificate to the nearest police station and also register under FRRO.
2. Underaged foreigners with Indian origin (below 18 years) can change their tourist visa or student visa to X visa under any emergency or critical circumstances. 3. Foreigners with tourist visas under serious medical emergency situations are allowed to convert their visa type to a medical visa with the permission of Indian Ministry by providing a letter from the hospital the patient is assigned to.
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Visa Renewal
India visa just allows you to stay and visit India for a particular time, till the expiry date and that basically depends on your visa type. But if you want to stay longer, you must renew your visa. But the point you must note is that not all visas are allowed to renew.
Indian Visas that can be renewed: So here's the list of those visas that are allowed to be renewed by the Indian Government and FRRO.
1. Employment Visa: Employment visa is provided to the foreigners who are employed in Indian companies or organizations in specially authorised entities. They are allowed to renew their visa within the period and there's no need to travel back to their home country to renew it. But registration under FRRO is really important.
2. Student Visa: Extension of student visa is also allowed by the Indian Ministry. Usually, this visa has a validity of 5 years but if the student wants to extend his/her stay in India for further studies, there's no need to travel back to the home country, you can easily apply for India visa renewal.
- Where and how to renew the Visa
The most important thing is one need to apply for at least 60 days before the expiry date of the visa. In the case of the above-mentioned visas, you have to provide your identification proof like an employment identity card or student ID card of the respected organization or University. One can apply offline at the FRRO office and no agent is allowed in that case. Or one can apply for an online visa renewal at the Bureau of the immigration website. https://indianfrro.gov.in/eservices/home.jsp
Conclusion: You must provide all the required documents that you are asked for, in case of India Visa extension or renewal and it won't take a long time to proceed. This process may take a few hours or a day to be completed. And we are always here to guide you. For more queries please contact: support@touristvisaonline.com.
