Home Ministry Slashes India Visa Categories to 9 and Shrinks Forms by 70%

NEW DELHI — The Indian government dismantled decades of consular red tape on Thursday.

The Ministry of Home Affairs slashed the country's visa architecture from 13 primary categories down to nine, collapsing 49 fragmented sub-categories into just 23. Bureaucratic paperwork faced an equal pruning. After benchmarking visa systems across developed nations, officials stripped out 65 to 70 per cent of all questions across visa application forms.

The overhaul represents the second phase of an administrative cleanup that began in October 2025. It targets foreign tourists, corporate executives, medical patients, and researchers who have long navigated India’s cumbersome entry rules.

Replacing Tourist Permits with the Multi-Purpose Visitor Visa

Under the restructured regime, the standard Tourist Visa ceases to exist.

In its place stands the newly created Visitor Visa, engineered to legally shelter multiple short-term activities under a single entry document. The category splits into two distinct tracks: V-1 and V-2.

The V-1 permit grants a 30-day stay with multiple entries. Beyond conventional sightseeing, foreign travelers can use the V-1 visa to attend business meetings, undergo medical consultations, enroll in short-duration wellness retreats, or take casual classes in Indian music, local languages, art, crafts, and yoga. The V-2 visa caters to longer stays, offering validity periods of one, five, or 10 years depending on applicant eligibility. It absorbs every activity permitted under the V-1 track while adding formal clearance for mountaineering expeditions, backed by a dedicated six-month multiple-entry provision.

Foreign travelers will no longer risk regulatory violations if they combine an executive meeting with a wellness retreat during a single trip.

Restructured Medical and Attendant Categories Under 'Heal in India'

Medical visas received a structural overhaul to support the central government’s 'Heal in India' campaign.

The framework splits medical clearance into two tracks. The M-1 visa governs conventional medical treatment, while the M-3 visa handles inbound patients seeking traditional healthcare under AYUSH systems. Both visas—alongside their electronic variants—now carry a default one-year validity backed by multiple entries.

Foreign patients will no longer need to file repeated visa applications for post-operative reviews, routine consultations, or protracted treatment regimens.

Attendants receive dedicated legal coverage. The government designated the M-2 visa exclusively for caregivers accompanying M-1 patients, while the M-4 visa covers attendants assisting patients under AYUSH treatment.

Streamlining Student Visas and Technical Business Permits

Academic and corporate corridors saw similar structural consolidations.

The revised Student Visa framework groups foreign academics into S-1 and S-2 tiers. The S-1 category covers primary, secondary, undergraduate, and postgraduate degree programs. Foreign students securing admission through the government's centralized Study in India portal can now obtain an e-S1 visa valid for up to five years or the exact duration of their degree, whichever is shorter, with multiple entries permitted. The S-2 category accommodates doctoral candidates, research scholars, visiting faculty, scientific expeditions, internships, and institutional student exchange programs.

Corporate mobility has been condensed into B-1 and B-2 streams. The B-1 visa applies to long-term commercial activities, including overseas entrepreneurs looking to incorporate and establish industrial or commercial operations in India. The B-2 visa governs short-term, contract-driven commercial engagements, spanning production investments, academic conferences, sports tournaments, cultural performances, and commercial film shoots.

The revised B-2 category also carves out direct provisions for overseas subject-matter experts and engineers hired by Indian enterprises. Specialists entering India for machinery installation, plant commissioning, equipment maintenance, technical diagnostics, quality audits, IT and ERP integration, supply chain engineering, or technical workforce training can secure a Production Investment Business Visa directly through the e-visa portal—retiring the older e-B4 categorization.