Indian Tourist Visa From UK Complete Guide Fee Reequipment and Processing Time 2026
Booked your flights to India and then realised you have no idea where to start with the visa? You’re not alone. Every year, thousands of UK travellers leave it until the last fortnight before their trip to sort out their Indian tourist visa from UK, only to discover the application needs a specific type of passport photo, a scanned copy of their passport, and a few working days to process. The good news: if you know what you’re doing, getting an e-Visa India from UK sorted is genuinely one of the more straightforward visa processes out there.
This guide walks you through exactly how to apply for an Indian tourist visa from the UK — costs, documents, timings, and the mistakes worth avoiding.
What Is an Indian Tourist Visa and Do You Actually Need One?
Unless you hold an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, you will need a visa to enter India as a British passport holder — there’s no visa-free or visa-on-arrival route for UK nationals. This is confirmed directly by the UK government, which states that you must have a visa to visit India unless you are an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder, and that India operates a number of different visa categories depending on your reason for travel.
For holidaymakers and people visiting family, the relevant category is the e-Tourist Visa, part of India’s wider e-Visa scheme. It’s an electronic visa (also called an Electronic Travel Authorisation, or ETA) that you apply for entirely online — no trip to a visa centre required for most applicants. There’s also a traditional “regular” paper visa, processed through an Indian Visa Application Centre, but the e-Tourist Visa covers almost every leisure traveller and is far quicker.
Who Is Eligible?
British nationals are on the approved list of nationalities for India’s e-Visa scheme. To qualify for the e-Tourist Visa, your trip needs to be for recreation, sightseeing, a casual visit to friends or relatives, a short course (such as yoga, cooking, or local arts), short-term medical treatment, or attending a conference. People with a Pakistani background (including dual British-Pakistani nationals or anyone with a Pakistani-born parent or grandparent) are not eligible for the e-Visa and must apply for a regular visa through an Indian Mission instead.
Requirements for an Indian Tourist Visa From UK
Before you even open the application form, it’s worth checking you meet the basic requirements for Indian tourist visa from UK. According to GOV.UK’s official travel advice, your passport must have an expiry date at least 6 months after the date you arrive in India, and have at least 2 blank pages. You’ll be refused entry without a valid travel document, so if your passport is getting close to expiry, sort a renewal first.
You’ll also need:
One more thing worth knowing before you travel: India also requires an online e-arrival card. As GOV.UK explains, foreign nationals arriving in India must complete an e-arrival card online before reaching immigration, which can be done up to 72 hours before arrival, and this is separate from your visa — completing the e-arrival card does not replace the need for a valid visa or OCI card.
Indian Tourist Visa From UK Cost What You’ll Actually Pay
This is usually the first thing people search for, and fair enough — visa pricing can be confusing because India sets fees on a reciprocal, country-by-country basis. Here’s what UK applicants pay for the e-Tourist Visa in 2026, according to the official fee schedule published on the Indian government’s e-Visa portal:
| e-Tourist Visa type | Fee for UK nationals (USD) |
|---|---|
| 30-day e-Tourist Visa (April–June) | $10 |
| 30-day e-Tourist Visa (July–March) | $25 |
| 1-year e-Tourist Visa | $40 |
| 5-year e-Tourist Visa | $484 |
These figures come straight from the official e-Tourist Visa fee table, published by India’s Bureau of Immigration. On top of the headline fee, the same source confirms that a bank transaction charge of 3% is applied additionally on top of the applicable e-Visa fee, so factor that small surcharge into your budget. It’s worth flagging that the 5-year visa fee for UK nationals (currently $484) is notably higher than for many other nationalities, reflecting the reciprocal pricing structure between the UK and India — most UK tourists travelling for a single trip or short series of trips will find the 30-day or 1-year option far better value.
If you’re applying through a third-party agency rather than directly, you’ll often see extra “service fees” added on top of the government charge — sometimes a lot extra. There’s no requirement to use one of these services, and the official portal explicitly warns against unscrupulous intermediaries charging for “express” processing, since the Government of India makes no provision for charging any emergency or additional fee for an emergency or express e-visa.
How to Apply for an Indian Tourist Visa From UK Step by Step
Wondering how can I apply for Indian tourist visa from UK? Here’s the process, start to finish.
Step 1: Go to the Official e-Visa India Website
Apply only through the e-Visa India official website: indianvisaonline.gov.in. This is the only legitimate portal — the site itself warns that no other website is authorised to process e-Visa applications, and that services of the e-Visa are completely online and no facilitation is required by any intermediary or travel agent. Be wary of similarly named third-party sites that charge inflated “service fees” while pretending to be official.
Step 2: Complete the Online Application Form
You’ll fill in your personal details, passport information, and travel plans. The process is reasonably quick — the official site itself notes that the entire process, including filling the form and making payment, normally takes between 10 and 15 minutes.
Step 3: Upload Your Photo and Passport Scan
You’ll need to upload a recent digital photograph and a scanned copy of your passport’s bio-data page. Both have strict formatting rules (see the section below), so it’s worth double-checking these before you submit — a poor-quality photo or scan is one of the most common reasons applications get bounced back for resubmission.
Step 4: Pay the e-Visa India Fee
Payment is taken securely online by debit or credit card. Remember the 3% bank charge on top of the headline fee.
Step 5: Wait for Your Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)
Once submitted, your application is reviewed and you’ll be emailed your visa decision. If approved, you’ll receive your Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) by email.
Step 6: Download e-Visa India and Print It
Once you’ve got the “Granted” confirmation, download your e-Visa documentation and print a copy to carry with you — you’ll need to present it on arrival, and immigration officers will stamp it into your physical passport.
Documents Required for Indian Tourist Visa From UK
The full list of documents required for Indian tourist visa from UK applicants is short but needs to be exact:
That’s it for most tourists — no bank statements, no itinerary, no hotel bookings required for the standard e-Tourist Visa, although it’s sensible to have proof of accommodation and return travel to hand in case you’re asked at the border.
How Long Does It Take to Get an Indian Tourist Visa From UK?
A common question — and a fair one if you’re planning close to your travel dates. Officially, applicants must apply at least 4 days before their date of arrival, and most decisions come through well within that window; many applicants report hearing back within 72 hours. You can apply up to 120 days ahead for the 1-year and 5-year visas, or up to 30 days ahead for the 30-day e-Tourist Visa.
That said, don’t cut it fine. Apply at least a week or two before you fly to leave room for any document re-uploads if your photo or scan gets queried — the portal will email you if something needs fixing, and you’ll usually get 24 hours’ notice to correct it before your travel date approaches.
Validity and How Long You Can Stay
Once granted, your e-Tourist Visa allows multiple entries and a maximum combined stay of 180 days in any one calendar year if you’ve taken the 1-year or 5-year option. The 30-day version allows two entries within its 30-day window from your first arrival. None of the e-Visa categories can be extended or converted to another visa type once you’re in India, so if your plans change significantly, you’ll need to leave the country and reapply.
Common Mistakes That Delay or Reject Applications
A handful of avoidable errors cause most of the rejections and delays UK applicants run into:
Apply for Indian Visa Online or via the Regular Route?
For the vast majority of UK tourists, the online e-Visa is simpler, cheaper, and faster than the alternative. The regular paper visa route requires booking an appointment at an Indian Visa Application Centre (these operate in London, Birmingham, and Edinburgh), submitting physical documents, and waiting longer for processing — generally only worth considering if you’re not eligible for the e-Visa category that matches your travel purpose, or if you’re applying for a visa type the e-Visa scheme doesn’t cover (such as long-term work or journalism visas).
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Final Tips Before You Travel
A couple of housekeeping points GOV.UK flags that are easy to overlook: it’s illegal to overstay your visa in India, and if you’re planning to stay longer than 180 days, you’ll need to register with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office within 14 days of arrival. Also keep an eye on the FCDO’s wider travel advice for India, which covers safety, local laws, and any regions currently subject to travel warnings, separately from the visa process itself.
Once your e-Visa is granted, your main job is simple: keep a printed and digital copy of your ETA, double-check your passport meets the validity rules, and complete the separate e-arrival card within 72 hours of your flight. Get those basics right, and the rest of your trip-planning can be the fun part.
