An open passport, its pages covered in visa and immigration stamps

12 questions, answered · checked 11 November 2026

Visas for Indian passport holders: what you need, and how early

An Indian passport opens fewer doors without paperwork than most, and the rules moved in 2026. Here is where Indians travel visa free, where a valid US or Schengen visa helps, how long the big visas take, and what to check on your passport before you book.

Which countries are visa free or visa on arrival for Indian passport holders in 2026-27?

Indian passport holders can enter 55 destinations without a prior visa, counting visa-free entry, visas on arrival and electronic travel authorities, on the Henley Passport Index of October 2026, which ranks India 84th. For a holiday the useful ones are the Maldives, Mauritius, Thailand, Indonesia, Bhutan and Fiji, with Sri Lanka, the Seychelles and Kenya needing a short online authorisation first. Rules move, so confirm on the country's own immigration site before paying for flights.

Thailand cut visa-free stays for Indians from 60 days to 30 days on 15 September 2026.
Malaysia's 30-day exemption is dated to 31 December 2026, so check before a 2027 trip.
The Maldives gives a tourist visa on arrival, but every traveller, children included, files the free IMUGA declaration online within 96 hours before landing.
Thailand asks every visitor to file its free digital arrival card online within the three days before arrival.

Holiday picks, not the full list, from the MEA list of 2 February 2026 with changes known to 11 November 2026. The MEA itself advises checking with each embassy.
Region	No visa before travel	Online step first
Indian Ocean	Mauritius, Maldives (visa on arrival)	Seychelles, Sri Lanka
South East Asia	Thailand, Malaysia (to 31 Dec 2026), Indonesia, Philippines (14 days)	Vietnam (e-visa)
Himalaya and the Caucasus	Bhutan (permit)	Azerbaijan (e-visa)
Africa	Rwanda, Zimbabwe	Kenya (eTA), Tanzania (e-visa)
Pacific and Caribbean	Fiji, Cook Islands, Barbados	None listed

Source: Ministry of External Affairs: visa facility for Indian nationals Source: Maldives Immigration: tourist visa on arrival

Which countries can Indians visit with a valid US, UK or Schengen visa?

Two countries confirm it on their own government sites: the Philippines admits Indians holding a valid US, UK or Schengen visa for 30 days visa free, and Turkey gives them a single-entry e-visa valid for one month. Argentina and Chile also ease entry for holders of a valid US visa. Other countries advertise similar concessions that change often, so check the country's own immigration page before booking. None of these visas admits you to the others' territory.

The Philippine 30 days cannot be extended; without such a visa, Indians get 14 days visa free.
Turkey's e-visa is applied for online at evisa.gov.tr before you fly, and conditions apply.
Carry the visa in the passport you travel on; a visa in an old, cancelled passport may not be accepted.
Lists compiled by third parties, including the Ministry of External Affairs, carry their own disclaimers; the destination's own page decides.

Read on each country's government site on 11 November 2026. The visa or residence permit must be valid on the day you enter. Check before booking.
Country	Visas accepted	What you get
Philippines	US, UK, Schengen, Japan, Australia, Canada, Singapore	30 days visa free, not extendable
Turkey	US, UK, Schengen, Ireland	Single-entry e-visa, valid one month

Source: Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs eVisa: visa policy for Indian nationals Source: Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs: visa information for foreigners

How long is the US B1/B2 visa wait in India, and how do I plan around it?

The wait for a US B1/B2 visitor visa interview in India runs from 7 to 12.5 months. The State Department's table, updated 21 October 2026, shows an average of 12.5 months in Mumbai, 10.5 in Hyderabad, 8.5 in Kolkata, 7.5 in Chennai and 7 in New Delhi. Plan a first US trip 12 to 14 months out, book the interview before anything else, and keep flights and hotels refundable until the visa is in the passport. Check the current wait before you apply.

The average counts the time from fee payment to interview for the previous month; the next-available column is the forecast.
New Delhi's next available appointment was 11 months out, longer than its 7-month average.
A refusal means a new application, a new fee and a new wait, so prepare the first file properly.
Once issued, a US visa also eases entry to the Philippines and Turkey.

B1/B2 interview waits, US Department of State, updated 21 October 2026.
Post	Average wait	Next available
Mumbai	12.5 months	12 months
Hyderabad	10.5 months	10.5 months
Kolkata	8.5 months	8.5 months
Chennai	7.5 months	7.5 months
New Delhi	7 months	11 months

Source: US Department of State: global visa wait times

Do Indians need a UK ETA or a visa, and how long does a UK visitor visa take?

Indians need a Standard Visitor visa, not an ETA. It costs £135 (about ₹17,000), allows stays of up to 6 months, and is usually decided within 3 weeks of your biometrics appointment. The ETA is only for nationalities that do not need a UK visa. The confusion comes from the word eVisa: a successful UK visa is now issued as a digital record called an eVisa, which is still a full visa you applied for.

The earliest you can apply is 3 months before you travel.
Frequent visitors can apply for 2-year (£506), 5-year (£903) or 10-year (£1,128) visas, each allowing 6 months per visit.
The fee is not refunded if the visa is refused or granted for a shorter period than requested.
Changing planes in the UK is a separate matter: Indians normally need a transit visa for that.

Source: GOV.UK: apply for a Standard Visitor visa

Which Schengen country is easiest for Indians to get a visa from, and what does multiple entry mean?

No Schengen country is officially easier: all 29 apply the same rules, the same €90 fee and the same 15-day decision time, which can stretch to 45 days. You must apply to the country where you will spend the most nights, or the first you enter if the nights are equal. A multiple-entry visa lets you come and go for as long as it is valid, within 90 days in any 180.

What does differ is how soon each visa centre has an appointment, so check slots before fixing the route.
Apply where you will really spend the most nights; an itinerary that does not match the visa invites questions at the border.
Indians who have used two Schengen visas in the previous three years can get a 2-year multiple-entry visa, then a 5-year one.
Apply 8 to 12 weeks ahead; the window opens 6 months before travel and closes 15 days before.

Read the full guide Source: European Commission: applying for a Schengen visa

What do Australia, Canada and New Zealand visitor visas cost for Indians, and how long do they take?

The government fees are from AUD 250 (about ₹16,250) for Australia, CAD 100 plus CAD 85 for biometrics for Canada, and from NZD 441 (about ₹23,000) for New Zealand. New Zealand says it decides 80 percent of visitor visas within 2 weeks. Australia and Canada publish live processing times on their own sites, and Canada's checker gives a figure for applications from India. Apply 8 to 10 weeks before you fly.

Australia's tourist stream allows stays of up to 12 months; New Zealand's visitor visa allows up to 6 or 9 months.
A Canadian visitor visa can be valid for up to 10 years, or until the passport or biometrics expire.
Visa application centres in India may add their own service charge to these fees.
Processing times are averages, not promises, so hold refundable flights until the visa is granted.

Fees read from the government sites on 11 November 2026; Canada's fee and live time are on canada.ca. Check each before you apply.
Country	Visa	Official fee	Official time
Australia	Visitor (subclass 600)	From AUD 250	See Home Affairs guide
Canada	Visitor visa	CAD 100 + CAD 85 biometrics	See the IRCC checker
New Zealand	Visitor Visa	From NZD 441	80% within 2 weeks

Source: Australian Home Affairs: Visitor visa (subclass 600), tourist stream Source: Immigration New Zealand: Visitor Visa

Do Indians need an airport transit visa to change planes in Frankfurt, Munich or Paris?

No, not since 2026. Germany lifted its airport transit visa requirement for Indian nationals on 3 June 2026, and France did the same for ordinary Indian passports on 10 April 2026. You can connect at Frankfurt, Munich or Paris on the way to a non-Schengen country without one, provided you stay inside the international transit area. Leaving the airport, or flying on to another Schengen city, still needs a full Schengen visa.

Other Schengen countries keep their own lists, so check the embassy page for any hub not named here.
Two separate tickets can force you through immigration to collect and re-check bags, which needs a Schengen visa.
Book both flights on one ticket so the bags are checked through and you never leave the transit area.

Source: German Missions in India: transit visa lifted for Indian nationals Source: Embassy of France in India: airport transit visa lifted

Do Indians need a transit visa to change planes in London or in the United States?

Usually yes for both. In the UK, Indians changing planes without passing border control need a Direct Airside Transit visa, which costs £41.50 (about ₹5,200), unless they hold a valid visa for the US, Canada, Australia or New Zealand, or a UK Standard Visitor visa. For the United States, Indians connecting through need a C transit visa, or can use a valid B1/B2 visitor visa.

Electronic visas count for the UK exemption only if your airline can verify them with the issuing country.
Passing through UK border control, for instance to change airports, needs a different visa; GOV.UK's checker answers for your exact route.
A US transit visa is a full application with a US$185 fee, so route another way if you hold no US visa.

Source: GOV.UK: check if you need a UK visa (India, transit)Source: US Department of State: transit visa

How much passport validity and how many blank pages do I need to travel abroad?

Keep at least 6 months of validity beyond your return date and at least 2 blank pages, and you will meet the rule almost everywhere. The Schengen rule is exact: the passport must be valid for 3 months after you leave the Schengen area, issued within the last 10 years, with two empty pages for the visa. The Philippines asks for 6 months beyond the stay. Check every traveller's passport before paying a deposit.

The UK asks only that the passport is valid for the whole of your stay.
Airlines check validity at the counter and can refuse boarding, so the rule applies before you reach immigration.
Renew through Passport Seva before applying for visas, so each visa sits in the passport you will travel on.
India's own e-gate programme, FTI-TTP, also needs 6 months of validity when you enrol.

Source: European Commission: applying for a Schengen visa Source: German Missions in India: Schengen tourism visa checklist

Can I travel abroad on a passport in my maiden name after marriage?

What decides it is matching: the airline ticket, the visa and every booking must carry exactly the name printed in the passport you travel on, spelling and order included. A mismatch, not the maiden name, is what causes trouble at check-in and immigration. To change the surname or add a spouse's name, Passport Seva asks you to apply for a re-issue of the passport; its document advisor lists what to submit for a change of name after marriage.

Book flights and apply for visas only after deciding which passport you will carry, and use its name everywhere.
Do not start a re-issue between the visa and the trip: a visa sits in the passport it was issued in.
Carry a copy of the marriage certificate if any hotel booking is in the married name.
If the name rule for a particular country worries you, ask its embassy before applying for the visa.

Source: Passport Seva: documents for re-issue of passport Source: Passport Seva: FAQ on changing personal particulars

What documents does a child need to travel abroad with only one parent?

A child travelling with one parent should carry three things beyond the passport and visa: the birth certificate, a signed consent letter from the parent who is not travelling, and a copy of that parent's passport. Visa offices ask for the same at application. Germany's Schengen checklist for India, for example, wants both parents to sign the minor's form, or a notarised authorisation from the absent parent, or proof of sole custody.

Where one parent has sole custody, the court order or the other parent's death certificate replaces the consent letter.
A minor travelling without either parent needs written consent from both, certified by a notary.
Have the consent letter notarised and carry the original; airlines and border officers may ask to see it.
Rules differ by country, so read the minors section of the embassy checklist before applying.

Source: German Missions in India: Schengen tourism visa checklist

What should I do if my visa is refused?

Read the refusal notice first. The fee is gone, but a refusal applies to that one application only, and you can apply again once you can answer the reason given. A Schengen refusal tells you why it was rejected and how to appeal. A US refusal under section 214(b) has no appeal: you reapply with a new form, a new fee and a new interview. Declare every past refusal truthfully on later applications.

Reapply when something has changed: stronger proof of funds, employment, ties to India or a clearer itinerary.
The US fee is a non-refundable processing fee, and the UK does not refund its visitor visa fee after a refusal either.
An appeal follows the refusing country's own timetable, so for fixed dates a fresh application may be the practical route.
TRIPN holds hotels on refundable terms until the visa is granted where possible, so a refusal does not cost the stay.

Source: European Commission: applying for a Schengen visa Source: US Department of State: visa denials

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