India Cuts Visa Categories From 13 To 9, Reduces Application Form Fields By Up To 70%

The government has streamlined India's visa framework, reducing the number of main visa categories from 13 to nine and sub-categories from 49 to 23, while cutting the information required in application forms by 65-70 per cent to make the process simpler for foreign nationals.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), in a statement on Wednesday, said the changes are aimed at making the visa regime more compact, coherent and responsive to the requirements of foreign visitors. The latest rationalisation, implemented on August 27, follows an earlier exercise in October 2025, when the government reduced the main visa categories from 22 to 13.

The revised framework consolidates similar travel purposes to provide greater clarity and ease in selecting the appropriate visa category. The Tourist Visa has been renamed the Visitor Visa, with two sub-categories V-1 and V-2 covering short-term activities and longer-duration visits.

The Business Visa category has also been streamlined into B-1 and B-2. While B-1 covers long-term, licence-based business activities, B-2 caters to short-term, contract-based engagements, including conferences, sports, films and production investment-related activities.

A specific provision has been introduced under B-2 for foreign technical experts, engineers and specialists engaged by Indian companies in production, installation, maintenance, training and technology transfer.

The Medical Visa framework retains separate provisions for conventional and AYUSH treatments, with both categories offering one-year multiple-entry validity as the default option.

The MHA said the reduction in application form fields would lower the time and effort required from applicants while improving administrative efficiency and facilitating more focused scrutiny. The government is currently updating its IT systems to implement the changes, with visas under the revised framework expected to be granted by the end of 2026.