BA promotes new e-visa access to India for UK, Irish and many other citizens
 

This has popped up today on BA.com

India has finally added UK citizens to the list of countries that can apply for visas online. In theory this could be done 4 days before travel, but I'd add at least a week to that at least for the time being, it's not like the USA system, there are passport documents that need to be uploaded and I suspect a human being will actually look at them!

It's for 2 single entry visits a year, each with 30 days on them, so currently quite restricted, but I anticipate relaxations will occur down the line.

I'm a huge fan of India, if you have never been then do so before you get too old to appreciate her vastness, her beauty, her diversity. I have family who have lived near Darjeeling since colonial times, and so this is a major improvement for my travels there. India is now BA's second most lucrative market and has a consistency for pulling in cash that other areas don't have, so I'm sure BA will be very pleased with this outcome. Now, when is BA's 787 service to Calcutta going to start.....

India is somewhere I've always fancied (mainly because of its huge rail network, and I am an avid rail enthusiast) but never actually plucked up the courage to go. This development in terms of getting a visa may actually inspire me to go!

On a related note, although perhaps slightly OT, I have recently had cause to call BA outside of the UK and US office hours and although I called the Singapore number I ended up speaking to agents in the India call centre. Contrary to some of the opinions expressed on here I have to say that I found the service exemplary. The three different agents I spoke to were able to help immediately with my queries and were extremely professional, polished, and competent. That said, the agent I spoke with last night found it hilarious that the taxes on an Avios redemption for two AA flights in F were only GBP 3.60, the lowest amount she'd ever collected :)

Great news!

Splendid! I just paid over $500 for my 2 year multiple-entry business visa. I typically go once a year for 4-5 days.

EDIT: $513.97 to be precise :(

And just to add, the cost of this is also cheaper than the previous system, which was £90 with potential add ons taking it over a ton, and travel costs for the visa processing centre. Now it's £38, or rather USD60.

I'd second what C-W-S says, India is an amazing place to visit, so diverse and one of my favourite counties to visit,

The visa change will make a massive difference to families heading to India on holiday, both in terms of cost and hassle. Just in time for my next holiday there in October!

BA fly to pretty much all the major cities (regrettably excluding Calcutta) but with a good domestic air market you no longer need to take long overnight train journeys to get around (although that in itself has its charm)

India is somewhere on my bucket list- I watched a 3 part documentary on the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and was completely taken. When I save up enough money to stay there- I'm planning on doing 14 days. Seems like such a fascinating country with ample culture and amazing history.

Bitter sweet having just returned from VF Global where I handed over £98 for some form pushing and a sticky in my passport!

Can't say I have any desire to go. Went once and had an awful experience :/

BA used to fly to Calcutta until quite recently. Last time I was there was 2007 and I think BA dropped the route the following year.

I am not sure why as Calcutta is an interesting city. It is/was struck in a bit of a time warp - it was rather like Bombay used to be 20 years ago. Perhaps that didn't equate to a profitable, business-oriented route.

It would be good to see BA return. The other sub-continent route dropped with Calcutta was Dhaka. Not sure if BA plan to return there as well.

Well all the competition was on that route, KLM and Lufthansa were also there, but all the western airlines gradually pulled out, BA included, so that in the end it became an Air India monopoly. Not assisted by the state government being avowedly anti capitalist, leading to disrupted operations at CCU.

However I've been lobbying all the hobnobs in BA to restore the service at every opportunity, including the chairman a mere 2 days ago. None of them have said no yet! I'm sure 787 and MF, with good USA connections, would make it financially successful.

Until March 2009. Here's an interesting article about BA's withdrawal from the city.

http://archive.indianexpress.com/new...eturns/440731/

Don't feel too bad, the new program is only for tourist visas, not business visitor visas...

It allows for a number of things including:

"International Travellers whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation , sight seeing , casual visit to meet friends or relatives, short duration medical treatment or casual business visit."

I'm not entirely sure the definition of casual business but I suspect it does fit my requirement as I meet with our software development partners out there and discuss ongoing project work.

I'll get over it though.

Excellent timing - having recently got married to a Brit with no Indian connections (I'm covered by India's now-terminated, but still valid PIO scheme), this will be a significant time and cost saving ...

Do note: you can't actually apply for a visa until 30+4 days before your arrival date into India (which as one of the BA flights arrives in the early hours of the morning in BOM is a fine distinction).