India’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has reduced its main visa categories from 13 to 9 and sub-categories from 49 to 23, effective in 2026, renaming the Tourist Visa to Visitor Visa. The new Visitor Visa is split into two sub-categories, V-1 and V-2, to better cover a range of activities including tourism, business, and medical purposes.
The MHA has cut the number of required fields in visa application forms by approximately 65-70% across all categories, aiming to reduce paperwork while retaining essential information. This measure is designed to speed up the application process and enhance administrative efficiency by allowing
officials to focus more on scrutiny and processing of applications.
Details of Visitor Visa Categories
The Visitor Visa V-1 targets short-term visits lasting up to 30 days with multiple entries. It enables holders to engage in tourism, business meetings, medical consultations, wellness retreats, short-term medical treatments, and cultural courses like Indian languages and arts. The V-2 visa accommodates longer stays of one, five, or ten years validity depending on eligibility and permits all activities allowed under V-1, along with mountaineering, which is issued as a six-month multiple-entry visa.
Medical and Student Visa Adjustments
Medical Visas are categorized as M-1 for non-AYUSH treatments and M-3 for AYUSH therapies, both typically valid
for one year with multiple entries. Accompanying attendants can obtain M-2 or M-4 visas linked respectively to M-1 and M-3 patients. These changes support patients who require multiple consultations or follow-ups.
The Student Visa is divided into S-1 for school, undergraduate, and postgraduate education, and S-2 for PhD researchers, faculty, internships, and exchange programs. International students admitted through the Study in India portal may qualify for an e-S1 visa, valid up to five years or the duration of their course, allowing multiple entries.
Business Visa and Technical Expert Provisions
Business Visas now have two categories: B-1 for long-term investments and business activities, and B-2 for short-term
contractual activities such as conferences, sports events, and film-related work. Foreign technical experts, engineers, and specialists engaged in production investment activities can apply under B-2 through the e-Visa platform, a category that replaces the previous e-B4 visa.
Implementation Timeline and E-Visa Availability
The MHA is updating its IT systems to implement these changes, with visa issuance under the new framework expected to begin by the end of 2026. The e-Visa facility currently covers nationals from 172 countries, providing electronic travel authorizations under 13 sub-categories aligned with the updated system.
These reforms stem from studies comparing global visa systems and aim to remove overlapping visa categories.
The government’s objective is to simplify visa selection, improve security, and enhance overall administrative efficiency while encouraging medical tourism aligned with the Prime Minister’s ‘Heal in India’ initiative.
The MHA stated the visa regime simplification reduces categories and application complexity to better serve foreign nationals visiting India. The ministry expects these changes to assist tourists, students, medical visitors, and business travelers by clarifying visa categories and easing application burdens.
The reduction in visa categories and application fields is projected to streamline the visa process, improve clarity for applicants, and facilitate visits for those combining tourism with business, medical, or cultural
activities.
