Entry into India for health reasons requires a residence permit. This document must be issued by the competent authorities and requires a lot of steps. It must be issued for the patient and the accompanying person. It is called the Medical e-Visa. The steps to obtain this document certifying your entry into Indian territory will be done online if you want to enter the country by air or sea. For more information on the medical e-Visa and the procedures to follow, read this article.
Medical e-Visa: persons concerned and duration of validity
The e-Visa is aimed at people who wish to travel to India for treatment at one of the recognized hospitals in the country. Whether this person is the patient or just an accompanying person, they must have a visa application obtained online before traveling. If entry is by land, the request must be made directly to the consulate or embassy.
The e-Visa is valid for 120 days from the day it was issued to you. Please note that upon your first entry, you can stay in the country for a maximum of 60 days. However, you only have a maximum of 3 entries in these 60 days. In this case, it is therefore not possible to use the e-Visa to work, go sightseeing or settle down to live in India with this type of visa.
Processing time and method of obtaining the e-Visa
The processing time for obtaining the medical e-Visa will depend on the service requested. In fact, to take the necessary steps, you can go to the dedicated government platform or to the website of a private agency which offers this type of service.
The e-Visa will subsequently be sent to you by email in PDF format. After completing the form, you will receive an acknowledgment of receipt of payment. After this stage, the service will verify the file created and will take care of ordering the visa by transmitting it to the competent authorities. Once obtained, you must make a printout and keep it with you, as you will be asked for it upon your arrival and departure from Indian territory.
Airports and ports authorized under the electronic visa
Unlike the traditional visa, only certain ports and airports are accessible. In all, there are 5 ports and 31 airports that can accommodate e-Visa holders. The 5 ports are Cochin, Goa, Mangalore, Chennai and Mumbai. Among the airports, those of the above 5 cities will also be authorised.
Furthermore, certain areas are protected in India. If by chance the hospital center is in this area, the e-Visa holder must make an additional request. This request must be issued by local authorities. These so-called protected areas are located in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, Lakshadweep Islands, Mizoram, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Sikkim or Uttaranchal.
An agency service 