After nearly 18 months of closure, India finally opened its borders to fully vaccinated foreign tourists on October 15.
The Home Ministry announced that tourist visas would be issued to those arriving on chartered flights first, whereas travelers on commercial flights would start getting their visas approved from November.
“Foreign tourists entering into India by flights other than chartered aircraft would be able to do so only with effect from November 15, on fresh Tourist Visas,” said a statement from the Home Ministry. Until then, only dedicated cargo flights and commercial flights agreed on in bilateral air bubble pacts will be operating.
Government data shows that international travelers brought in $30 billion (€25.87 billion) in foreign exchange in 2019. After the pandemic and resulting lockdown, earnings fell by over 76%, down to around $7 billion in 2020.
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