Citizens of Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand and Singapore will soon be able to obtain visa on arrival India.
According to Indian tourism ministry officials, details of the new scheme is now being worked out and is expected to be implemented early next year. The government will be pilot testing the service for one year.
The five countries are chosen based on their potential as a visitor source markets for the subcontinent.
"We hope that visa on arrival facility will give a fillip to foreign tourist arrivals. We have kept security concerns in mind before restricting the facility to these five countries,'' a ministry source told local media.
India has been trying to ease visa rules to boost visitor numbers in the country without compromising security. Since 2006, it has been issuing long-term entry visa to 18 countries including France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Belgium, Finland, Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Vietnam.
Gigi Onag
