Indian High Comm explains visa fee confusion, says new rate for newly-introduced one-year visa
KUALA LUMPUR: There will be no changes to the existing rate for the six-month multiple entry Indian tourist visa, said the Indian High Commission today.
A spokesman said the Indian High Commission had introduced a new tourist visa, where effective April 1, this year, where travellers can opt for the one-year multiple entry visa.
This newly introduced multiple entry tourist visa (for more than six months and up to one year), he said, costs RM456, while the present visa rate for six months will be maintained at RM188.
“That is the confusion here (over the existing and newly introduced tourist visa duration). Previously, the maximum duration for a tourist visa was only for six months.
“We still continue to issue the six months multiple entry visa. Now, in a move to bring in more comfort to Malaysian tourists visiting India, we have introduced the one-year multiple entry tourist visa.
“That is the new rate. But the six months tourist visa rate is the same. Travellers now have the flexibility to opt for the maximum six-month or one-year multiple entry tourist visa,” he told the New Straits Times today.
MIC president Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam had expressed his disappointment via the social media over the high rate to the Indian High Commission.
“I have conveyed our unhappiness to the Indian High Commissioner on the visa increase proposed by the Indian government.
“He has told me that he has directed that the visa rate for tourist for less than six months be maintained at the previous rates (without any increase) and he will review all the other proposals on his return to Malaysia from New Delhi.
“I had a discussion with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak on this and he will ensure that our concerns are registered with the Indian Minister of External Affairs.
“I, like all other Malaysians, am disappointed that whilst we are making it easier for Indian tourists to visit Malaysia, the Indian government is, on the other hand, making it more expensive for Malaysians who travel to India, particularly for religious reasons.” he wrote on Facebook.
For more information on Indian visa rates, visit http://www.indianhighcommission.com.my/visa_service_new.html#
