Visa on Arrival for US Tourists: How Does India Benefit?

After a spectacular victory in the election, our new Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has been working diligently towards strengthening bonds with our foreign allies. One of the biggest steps towards this mission that he has undertaken is the announcement of the Visa on Arrival facility for the US citizens. The country has been working on this proposal for quite some time and the final declaration is expected to be released during the PM’s US visit. The Indian Prime Minister will be moving to the US for a five-day visit which will begin on the 26th of September.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has been going extra miles for finishing the work on the Tourist VoA proposal before the US summit. This facility will enable the US citizens with no residence or occupation in India to visit the country for the purpose of recreation, sight-seeing, leisure activities etc. A 30-day visa will be granted to them upon their arrival.

At first, the VoA facility was introduced for only five countries in January 2010. But now it is available to the citizens of 12 countries including Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia and South Korea.

Boost to tourism

India and the US have been strategic partners for a long time now. Nonetheless, neither of the two had had any such facility for each other. In such a case, the announcement on the VoA facility for the US citizens will prove to a rewarding step towards strengthening bilateral ties between the nations. Besides, it will also give a tremendous boost to the tourism sector. If estimated, the annual in-flow of US tourists to India comes to around ten lakhs. The VoA facility will catalyze this flow to a greater level, thereby generating a hike in the injection of foreign exchange in the Indian economy.

Prime Minister’s visit to the US holds great importance for both the nations. It is indeed a golden opportunity for both the nations to revitalize the frayed ties between them. The introduction of the VoA facility for US at this time will definitely have a beneficial impact on the Indo-US ties. After the case about the Indian diplomat being arrested, the relations between both the countries had soared to some extent. India’s relationship with the US needed some rekindling and this announcement will prove to be the perfect shot in the arm!