Comments on: Why I Hate the Indian Bureaucracy

By: Jillian

Jillian — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:49:14 +0000

We got a 10 year multiple entry India visa in DC for $135. It was outsourced, we completed our application online and if I remember correctly we picked it up a few days later. Couldn't have been easier!

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:12:00 +0000

Hey Geoff – that certainly sounds convoluted. And you're not even an American!

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:10:51 +0000

I figured that experience in Kathmandu was for the record books. The funny thing is it created a whole new way to meet other travelers. I ran into an English guy I'd first met a month earlier trekking in the Annapurna region.

By: GlobalButterfly

GlobalButterfly — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:02:03 +0000

I just did the same thing for my Brasil visa! I don't want to have to worry about getting another one for years to come.

By: GlobalButterfly

GlobalButterfly — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:01:05 +0000

Wow, that sounds really intense! I just don't get it sometimes...I feel like the world is everyone's home. Why are there visas and passports and boundaries and state lines??? Grrr!!!

I hope it all worked out in the end for you?

Haha, love the Frida quote btw, she's one of my faves. :)

By: Lauren, Ephemerratic

Lauren, Ephemerratic — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:57:30 +0000

Not $90 bucks total, $90 bucks more than the 6 month visa. So, essentially, if you are renewing your US passport and like to travel, get the 10 year India visa. Cost breakdown by duration here: https://indiavisa.travisaoutsourcing.com/consul...

By: Geoff

Geoff — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:32:08 +0000

Yep. Indonesia only gives 30 day visas on arrival. If you want 60 days, you have to apply in advance at the Indonesian embassy.

But once a visa is issued, you need to enter the country within 90 days.

Given I wasn't planning to get to Indonesia until nearly 8 months after leaving the UK, there was no way I could apply for a visa in London before leaving.

So instead, I went to the consulate in Melbourne. And they won't give me a 60 day visa because British citizens can only 60 day visas if they apply in Britain.

So it turns out to be impossible for me to get a 60 day visa. It's stupid. I want to spend 60 days in their country, I'll be spending money the whole time, which surely would be of some benefit to the country, and yet they make it impossible for me. I hate that kind of bureaucracy. So instead it looks like I'll be spending my money somewhere else!

By: ShannonOD

ShannonOD — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:29:18 +0000

That's awesome! I couldn't have outlined my own process any more succinctly – I had the exact same situation :-) Ahh, India…

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:55:12 +0000

Shannon – I know the process you speak of. I detailed the insanity of the week-long Indian Visa process in Kathmandu in this post:
http://www.gobackpacking.com/Blog/2008/05/15/ho...

It was the first time I've bribed an embassy worker/guard, but it was worth it.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:52:24 +0000

Wow, Lauren, $90! That is definitely the deal of the Indian century. I hadn't heard of country's outsourcing the processing of Visas. Where was that?

By: ShannonOD

ShannonOD — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:54:30 +0000

Oh man, I had my own “tear-out-hair” Indian visa issues in Kathmandu and it made me supremely anxious my last days in the country and I ended up paying some sort of bribe to the embassy in Kathmandu just to get it sorted out! I'm right there with you! :-)

By: Lauren, Ephemerratic

Lauren, Ephemerratic — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:59:38 +0000

Too bad that happened. I got my Indian visa at home, and, being a budget-minded backpacking American, was able to get a 10 year visa for just $90 more than the 6 month one. The process couldn't have been easier either since the Indian Embassy has outsourced it's visa fulfillment. Yes, India outsourced something – how the tables have turned.

And, since India is one of my favorite countries, I know I'll be back to India again and again in the next 10 years. Talk about a bargain!