Foreign Nationals desirous of coming into India are required to possess valid passport of their respective country and a valid Indian Visa. There is no provision of visa on arrival in India and no fee is charged for immigration facilities at the airports. Foreign passengers should ensure that they are in possession of valid Indian visa before they start their journey to India.

However, there is a provision of granting TLF (Temporary Landing Facility) / TLP (Temporary Landing Permit) to allow entry of foreigners arriving in emergent situations like death/serious illness in the family, without an Indian Visa on cash payment of US$ 40/- (Indian Rupee equivalent) This facility can also be extended to transiting foreigners having confirmed onward journey tickets within 72 hours. Apart from this, foreign tourists in groups of four or more arriving by Air or Sea, sponsored by recognized Indian Travel Agencies and with a pre-drawn itinerary can be granted collective landing permit for a specified period of time on the written request of the Travel Agencies to the Immigration officer giving full personal and passport details of the group members and undertaking to conduct the group as per the itinerary and an assurance that no individual would be allowed to drop out from the group at any place. Depending upon the purpose of stay in India, there are different visa categories.

Category of Visas

Note: Change of purpose is not permitted once you have reached India. Depending on the nature of your journey, apply for the correct visa category.

TOURIST VISA: Valid for 6 months to 10 years. Ten (10) year visa is available only to US citizens under a bilateral arrangement. Irrespective of the duration of validity of visa, on each visit maximum period of stay in India is limited to 6 months (180 days). Multiple entry visas are given.
TRANSFER OF VISA: For transferring an Indian visa from an old passport to a new passport.  The regular visa application form with 2 photographs is required along with a fee of $25.
TRANSIT VISA: A transit visa is granted for the sole purpose of enabling the holder to travel through India to reach his/her ultimate destination. Change of purpose is not allowed. The visa will ordinarily be valid for a single/double journey and for entry within three months of date of issue. The Transit visa is valid for direct transit only for a maximum period of 3 days. Confirmed airline ticket for onward journey and valid visa for final destination are required.  For a stay in India beyond 3 days, an appropriate visa should be obtained.
ENTRY VISA: Valid for six months to five years stay with multiple entry is given only to persons of Indian origin. However, members of the family of a person employed in India are also eligible for Entry visa.
Documents:
 Visa application form is a fill able form. You can just enter the data right here in this form and print it. There is no need to write the details by hand.
1.Visa application form, if you would like to fill it by hand, visa application form should fill in legibly and clearly, in bold (capital) letters in black/blue ink only. Incomplete and illegible applications may not be processed.
Name and other relevant particulars should be filled in as per details in the passport in expanded form.
2. Passport, it should have a minimum validity of six months on the date of application with at least two blank pages.
3. Photographs, 2 latest identical passports size photographs (black/white or color) depicting front pose against light background.
4.  Supporting documents, if the visa being applied for is other than a Tourist Visa, the visa application should be accompanied with supporting documents on type of visa applied for.
For details, please see categories of visa given below.
5.Visa Fee. In case the applications are deposited in person at the counter, visa fee can be paid in cash or by Cashier's Check/Certified Check or Money Order.(PERSONAL CHECKS / CREDIT CARDS are not accepted)
Cashiers Check: You can get it at your bank. Depending upon the type of account you have, bank may charge you up to US $ 8 or nothing for making the cashier check.