India: New e-Group Visa for cruise passengers takes shape

India is moving forward with a new electronic travel procedure aimed at making entry easier for international cruise passengers.

In an article published on September 4, 2026, the Times of India revealed new details obtained from sources within India’s Ministry of Home Affairs about the “e-Group Visit Visa (Cruise).”

The new electronic visa is intended for groups of foreign tourists arriving in India aboard cruise ships operating on fixed, pre-arranged itineraries.

The visa itself is not entirely new. The Indian government had already officially confirmed its introduction on July 21, 2026.

In a statement outlining its Maritime India Vision 2030, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) said that an “e-Group Visit Visa” had been introduced to facilitate entry for groups of foreign tourists arriving by cruise ship.

At the time, however, authorities provided very few details on how the new system would work.

A 30-day multiple-entry electronic visa

According to the new information obtained by the Indian newspaper from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the e-Group Visit Visa (Cruise) will be valid for 30 days and allow multiple entries into India.

The multiple-entry feature is particularly suited to international cruise itineraries that may include several stops in India, with calls in other countries in between.

Visa holders will be able to enter India through the country’s 38 authorized seaports that currently accept travelers using the e-Visa system.

These include Mumbai, Cochin, Mormugao, Chennai, New Mangalore, Port Blair, Visakhapatnam, Kattupalli, Mundra, Kolkata, Kandla, Vizhinjam, Haldia, Hazira and Dahej, among others.

Cruise operators will submit applications on behalf of passengers

The new electronic visa will work quite differently from India’s individual tourist e-Visa.

Passengers will not be expected to complete separate applications themselves. According to the Times of India, the cruise operator or the ship’s agent will submit applications on behalf of eligible international passengers, using the portal or mobile application created for the process.

Passenger information will be submitted in batches and is expected to include:

• the traveler’s name;
• nationality;
• passport number;
• passport issue date;
• passport expiration date.

According to Ministry of Home Affairs sources cited by the newspaper, there will be no limit on the number of tourists who can be included in a single e-Group Visit Visa (Cruise) application.

The system is therefore designed to allow cruise lines and their agents to centralize immigration formalities for passengers before the ship arrives in India.

Applications must be submitted three days before arrival in India

Another key detail is the application deadline: the cruise line or its agent will have to submit the request three days before the vessel docks at its first Indian port.

According to information obtained by the Times of India, no new applications will be accepted after that deadline.

Operators will therefore need to collect passenger and passport information early enough to complete the process before the ship’s first call in India.

A QR code for immigration checks

Once approved, the e-Group Visit Visa will also include a QR code.

Passengers will be able to use the code during immigration checks at the port of entry and during subsequent travel in India as part of the cruise’s pre-arranged itinerary.

The measure is part of India’s broader effort to digitize entry procedures for cruise passengers.

In its July 21 announcement, the Indian government said it had already introduced a QR code-based immigration clearance system, along with an option for Enroute Immigration Clearance while vessels are underway.

According to the authorities, these measures can reduce processing time to approximately 30 seconds per passenger.

The new group visa is not yet available on the official portal

Despite the newly disclosed details, the e-Group Visit Visa (Cruise) is not yet listed among the available procedures on the official Indian Visa Online portal, according to checks carried out by the travel-documentation experts at VisasNews and Action-Visas.

The government platform currently allows travelers to apply for existing categories of Indian e-Visas, but there is no dedicated “e-Group Visit Visa” or “e-Group Visit Visa (Cruise)” option available at this time.

The program has therefore been officially announced and several of its main rules are now known, but applications for the new group visa are not yet open through the public portal.

No official launch date for the service has been announced so far.

174 countries and regions are currently eligible for India’s e-Visa

The Times of India reports that the new e-Group Visit Visa will be available to nationals of the 172 countries currently eligible for India’s e-Tourist Visa. One point, however, deserves clarification.

The official Indian Visa Online portal currently lists 174 countries and regions whose passport holders are eligible for India’s e-Visa system. The government list, which currently runs from Albania to Zimbabwe, includes the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, France, Belgium and Switzerland, among many others.

The difference between the 172 countries cited by the newspaper and the 174 countries and regions currently shown on the general e-Visa portal will therefore need to be clarified once the authorities publish the specific rules governing the new group visa.

India seeks to significantly expand cruise tourism

The new visa facility is part of New Delhi’s broader strategy to attract more international cruise lines and passengers to Indian ports.

Under the Maritime India Vision 2030, the government is targeting 1,000 cruise ship calls, up from 224 during the 2025-2026 fiscal year, according to figures released by the Indian government.

Authorities have also upgraded several international cruise terminals, digitized some customs procedures, introduced faster immigration clearance systems and implemented other measures aimed at making operations easier for cruise lines.

India’s Ministry of Home Affairs sees streamlined entry procedures as one way to encourage international cruise companies to add more Indian ports to their itineraries.

A ministry official quoted by the Times of India said that “easier visa and immigration procedures will encourage international cruise companies to include Indian ports in their itineraries.”

According to the same official, the measure is also expected to generate greater economic benefits for ports as well as hotels, restaurants, transportation operators, travel agencies and local communities.

The e-Group Visit Visa is therefore one of several tools India is using to make its ports easier to incorporate into international cruise itineraries and support the continued expansion of the country’s cruise tourism sector.