When you plan a trip to India, the travel visa India duration, the length of time foreign visitors are legally allowed to stay in India on a tourist visa. Also known as India tourist visa validity, it’s not just a number—it’s the foundation of your whole trip. Most travelers get a 180-day tourist visa, but that doesn’t mean you can stay the full time. Rules change based on your nationality, visa type, and even the season. The Indian government doesn’t make this simple, and online info is often outdated or confusing. You don’t need a lawyer to figure it out—you just need the real, current details.
Related to this are the India visa rules, the official guidelines that control entry, length of stay, and renewal options for foreign visitors. These rules are strict about overstay penalties, but they’re surprisingly flexible if you plan ahead. For example, US citizens can now get e-visas valid for up to five years with multiple entries—but each stay is still capped at 180 days. That means you can come and go, but you can’t just settle in for a year. And if you’re from the UK, Canada, or Australia, your visa might look different, even if the duration seems the same. Then there’s the visa validity India, the window during which your visa can be used to enter the country, not how long you can stay inside. A visa might be valid for a year, but you’re only allowed to stay 90 or 180 days per visit. People mix these up all the time—and end up with fines or entry bans.
What you’ll find in the posts below isn’t just theory. Real travelers share what happened when they tried to extend their stay in Kerala, got stuck in Delhi because they didn’t know about the 30-day rule for some nationalities, or skipped a visa renewal and got lucky. Others explain how they used the 180-day window to bike from Ladakh to Kerala without rushing. You’ll see how the travel visa India duration shapes everything—from your itinerary to your budget to whether you book a one-way ticket or round-trip. No fluff. No vague advice. Just what actually works.
Get the full breakdown on how long it takes for U.S. citizens to get an Indian visa, what affects processing time, and handy tips for faster approval.