In India work visa is issued for six months, up to five years, and is of the following two categories:
1. Business Visa
A Business Visa is issued to those individuals who plan to go to India for the following work purposes:
2. Employment Visa
An Employment Visa is granted to those individuals who will migrate to India if they work in an MNC and take up a post in an Indian branch of their company. People tasked with overseeing a project or working as consultants in the Iron and Steel industries, or the Power sector are also issued an Employment Visa.
This visa is also granted to individuals if they will be working in an NGO in India. However, they must draw a salary of a minimum of 10,000 INR per month to be eligible for this visa.
In India, work visa applications have an option of a Single Entry Visa or a Multiple Entry Visa. The latter offers you the chance to leave and re-enter India for the duration of the stay if you need to leave India for work or personal reasons.
In India, work visa applications also give you the option to apply for an extension. The application for extension is handled by the Bureau of Immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
In all other districts where a Registration Officer is not appointed, the process will be under the jurisdiction of District Superintendents of Police.
Those foreigners applying for an Employment Visa, whose stay period extends beyond 180 days, mandatorily have to register themselves. Likewise, if you enter India on a Business Visa and your aggregate stay in a calendar year extends beyond 180 days, you will also have to register yourself.
This registration process should be undertaken within 14 days from the day of your arrival in India. While there is no registration charge in the first 14 days, there is a penalty fee as a late registration charge. In addition, there is also a penalty for overstay and non-registration. The information for all these charges and their stipulations can be found here.
A work permit in India for foreigners is issued on the condition that the employee’s company is already registered in India. Your Employment Visa application is started on the condition that the business organization, i.e., your employer, has a registered branch in India, especially if it is an MNC. In addition, to qualify for an Employment Visa in India your annual salary as a foreign worker should be at least 25,000 USD per annum.
Employment Visa is only granted to senior management employees or highly skilled technical professionals who plan to migrate for work to India.
In India, work permit requirements are different for Business and Employment Visas. To apply for an Employment Visa, the following documents are required by the High Commission/Embassy of India:
You will also have to give proof of your financial standing, in addition to evidence of expertise in your proposed field of business.
To apply at the FRRO, you need to submit the following documents:
If you’ve entered on a Business Visa, you need to provide:
If an individual plans to stay in India for more than a year, then a medical report, including an HIV test, from an authorized WHO centre has to be submitted.
The cost of an Indian work visa is not fixed. Depending on your country and its currency, the application cost for a Business Visa can range anywhere from 120 USD to 230 USD. The Single/Multiple Entry Business Visa issued for a shorter duration is generally much cheaper than the Multiple Entry Visa issued for a five-year duration.
Similarly, an Employment Visa can range anywhere from 120 USD to 560 USD depending on your country and duration of stay. For further information, individuals will have to contact the High Commission of India of their respective countries and confirm from them an accurate cost for their respective applications.