Frequently Asked Questions relating to Conference Visa ****

Frequently Asked Questions relating to Conference Visa Introduction

Several  queries  have  been  raised  about  the  procedure  to  be followed  for  obtaining  a  Conference  Visa  for  attending  international conferences, seminars, workshops etc. in India.

Frequently asked questions with regard to the above issue and replies  thereto  are  outlined  below  for  information,  guidance  and compliance of all concerned:

Q.1   Who are eligible for a Conference visa?

Answer:    A Conference visa is granted to a foreigner:

(i)      whose  sole  objective  of  visiting  India  is  to  attend  a

conference / seminar or   workshop being held in India ;

(ii)      who holds a valid passport, and a re-entry permit if that is

required under the law of the country of nationality of the applicant;

(iii)     who is not a persona-non-grata to the Government of India,
(iv)   who is not considered an undesirable person and is not the
          subject of a   negative list   or any   warning   circular   or   other
          restrictive list; and

(v)     who   is   a   person   of   assured   financial   standing     (the

production  of  a  return  ticket  and  availability  of  sufficient money to spend during his stay in India may be considered sufficient for this purpose).

Q.2   What is the procedure for grant of Conference Visa?

Answer : (i) Indian Missions are authorized to issue Conference visas

to      delegates     on     production     of     an     invitation           to      a

conference/seminar/workshop being organized in India by a Ministry or
Department  of  the  Government  of  India,  State  Governments  or  UT
Administrations,  Public  Sector  Undertakings,  Central  Educational
Institutions,  Public  Funded  Universities  (list  of  such  institutions  are
available on the website www.education.nic.in and the websites of the
University Grants Commission and Association of Indian Universities),
or an organization owned and controlled by the Government of India or
any  State  Government /  UT,  United  Nations  or  its  specialized

agencies. Missions will process the cases for grant of visas and after

satisfying themselves, grant visas to the participants of such events except in cases indicated below under sub para (iii).

(ii) If the conference/seminar/workshop is sponsored by an NGO or a
private institution, the Mission should scrutinize the background of the
NGO/private  institution  and  grant  visa  to  the  participants  except  in
cases indicated below under para (iii).   If the Mission concerned has
any  doubt  about  the  background  of  the  sponsoring  NGO/private
institution, the matter may be referred to MEA and MHA for verification
of the background of the NGO/private institution concerned.

(iii) Missions will be required to make a prior reference to the Ministry of  External  Affairs  and  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  before  granting conference visas to foreigners participating in conferences/ seminars/ workshops etc. in India only in the following cases:-

(a)  Participants  from  Afghanistan,  China,  Iran,  Pakistan,  Iraq,
       Sudan, foreigners of Pakistani origin and Stateless persons;
       and

(b)  Participants  of  conferences/seminars/workshops  who  are
       required to   visit   'Restricted' or 'Protected' areas in India, or
       areas affected by terrorism, militancy and extremism etc. viz.
       Jammu & Kashmir and the North Eastern States.

In the above cases, Ministry of External Affairs will examine the  proposal  along  with  the  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  and  grant clearance  within  four  weeks.  Clearance  will  be  conveyed  to  the Missions and organizers of the conference.

Q.3   What is the procedure for obtaining clearance from the

Ministry           of            Home            Affairs            for            the

conference/seminar/workshop?

Answer: Following procedure will be observed for seeking prior

security             clearance             for             the             International

conference/seminar/workshop  (event)  from  the  Ministry  of  Home Affairs:

(i)      Only  such  events  which  from  the  stand  point  of

parameters  as  mentioned  in  answer  to  Q.2  requiring
MHA’s security clearance   are to be forwarded by the
Ministries/Departments  of  the  Central  Government,
State Government, PSUs etc. to the Ministry of Home
Affairs at least 30 days prior to the commencement of
the event.

(ii)      If the event includes participants from the countries for

which   prior     ‘security   clearance’   is   required,   as

mentioned  in  answer  to  Q.2  above,  details  in  the following format should be sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs at least 30 days prior to the commencement of the event so as to enable adequate time to   process the requisite security clearance.

Sl.     Name   of     Father’s     Natio-      Date    of     Place  of    Pass-       Date        Date of      Add-

No.    applicant      /                nality       Birth           Birth          port          &             Expiry       ress

Husba-                                                       Number    Place

nd’s                                                                           of

Name                                                                         Issue

1       2                 3               4             5                6               7              8             9              10

(iii)     The request for holding international conferences requiring

security  clearance  from  the  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs
(Foreigners  Division)  in  terms  of  the  parameters  as
mentioned in answer to Question no.2   will be submitted by
private organizers - be it an NGO or a private institution to
the  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs (Foreigners  Division)  for

requisite clearance within the prescribed time frame i.e. at least 60  days  prior  to  the  commencement  of  the  event along with the complete details of the participants from the Prior   Reference   Category   countries   i.e.   Afghanistan, China, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Sudan, Foreigners of Pakistani origin and Stateless persons in the format given in subpara (ii) above.

(iv)   Participants from Pakistan are required to apply for visa at
          High  Commission  of  India  in  Islamabad  ‘on  line’.  While
          submitting  the  proposals  for  security  clearance  to  the
          Ministry of Home Affairs (Foreigners Division), the Unique
          ID (File   no.)   of   the   visa   application   in   respect   of
          participants from Pakistan who have applied for visa at HCI
          Islamabad  may  invariably  be  furnished  along  with  the
          application.     Clearance  in  respect  of  participants  from
          Pakistan will be given by the Ministry of Home Affairs only
          ‘on line’.

(v)     All such proposals requiring clearance as mentioned above

should   be   addressed   to   the   Section   Officer    (CC),

Foreigners  Division,  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs,  Jaisalmer House, 26, Mansingh Road, New Delhi - 110011.

In  view  of  the  revised  procedure  for  grant  of  conference  visa  as explained  above,  clearance  from  the  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  for holding an event from security angle would be required only in respect of cases covered above.   No security clearance would be granted by MHA for any event which is not covered above.

Q.4   What is the duration of the Conference visa?

Answer:     Conference  visa  will  be  issued  for  the  duration  of  the
conference and the travelling time.   However, the delegates coming to
attend conference etc. in India can combine tourism with attending the
conference.  Missions  can,  at  their  discretion,  grant  visas  for  the
required  period.  Such  visa  shall  not  exceed  maximum  validity  of
Tourist Visa, i.e, 6 months subject to usual conditions applicable for

grant of the Tourist visa.

Visas  to  participants  covered  in  the  categories  mentioned  in answer to Q.2 will not be granted for a duration longer than that may be  specified  by  the  Ministry  of  External  Affairs  and  the  Ministry  of Home Affairs or the minimum period required. 

Source: http://mha.nic.in/pdfs/FAQs-on-ConferenceVisa.pdf