Tourist visa for Indians in 2026: fees, processing times, funds and refusal reasons for 21 countries compared

Key facts

• Visa-free for Indians: Thailand 30 days, Malaysia to 31 Dec 2026, Qatar 30 days
• Cheapest paid visas: Oman OMR 20, Vietnam USD 25, Singapore SGD 30, Japan INR 500
• Most expensive: Australia AUD 250, NZ NZD 441 with levy, US USD 185, UK GBP 135
• Fastest decisions: Saudi eVisa within 24 hours; UAE 48 hours to 4 days; Vietnam and Singapore 3 working days
• Slowest decisions: Ireland about 8 weeks; Canada about 29 days; Australia 21 to 33 days
• Schengen fee: EUR 90 per adult (CHF 90 in Switzerland), 15 calendar days by law
• Funds rule examples: Germany about EUR 45 a day; Spain EUR 122.10 a day; NZ NZD 1,000 a month
• Verified: 21 route pages re-read 29 to 30 October 2026

Overview

Indian passport holders can enter 3 of the 21 countries on this page without a visa (Thailand for 30 days, Malaysia until 31 December 2026 and Qatar for 30 days), receive an e-visa within 24 hours to 5 working days for the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Vietnam and Singapore, and need a sticker or embassy visa with biometrics for the UK, Canada, Australia, the United States and the Schengen states, where the fee runs from EUR 90 to AUD 250 and the decision takes 15 days to 8 weeks.

This guide is the long version of the tourist and visitor visa hub. Each figure below is taken from the verified route page for that country, where you will find the eligibility test, the full fee table, the document checklist and the refusal reasons for that visa.

Tourist visa for Indians: which countries need one and which are free?

The 21 countries with verified route pages fall into four formats. Visa-free entry needs only a passport, a ticket out and sometimes an online arrival card. E-visas are decided online with no appointment. Sticker visas need biometrics at a visa application centre and hold your passport for the decision window. The United States decides at an embassy interview.

The Schengen row covers five route pages (Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands) because the fee and the legal decision window are the same; the funds rule and the appointment system differ, which is why each has its own page.

How much does a tourist visa cost for Indians?

The government fee is only the first line. New Zealand adds a NZD 100 International Visitor Levy at payment, so the online application costs NZD 441 in total. Saudi Arabia's SAR 535 already includes the mandatory insurance and VAT. Sticker visas add a visa application centre service charge (VFS Global, BLS or TLScontact) that is set per country and is not refunded, and most Schengen consulates require travel insurance with at least EUR 30,000 of medical cover before they will accept the file.

Children are not always cheaper: Schengen states charge EUR 45 for ages 6 to 11 and nothing under 6, Australia and the UK charge the full fee for every traveller, and New Zealand charges the same visa fee for children. For a family of four the spread is wide: about USD 100 in Vietnam, about EUR 315 in Spain and about AUD 1,000 in Australia before service charges. The UK vs Schengen tourist visa comparison puts two of the most-filed sticker visas side by side.

Vistolane charges every government fee at the official rate and shows its own filing fee separately, so the figure on each route page is the amount the authority collects, not a bundled price.

How long does a tourist visa take from India?

Published windows are the authority's own figures and most apply from the day the file is complete, not from the day you start. For e-visas that means the day you pay; for sticker visas it means the biometrics appointment, which in peak season can itself be 2 to 6 weeks away at the busiest centres. Plan backwards from the flight:

• E-visas (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Vietnam, Singapore): apply 1 to 2 weeks before travel; do not buy non-refundable tickets until the visa is issued.
• Japan and the Schengen states: apply 4 to 6 weeks ahead, 8 in summer and December; Schengen files can be lodged up to 6 months before the trip.
• United Kingdom, Canada, Australia: apply 6 to 8 weeks ahead; Canada's IRCC tool showed about 29 days in late October 2026 but the range over the year was 29 to 106 days.
• New Zealand: 80 percent of visitor visas within 2 weeks, but September to March files can take 4 to 6 weeks.
• Ireland: about 8 weeks at the New Delhi visa office, longer in summer.
• United States: the interview wait at the Indian posts is the real timeline; the passport comes back 1 to 2 weeks after approval.

How much bank balance do Indians need for a tourist visa?

Only some authorities publish a number, and the number is a floor, not a target. Germany's reference is about EUR 45 a day plus accommodation, France EUR 65 a day with a hotel (EUR 32.50 with a host's attestation), the Netherlands EUR 55 a day, Spain EUR 122.10 a day with a minimum for the trip, Switzerland about CHF 100 a day, New Zealand NZD 1,000 a month (NZD 400 with prepaid accommodation), Thailand THB 10,000 a person or THB 20,000 a family if checked and Malaysia about MYR 500 a day if asked.

The UK, Canada, Australia, the United States, Japan and Singapore publish no figure. Their officers read 3 to 6 months of statements against the itinerary: salary credits that match the employment letter, a balance that covers flights, hotels and daily spending with margin, and no large unexplained deposit in the weeks before filing. A sudden lump sum is the single most common funds problem across all 21 route pages, because it reads as borrowed money.

E-visa, sticker visa or embassy interview: what changes for you

An e-visa asks for scans and a card payment; the risks are typing errors and photo rejections, and the fix is to copy the passport exactly and use a photo taken within 6 months. A sticker visa adds an appointment, biometrics and a passport that is away for the decision window, so two sticker applications cannot run at the same time unless your country allows a second passport. The US embassy visa is decided in a 2 to 3 minute interview under section 214(b), where the officer presumes immigrant intent until your ties, funds and travel history overcome it; the documents are rarely opened, so the answers matter more than the folder.

Why tourist visas get refused, and the fix

Across the 21 visitor route pages the refusal reasons cluster into four groups: funds that do not match the itinerary or arrive as a lump sum; weak ties to India (no employer letter, no tax returns, a long gap in employment); documents that contradict each other (hotel dates that do not match the flight, a sponsor's letter without the sponsor's status); and undeclared history, such as an earlier refusal or overstay. Each route page lists the reasons for that country with the evidence that answers them, and the tourist visa refusal page brings all of them together by theme.

Which tourist visa should an Indian traveller apply for first?

If you plan several trips, sequence them. A valid US, UK, Schengen, Canadian, Australian or Japanese visa unlocks Oman's OMR 5 ten-day visa and its 14-day visa-free entry, and a travel history with those visas shortens the credibility questions everywhere else. The Schengen visa is the most useful first sticker visa for an Indian passport because 29 states share it and many consulates issue multi-year multiple-entry visas to travellers with a clean record. If you only want one trip this year, choose by format and lead time: an e-visa destination for a trip under 4 weeks away, a sticker visa if you have 6 to 8 weeks.

How Vistolane files tourist visas

Vistolane prepares and lodges visitor visas for all 21 countries. The route page shows the government fee and the published window; the free eligibility check scores your profile against the destination before you pay; the travel document checklist is the same list the document checker runs; and the filing date is guaranteed in writing. Government fees are never marked up.

Questions, answered