Visa hurdle for residents stuck in India
THREE-MONTH RESIDUAL VALIDITY MUST FOR THOSE AIMING TO RETURN TO UAE
Anew visa condition set by the Indian government to allow international travel of Indians stranded home is compounding the woes of UAE residents desperately wishing to return.
In an office memorandum issued on June 1, the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs released a revised Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) for movement of persons stranded in India who wish to travel abroad. The memorandum stipulates certain conditions to allow Indians to fly out including a minimum validity of three months on their visas, in the case of UAE residents.
“Only those persons shall be allowed to travel to the destination countries, who are citizens of that country; who have a green card of OCI card; Indian nationals who are holding visa of that country with a minimum residual validity of three months.”
UAE residents stranded in India are worried that the new visa validity rule implemented by the Indian government will hamper their return even after receiving approval from the UAE. Several of them told Gulf
News that this is compounding their struggle to return to the UAE even as the UAE announced that all visas expiring after March 1 will be considered valid till the end of the year owing to the pandemic.
If the policy is not changed, stranded residents, who cannot meet the visa validity rule, said they are afraid that airlines and immigration officials will not allow them to return.
Consulate to raise issue
Consul General of India in Dubai Vipul confirmed that the Indian missions in the UAE had received the new order. “We have seen the notification and we will be talking to New Delhi on how this will be implemented in the current scenario,” he said.
In a memorandum issued on June 1, the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs released a revised standard operating procedure (SOP) for persons stranded in India who wish to travel abroad.
The memorandum, a copy of which is with Gulf News, stipulates a minimum validity of three months on visas in the case of UAE residents. It states: “Only those persons shall be allowed to travel to destination countries, who are citizens of that country; who have a green card or an OCI card; Indian nationals holding visa of that country with a minimum residual validity of three months.”