OCI cardholders travel to India on a multiple-entry, lifelong OCI registration rather than a conventional visa, while other family members -- such as a foreign spouse without OCI -- typically use an e-Visa category (tourist, business, medical) or a longer-term Business Visa, now issued and regulated under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, which replaced the decades-old Foreigners Act, 1946 framework from 1 September 2025.
A new legal framework -- the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025
The Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 came into force on 1 September 2025, consolidating and repealing
four older laws: the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920, the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, the
Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Immigration (Carriers’ Liability) Act, 2000. Content and advice that still
cites the “Foreigners Act, 1946” as the operative statute is now describing a superseded framework.
The new Act gives statutory footing to the Bureau of Immigration, increases penalties for travel-document
fraud, and extends mandatory reporting duties regarding foreign nationals to hotels, universities, hospitals,
and nursing homes.
e-Visa categories
India’s e-Visa scheme, managed through the official government portal, includes several
sub-categories -- e-Tourist Visa, e-Business Visa, e-Medical Visa, e-Medical Attendant Visa, and e-Conference
Visa. The e-Tourist Visa is generally single-entry, valid for a stay of up to 30 days, must be used within 120
days of issue, and requires entry through a specified airport or seaport (not by land route). Validity periods
and fees for the other e-Visa sub-categories are revised periodically by the Ministry of Home Affairs, so the
current details for a specific trip should be confirmed directly on the official e-Visa portal or through an
Indian Mission before travel.
OCI travel versus Business Visa for a foreign spouse without OCI
An OCI cardholder does not need a conventional visa at all -- they travel on their multiple-entry, lifelong
OCI registration. A foreign spouse of an Indian citizen who has not yet obtained OCI status typically needs an
appropriate visa category for each visit, or a longer-term Business Visa (commonly issued for 1, 5, or 10
years depending on reciprocity arrangements with their home country, generally subject to a continuous-stay
cap per visit) if their purpose qualifies, until their own OCI application is approved -- OCI eligibility as a
spouse generally requires the marriage to have subsisted for at least two years.
Do I need a new visa every time I visit India if I hold an OCI card?
No -- an OCI card functions as a multiple-entry, lifelong registration for visiting India, so an OCI
cardholder does not need to apply for a fresh visa for each trip, unlike a foreign national travelling on a
standard e-Visa or other time-limited visa category.
Is the Foreigners Act, 1946 still the law that governs foreign nationals in India?
No -- the Foreigners Act, 1946, along with three other older statutes, was repealed and replaced by the
Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, which came into force on 1 September 2025. Content or advice still
citing the 1946 Act as current law is describing a superseded framework.
Can my foreign spouse without OCI status stay in India long-term on a tourist e-Visa?
Not really as a long-term solution -- an e-Tourist Visa is generally limited to a 30-day single-entry stay.
A spouse planning a longer or more frequent stay should look into applying for OCI status (available once the
marriage has subsisted at least two years) or an appropriate longer-validity visa category suited to their
actual purpose of stay.
