A year ago Lorraine Hincks put down a deposit on a dream holiday to India. She and her partner paid a total of £12,000 for a Christmas and New Year break to Goa, travelling with Tui.
But after her partner’s visa application was inexplicably rejected, the pair lost their holiday and the entire cost of their holiday.
Among mainstream holiday destinations, India has some of the toughest red tape. The Ministry of Home Affairs in Delhi issues eVisas. But the for shorter holidays applications open only 30 days before departure.
With frequent technical problems befalling applicants, and cases of visas being refused apparently arbitrarily, this gives precious little time for prospective visitors to apply for a full visa – as Ms Hincks and her partner, from Kent, found to their great distress and cost.
“It was after full payment on 16 September that I received a long confirmation email and realised we needed visas. I actually looked into it then, but as advised by Tui we would be able to get an evisa through the official Indian government website. This could only be done 30 days before travel.
“I set myself a reminder for beginning of December and started the process. It was at this time, we suddenly realised this could be a problem.”
Completing the online form typically takes around two hours, with dozens of questions – including listing all countries visited in the past 10 years, stating a religion and declaring whether a grandparent has Pakistani nationality. Some users complain that uploading photographs and passport scans fails to work or that the payment does not go through.
Ms Hincks said: “It took over a week to even upload our applications. Mine actually came back quickly – granted on 8 December. My partner’s was still under processing. This was the only information we could find.”
As a precaution, she tried to make an appointment at the London office that issues full Indian visas. But they were told that because an application was being processed online, nothing could be done.
“As you can imagine, by now we were panicking, as I had been on many forums and found out that an awful lot of other people were having trouble,” Ms Hincks said.
“I was emailing the help desk daily, and the response was always the same: ‘Please be patient, do not travel, visa under processing.’
On 17 December, just three days before the flight to Goa was due to depart, her partner’s application was rejected. No reason was given. There was no time to apply for a full visa, and the holiday was lost.
“We were devastated,” Ms Hincks said.
The couple then went to a local Tui shop close to their home in the Medway area of Kent to ask whether they might switch to another destination.
“They just said that it was nothing they could do because it was too late.”
Ms Hincks subsequently tried to claim on travel insurance, but was rejected.
She said: “if we had known there could have been complications, we could have all applied much earlier for a regular visa. But the only information Tui gave was in an email, advising us to do an eVisa via the Indian government.”
Abta, the travel association, says companies selling holidays must “advise their clients of passport, visa and other entry and transit requirements for the journeys to be undertaken”.
A spokesperson for Tui said: “At the time of booking, customers are presented with an ‘Important Information’ box and must tick to confirm they have read it before continuing to the payment page.
“The ‘Important Information’ explicitly states that a visa is required before travelling to India. It advises that eligible UK passport holders can apply for an eVisa between 30 and four days before departure and directs customers to the official portal.
“It also explains that if a customer isn’t eligible for an e‑Tourist Visa, they must apply for a regular (paper) visa online and make an appointment to visit an Indian Mission/Office in the UK (Birmingham, Edinburgh or London).
“In line with Tui policy, we would not usually amend travel dates or switch destinations free of charge if a customer’s visa is refused before travel.”
India’s standard 30-day eVisa costs British passport holders US$25 (£19), though less for visits between April and June. A one-year eVisa costs US$40 (£30), but has the benefit that applications can begin 120 days (four months) before travel.
In addition, a five-year eVisa is available for US$484 (£360). This option has some appeal for regular visitors, not least because it reduces the frequency of having to tackle the difficult application process.
Read more: Indian visa nightmare wrecks holiday plans for thousands
