India medical visa guide for international patients

Last reviewed: 25 September 2026 · Editorial: HonestCareIndia research desk · Official Government of India sources only. Rules change, so check the portal before you apply.

Almost everyone who travels to India for treatment from the US, the UK or Canada needs a visa, and so do most foreign nationals living in the UAE. The good news is that for treatment there's a dedicated online route. This guide walks through it using only official Government of India sources, and it flags the places where those sources don't agree with each other, so you know what to double-check.

Which visa fits your situation

Who can use the e-Visa

The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and the UAE are all on the portal's list of eligible countries.¹ A few conditions apply to everyone:

• Your passport must be valid for at least six months when you apply, and it should have at least two blank pages for the immigration stamp.¹
• You should hold a return or onward ticket and have enough money for your stay.¹
• Each traveller needs their own passport; people endorsed on a parent's or spouse's passport can't use the e-Visa. Children need their own application too.¹
• The e-Visa isn't available to holders of diplomatic or official passports, or to anyone with a defence, military, police or security background, serving or retired. They must apply for a regular visa.¹
• People with a Pakistani passport or of Pakistani origin are asked to apply for a regular visa at an Indian mission.¹

How to apply, step by step

1. Use the official portal only: indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa. The portal warns about agents and intermediaries demanding extra payments.¹
2. Pick your dates. For e-Medical and e-Medical Attendant visas you can apply at least 4 days before arrival, within a 120-day window. The portal's example: apply on 1 September and you can choose an arrival date from 5 September to 2 January.¹
3. Fill in the form yourself. The portal says it takes 10–15 minutes and that you're responsible for the accuracy of every answer. All uploaded documents must be in English.¹
4. Upload a photo: JPEG, 10 KB to 1 MB, square, full face, eyes open, no glasses, on a plain white or light background with no shadows or borders.¹
5. Upload your passport bio page as a PDF of 10–300 KB. The patient also uploads the hospital letter as a PDF of the same size limits.¹
6. Pay the fee at least 4 days before travel, or the application won't be processed. It's non-refundable, whether the visa is granted or not.¹
7. Watch your email. If a document or photo isn't acceptable, the portal says you'll normally be asked to re-upload it within 24 hours. The decision, granted or rejected, also comes by email.¹
8. Check that your status shows "GRANTED" before you travel, and carry a copy of the electronic travel authorisation (ETA).¹

The hospital letter

This is the document that makes it a medical visa. The portal asks for a letter from the hospital in India, on its letterhead, giving the tentative date of admission or treatment and the patient's name, nationality and passport number.¹ Ask the hospital's international patient desk for it once you've agreed a provisional date, and check every detail against your passport before you upload it. A companion applying for an e-Medical Attendant visa uploads only their passport page and photo.¹

Fees

The fee depends on your nationality. The portal's fee table for e-Medical and e-Medical Attendant visas, dated 15 April 2026, lists 100 for US nationals, 129 for UK nationals, and 80 for Canadian and UAE nationals.⁴ The table doesn't name the currency, so check the amount shown on the payment page. A 3% bank transaction charge is added, and the portal says there are no other fees, at the airport or anywhere else.¹

How long it lasts, entries and extensions

Both e-Medical visas allow multiple entries.¹ On validity, the portal contradicts itself. Its list of visa types says one year (365 days) from the date of arrival for e-Medical and e-Medical Attendant visas, while its FAQ says 60 days from the date of first arrival.¹ Until that's resolved, go by the dates printed on your own ETA, and plan around the shorter period if your treatment dates are tight.

The portal also says the e-Visa is non-extendable and non-convertible.¹ If your treatment might run long, talk to the hospital before you travel about whether a regular Medical visa from an Indian mission suits you better. The Ministry of Home Affairs describes that visa as granted for up to one year or the treatment period, whichever is less, with attendant visas for up to two people running for the same period as the patient's.²

Arriving in India

• Land at a designated airport or seaport. e-Visa holders must enter through the airports and seaports listed on the portal, which include Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi (Cochin), Thiruvananthapuram and Ahmedabad. Land borders aren't allowed. You can leave from any immigration check post.¹
• Biometrics are taken at immigration on arrival.¹
• New passport? If you renewed your passport after the ETA was issued, carry both the new passport and the old one the ETA was issued on.¹
• e-Arrival card. The government's OCI portal notes that foreigners and OCI cardholders can submit the e-Arrival card online within 72 hours before arrival, on the official sites or the "Indian Visa Su-Swagatam" app.³
• Restricted areas. The e-Visa isn't valid for protected, restricted or cantonment areas without separate permission.¹

Do you need to register with the FRRO?

Usually not, for a normal treatment trip. Under the Immigration and Foreigners Rules, 2025, foreigners generally register within 14 days of arrival, through the "Indian Visa Su-Swagatam" app or Form-I on the FRRO portal.^{5, 6} But the rules exempt anyone who enters on a visa valid for 180 days or less and doesn't stay beyond it (unless the visa endorsement says otherwise), children under 12, and OCI cardholders.⁵ If you enter on a visa valid for 180 days or less and then need to stay longer, the rules say you must register within 14 days after the 180 days run out.⁵

Separately, hospitals must record the details of every foreign patient on arrival and send a report to the registration officer within 24 hours, so bring your passport and visa to admission.⁵

Notes by home country

• United States: US nationals are e-Visa eligible, and the fee table lists 100 for the e-Medical visa.^{1, 4}
• United Kingdom: British nationals are eligible; the fee table lists 129. Read the FCDO's India travel advice, including its entry requirements section, before you book.^{4, 7}
• Canada: Canadian nationals are eligible; the fee table lists 80. The e-Visa portal has a separate "Advisory for Canadian Nationals" tab, so read it before applying, and check Global Affairs Canada's India page, which includes a medical tourism note.^{1, 4, 8}
• UAE residents: your passport, not your residence, decides the route. Indian citizens need no visa and OCI cardholders use their OCI card.³ UAE nationals are e-Visa eligible (fee listed at 80), and the portal says they can get a visa on arrival only if they've previously held an Indian e-Visa or regular visa.^{1, 4} Other nationalities living in the UAE follow the rules for their own passport.

Before you fly: a short checklist

• Passport valid for six months, with two blank pages.
• Hospital letter on letterhead with your name, nationality, passport number and admission date.
• ETA showing "GRANTED", printed or saved, for you and each attendant.
• Return or onward ticket, and funds for the stay.
• Medical records, imaging and your written quote from the hospital.

Planning treatment? Our cost guides cover hip replacement, knee replacement, dental implants and IVF, with editions for the US, UK, Canada and UAE. If you'd like a written, itemised quote, ask here.

FAQ: India's medical visa