Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurated Northeast India's first multi-country Visa Application Centre in Guwahati. The facility will benefit residents of the region who previously had to travel to Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai to submit visa applications and biometrics.
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma underscored that the Visa Application Centre of Guwahati will make international travel more accessible and convenient. (Image: PTI)
For years, residents of India's northeastern states seeking visas for overseas education, employment, tourism or medical treatment have had to factor in an additional expense before their journeys even began. Travelling to another city to submit applications and biometrics. For many, that meant booking flights or undertaking long train journeys to Kolkata (the nearest VFS centre), arranging accommodation, taking time off work or studies, and making sure they reached there on time. The inauguration of a multi-country Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Guwahati on Thursday seeks to ease that burden.
The VAC, which will be operated by VFS Global, is the first full-fledged, multi-country visa application facility in Northeast India. It will initially serve applicants seeking visas for 14 countries, including several European destinations, Japan, Ireland, Egypt and Morocco. More countries will get added to the list.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurated the centre on Thursday and called it a significant step for the region. The facility is expected to reduce the time, money and logistical difficulties involved in applying for visas, particularly for residents of states that have long remained distant from India's major visa-processing hubs.
"The VFS Global's visa centre facility will make international travel more accessible and convenient to our people," CM Himanta said after inaugurating the facility. "The Visa Application Centre will bring the world closer to Assam and Northeast's people."
Two-time National Award-winning filmmaker from Assam, Utpal Borpujari, called the new VAC in Guwahati a "much needed" initiative.
"Finally, a VFS Global visa application centre has been started in Guwahati. Was much needed. Now people in Assam and the rest of the Northeast need not go to Kolkata or Delhi for visa applications, at least for some countries, if not all," Borpujari wrote on X on Thursday.
HOW THE NEW VISA APPLICATION CENTRE IN ASSAM WILL EASE PEOPLE'S LIVES
Visa Application Centres handle the administrative side of the visa process on behalf of foreign governments. They typically collect application forms and supporting documents, capture fingerprints and photographs, and facilitate the transfer of applications to the relevant embassy or consulate. Passports are returned to applicants after the visa decision.
The centres do not decide whether a visa should be granted or refused. That authority rests with the relevant government or diplomatic mission.
For applicants from the Northeast, the absence of a permanent, multi-country facility in the region meant that even routine formalities could involve considerable planning. A student applying to study abroad, for instance, might have to coordinate a visa appointment with university deadlines, while paying for travel and accommodation to far away Kolkata or Delhi. Professionals, tourists and medical travellers faced similar difficulties.
The Guwahati facility would ease these logistical challenges, although applicants will still need to follow the requirements and appointment procedures of their destination countries.
WHICH COUNTRIES WILL VFS GLOBAL CENTRE IN GUWAHATI COVER?
The VAC will initially handle applications for 14 countries, according to the official announcement. These include Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Italy, Latvia, Switzerland, Cyprus, Egypt, Ireland, Japan, Malta and Morocco, among others.
"Now you can avail visa services for seven Schengen countries under one roof as Assam takes another step towards global connectivity," wrote Assam minister Bimal Borah on X.
Several of the destinations are European countries, including members of the Schengen area. However, applicants must check the specific visa category, jurisdiction and document requirements for their destination before booking an appointment.
The BJP government led by CM Himanta had earlier indicated that the facility could eventually expand to cover more than 60 countries once fully operational. The initial rollout is therefore a starting point rather than the full scope of the proposed service.
OVER 600 VISA APPLICATION CENTRES ACROSS INDIA
India already has an extensive network of visa application facilities, but access to these services has not been evenly distributed geographically.
VFS Global, the largest operator of outsourced visa services in India, has been reported to operate more than 560 Visa Application Centres in around 20 Indian cities serving around 53 countries. Its official India portal lists services for multiple destinations across cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.
Other service providers, including BLS International and TLScontact, also handle visa-related services for certain governments. BLS International's official portal, for instance, lists visa application services for multiple countries.
There is no single verified, up-to-date nationwide count covering every provider and every physical facility.
The contrast is therefore not simply between the number of centres in India and the number in the Northeast. It is also about where those facilities are located and how far applicants must travel to reach them.
WHY KOLKATA WAS A KEY DESTINATION FOR NORTHEASTERN APPLICANTS
Before the Guwahati facility's opening, Kolkata was among the principal destinations for applicants from the Northeast who needed to complete visa formalities outside their home region. The national capital, Delhi, was another important hub, depending on the destination country's rules and the relevant visa-processing arrangements.
A 2023 answer in the Lok Sabha noted that most embassies and visa facilitation centres were located in Delhi, while around 70 consulates and assistant high commissions were located in Kolkata. It also clarified that applicants had to approach the diplomatic mission or visa facility with jurisdiction over their application.
Kolkata was generally the more practical option for many applicants travelling from Guwahati because of its relative proximity and transport connections. But it was not necessarily the nearest or mandatory destination for every resident of all eight northeastern states. The appropriate centre depended on the country being applied to and the services available there.
For residents of more remote districts, reaching even Guwahati can involve additional road or air travel. The new facility therefore reduces one major barrier, though it does not eliminate every travel-related difficulty across the region.
However, for the Northeast, the Guwahati centre also has a wider regional significance. Better access to international travel services complements the region's efforts to strengthen educational, commercial and tourism links with other countries, including those in Southeast and East Asia.
The inauguration on October 15 is a concrete step towards addressing a longstanding gap in access. Its longer-term impact will depend on how quickly the list of countries expands, how appointments are made available and whether the facility can serve applicants from across all eight northeastern states efficiently.
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