Visas on arrival rise by 22.6 percent in July

The number of Visas on Arrival (VoA) issued to tourists from 11 selected countries grew by 22.6 percent in July compared to the same month last year, officials said Wednesday.

During the month, 1,154 VoAs were issued compared to 941 during July 2012.

At 327, the maximum number of VoAs issued in July were to Japanese tourists followed by New Zealand with 251 visas, Indonesia 173, the Philippines 172, Singapore 149, Finland 44, Vietnam 14, Myanmar 8, Cambodia 8 and Luxembourg 3.

Between January and July, a total of 10,482 VoAs were issued compared to 7,662 during the same period in 2012, registering a growth of 36.8 percent.

The highest number of visas were issued at the Delhi airport (5,908) followed by Mumbai (2,250), Chennai (1,593) and Kolkata (731).

The government launched the Visa on Arrival scheme in January 2010 for citizens of Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand and Singapore.

In January 2011, the scheme was extended to citizens of Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Laos and Myanmar.