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India has made visas mandatory for members of six non-Muslim communities from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan who entered the country without valid travel documents, citing religious persecution, if they wish to continue staying there.
The Ministry of Home Affairs amended the Immigration and Foreigners (Exemption) Order, 2025, through a notification issued on Wednesday, The Hindu reported.
The requirement applies to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from the three countries who entered India on or before December 31, 2024, without valid travel documents or whose documents have since expired.
The exemption was originally introduced through a notification on September 2, 2025, allowing members of these communities to enter and stay in India without valid passports or visas if they had fled religious persecution or feared such persecution.
Under the latest amendment, however, they must obtain an appropriate visa after entering India to continue their stay.
The 2025 exemption was issued under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, and consolidated earlier provisions protecting members of the six communities from prosecution under passport and foreigners laws.
The amendment also aligns the exempted groups with India’s Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which offers a pathway to citizenship for members of the six communities from the three neighbouring countries who entered India before December 31, 2014.
Visa rules revised
The amendment also changes provisions governing travel between India, Nepal and Bhutan, introduces a formal definition of the Visa Manual and reorganises some exemptions for foreign nationals.
The Visa Manual is defined as a central government document containing instructions on visas, immigration and related matters.
Indian citizens travelling to Nepal or Bhutan, and Nepali and Bhutanese citizens entering or leaving India, will have to present identity documents specified in the manual to immigration authorities.
The passport exemption will not apply to Indian citizens using the Indo-Nepal or Indo-Bhutan borders to travel to third countries. They must carry valid passports and use designated immigration checkpoints.
Similarly, Nepali and Bhutanese citizens travelling to destinations beyond India, Nepal or Bhutan, or those who have embarked from or transited through China, Macau, Hong Kong or Pakistan, must hold valid passports and visas.
