India to issue first tourist visas to Chinese nationals in 5 years

India will allow Chinese citizens to apply for tourist visas for the first time in five years amid ongoing efforts by the world’s two most populous countries to improve relations following years of tension.

The Indian embassy in Beijing said applications for tourist visas would resume on Thursday.

It said applicants must complete an online form then book an in-person appointment to submit the required documents at centres in Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou.

China’s foreign ministry described the announcement as a “positive move” that served the “common interest” of all sides.

“China stands ready to maintain communication and coordination with India to keep facilitating people-to-people exchanges between the two countries,” Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for the ministry, said on Wednesday.

India suspended all tourist visas and e-visas for Chinese nationals in 2020 following the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and a deadly clash between troops from the two countries along their disputed border in the Himalayas.