Travel To UK And Ireland On Single Visa Under British Irish Visa Scheme

10 Feb 2015

With the launch of new British Irish Visa Scheme, Indian travelers will be now able to apply for British and Ireland visit visa, which enables them to travel to UK and Ireland on a single visa.

A recent press release from British High Commission said that the new scheme is going to facilitate the visa process and draws more Indian visitors to travel to both the nations on the same trip.

According to the press release, the British Irish Visa Scheme was officially launched by the Home Secretary of British, Theresa May and the Ireland minister for Justice and Equality, Frances Fitzgerald, in October 2014 and is presently accessible only for Indian and Chinese citizens. The British High Commissioner to India, Sir James Bevan, said that the launch of new scheme especially for Indians represents UK’s continuous efforts in improving visa services for Indian nationals.

He added that India is a major source for Irish and UK tourism and it is expected that more Indian travelers will opt to arrive to the UK and Ireland, citing this new amendment.

The Ambassador of Ireland to India, Feilim McLaughlin, said that Ireland welcomes the new British Irish Visa proposal and its benefits in Irish-Indian trade as well as tourism links.

India is a major market for Ireland and under the Ireland's Trade, Tourism and Investment Strategy, and New Delhi Embassy as well as India State agencies work on the mutual strategies to augment investment, trade, tourism and education between both the nations.

Ambassador of Ireland added that this scheme facilitates to increase the deep ties between India and Ireland in future.

The press release also stated that as a part of British Irish Visa Scheme, Ireland is going to share the UK’s 12 visa application centers all over the India and all the individuals who would like to apply for UK or Ireland visa would require to utilize the shared VACs (Visa Application Centers) to submit their visa applications and give biometrics.

The release also added that individuals using this scheme would need to come and tour to the country which granted their visa first, prior to being able to trip onto the other country. However, travelers transiting via the UK to Ireland would not require a separate transit visa. 

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