India and Russia Plan Visa-Free Travel for 2025 to Boost Tourism

India and Russia are working towards an agreement that will allow Indian tourists to travel to Russia without a visa by spring 2025, as reported by the Economic Times. This initiative is aimed at making travel between the two countries easier and boosting tourism, particularly for Indian visitors to Russia.

Moscow’s Tourism Committee Predicts More Indian Tourists

Evgeny Kozlov, chairman of the Moscow City Tourism Committee, has shared his optimism about this plan, predicting a significant rise in Indian tourists visiting Moscow once the visa-free policy is in place. Kozlov emphasized that the agreement, currently under development, will likely enhance travel options for Indians and attract more visitors to Russia.

Current E-Visa Facility for Indian Travelers

Ahead of this policy, Russia introduced an e-visa facility for Indian travelers on August 1, 2023. This e-visa takes around four days to process and has already seen significant use. In 2023, 9,500 e-visas were issued to Indian travelers, making India one of the top five countries for Russian e-visa applications, which were mostly for business and work-related visits.

Growing Popularity of Russia Among Indian Tourists

Russia has become increasingly popular for Indian tourists, particularly Moscow. In 2023, over 60,000 Indian tourists visited Moscow, marking a 26% increase compared to 2022. This made India one of the leading non-CIS countries for visitors to Moscow. In early 2024, India ranked third in the list of non-CIS countries with the highest number of business tourists coming to Moscow, and approximately 1,700 e-visas were issued to Indian travelers in January alone.

Russia’s Success with Visa-Free Travel Programs

Currently, Russia has visa-free travel programs in place with countries like China and Iran, which allow group tourists to visit without a visa. The program with China and Iran, introduced in August 2023, has been successful, and Russia now aims to replicate this with India to further promote tourism and strengthen ties.

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SUMMARY

India and Russia are planning to introduce a visa-free travel agreement by spring 2025 to encourage more Indian tourists to visit Russia. This agreement aims to make travel easier and attract more Indian visitors, especially to Moscow. Currently, Indians can get an e-visa to Russia, which takes about four days to process. In 2023, Russia issued 9,500 e-visas to Indian travelers, mainly for business trips. Russia has already implemented a similar visa-free program with China and Iran and hopes to replicate its success with India.