Visas and Passports

From the 2025 Guide, pages 4–9. 3 listings.

A Visa and a valid Passport are both necessary for travel to India.

WORLDWIDE E-VISA

The fastest and easiest way to obtain a visa is through the online application which you can find here: https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/tvoa.html

There are several pages to fill out, and once you submit the application you should receive approval within 2-3 days. If you plan on visiting Pune more than once, you should apply for the five year visa (which was $80 at the time of this writing). Select a duration longer than 30 days when you apply, and the visa duration will start the day of your arrival in India. A copy of the email confirmation is needed at the airport.

To see a sample application with the list of questions, you can view a pdf here: https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/images/SampleForm.pdf

PAPER VISAS

For New York residents:

Visit the Indian consulate website: indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/

There you will find links to completing a form online that you will then print and submit to the Indian consulate.

Australia

How to tell if you can't remember what you filled out on your Visa application form:

Check your visa where it says TYPE and it should be stamped "T" for tourist. In that case you are fine. If you have another letter stamped you would need to make an inquiry before you leave for India.

When a visiting student (mistakenly) got a "yoga studies" visa back in 2009, Indian immigration wrote the name of the institute (RIMYI) on the visa and an additional stamp saying, "Registration required within 30 days of arrival in India."

PASSPORTS

Be sure that your passport is up to date. US Passports may be renewed anytime within a year of expiration and may be renewed online if they are no more than five years old. Still, allow at least three weeks for the process to be completed.

Make three to four copies of your passport and visa to take with you to Pune, along with additional passport photos. You will also need copies of your visa stamp (which was stamped into your passport on arrival). This will save you time and energy at RIMYI, for registering with your landlord, and for when you go to get a SIM card for your phone or a dongle for the Internet.

E- TICKET: IMPORTANT

Be sure to take a printed copy of your e-ticket (flight schedule or itinerary) from the airline or travel agent when you go to Mumbai airport (both domestic and international trips). Tip: Save it on a thumb drive (USB or memory stick) and take it to a copy shop (they have printers). Also Roots & Wings (Pune travel agents – see below) can assist RIMYI students with printing. You will not be allowed into the airport terminal without the printed itinerary, and of course your passport.

WHAT TO BRING:

There are plenty of convenience stores, pharmacies and grocery stores, especially at the Pavillion Mall in Pune (see "Shopping"), but if you must have your own brand of items then pack them along. Do not feel you need to pack your entire life - there is always somewhere to buy anything you might have forgotten.

• First aid kit
• Flashlight (for walking at night or blackouts)
• Charger for your digital camera, smart phone, laptop or ipad
• Kettle for boiling water (purchase one locally) if staying in a hotel
• Your favorite tea or coffee
• Your favorite muesli
• Vitamins
• Probiotics
• Sealable zip lock bags to store food, if staying in a hotel
• Business cards
• Sunblock
• Small backpack for carrying items to class and for shopping
• Comfortable and protective footwear
• Good walking shoes — Pune streets are dusty and dirty. Bring a pair of shoes that cover your feet. (Sandals not recommended)
• Pumice stone for cleaning the black grime from your feet
• Sarong (under your sarong are your yoga tights)
• Three sets of yoga clothes
• Small clothesline with clothespins
• Inflatable hangers to avoid wrinkles made by clothespins
• Medications and prescriptions (painkillers, anti-diarrheal drugs, general antibiotics, antiseptic cream, re-hydration salts, and cold and cough medications)
• If attending during the winter months (November through January), a shawl, sweater or lightweight jacket for early mornings and evenings
• Glue stick: envelopes do not come with glue on the flap. Likewise, stamps are not provided with glue — and post office glue is not very sticky
• Your own hair products if you are going to get your hair dyed while you are in Pune - and don't forget the developer
• Wet Wipes (antibacterial towelettes) and Purell. Not all public restrooms have toilet paper and paper towels.
• A hand towel or small washcloth to tuck in your waistband. While you may find a sink for handwashing, you won't always find a towel for drying.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

The Lonely Planet Guide to India is the Bible for travelers to the subcontinent. The book has a fairly up-to-date section on Pune. It's massive, though, so consider cutting out only the sections you'll need. You can also download specific chapters of the guide for download from the Lonely Planet online store for those areas you intend to visit.

If you have been shopping in Pune and you find your suitcase is overweight, be prepared to purchase an extra case in Pune. An overweight suitcase will be charged extra. An additional suitcase will not be (two suitcases are permitted).

RIMYI will ask you for a passport-sized photo of yourself. Bring a few if you are thinking of purchasing a cell phone card or dongle device for the Internet in Pune.

Copies of your passport, visa and visa stamp (one set for RIMYI, and two sets for your landlord or landlady who have to register you with the authorities), plus copies for cell phone cards and Internet devices.

Look for RIMYI on Google Earth. Print out a map of the immediate area, especially the triangle between Fergusson College Road and University Road. The neighborhood is not laid out on a grid and can be disorienting. Local Pune maps are not detailed enough to show this. See also the map at the back of this guide.

ENVIRONMENT… IMPORTANT!

Bring your own reusable straws for coconuts & your own water carriers so you don't add to the plastic in the ocean.

I got a good stainless-steel reusable straw for India. I reckon that saved about 60 straws (for 60 coconuts in one month). If everyone at RIMYI has 2 coconuts a day that could be as many as 6000 straws just for a month of study there!! Not to mention straws in fresh lime soda, lassi etc. Don't use the plastic, it's a no-brainer.

— Kirsten Agar Ward

Power Supply in India

In India, 220 volts are used to power small appliances. The plug points are three-pin and/or two- pin if more modern, with rounded ends. Use the local plug board with surge protection/combined voltage adapter, which work well and are easily found in Pune. An adapter can also be purchased on Amazon; search "US to India Plug Adapter".

Know a place that should be here, or something that has changed? Suggest an addition.